NHL Player News

Danault recorded two goals on four shots and a hit in Saturday's 4-1 preseason win over the Maple Leafs.

Danault spent time with the Kings and Canadiens last year, and his production took a significant hit despite appearing in 75 regular-season games. He recorded 11 goals, 17 assists, 63 hits, 40 blocked shots and 26 PIM while averaging 15:34 of ice time. He improved after being dealt to Montreal, and he could put together a bounce-back performance during the 2026-27 campaign.

Joshua didn't play in either of the Maple Leafs' split-squad games Saturday because he is dealing with an undisclosed injury, David Alter of The Hockey News reports.

Joshua is a veteran winger, so it's not necessarily a problem for him to be sitting out preseason games. However, he was limited to 55 appearances in 2025-26 and hasn't played in more than 63 games in any of the last three years. Joshua will fill a bottom-six role when healthy, but until the Maple Leafs provide a more detailed update, it's unclear when that will happen.

Washe signed a four-year, $9 million contract extension with Anaheim on Saturday, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports.

Washe will play the final season of his two-year, $1.63 million contract in the 2026-27 campaign. He contributed two goals, five points, 33 shots on net, 25 blocked shots and 91 hits in 39 appearances with the Ducks during the 2025-26 regular season. Washe will likely be a regular in the lineup this year as part of the team's bottom-six forward group.

Gaudette (upper body) is day-to-day, per Max Miller of NHL.com on Saturday.

Gaudette didn't participate in Saturday's practice and probably won't play in Sunday's preseason matchup against Anaheim. He collected 17 goals, 25 points, 96 shots on net and 53 hits in 66 regular-season contests for the Sharks in 2025-26.

Blackwell (undisclosed) needed to be helped off the ice during Saturday's practice, per Robert Tiffin of NHL.com.

Blackwell had four goals, 15 points, 40 PIM and 112 hits in 70 regular-season appearances in 2025-26. He will likely serve in a bottom-six role when he's healthy this campaign. Joel Kiviranta's chances of dressing for the season opener would increase if Blackwell needs some time to recover.

Luostarinen focused on adding muscle during the offseason, Rob Darragh of the Panthers' official site reports Friday.

Luostarinen is slated to be on the third line to begin 2026-27, though he has occasionally moved up in the lineup. The longer offseason created by the Panthers missing the playoffs last spring opened the door for Luostarinen to do more in his offseason workouts. He has recorded at least 24 points in each of the last five years, so he'll have some appeal in deeper fantasy formats.

The Ducks announced that Poehling will miss practice Friday due to a lower-body injury, and he's considered day-to-day moving forward.

Poehling made 75 regular-season appearances during his first year in Anaheim last season, and he recorded 11 goals, 25 assists, 86 blocked shots, 44 hits and 12 PIM while averaging 15:04 of ice time. While he's dealing with some limitations early in training camp, it's not yet clear whether his lower-body injury will impact his availability for preseason action or the start of the regular season.

Jarvis (shoulder) was on the ice for practice Thursday, Ryan Henkel of The Hockey News reports.

Jarvis is coming back from surgery for a torn labrum and rotator cuff. It was his first time on the ice with teammates during his recovery process, which was initially given a 4-6 month timeline in late June. The forward looks to be ahead of schedule, though it's unlikely he'll be ready for the start of the season even with the strong progress he's made so far. However, fantasy managers can have some optimism that he will be back in October rather than missing half of the season, as long as he's able to avoid setbacks.

Verhaeghe (lower body) is ready for the start of training camp, Jameson Olive of the Panthers' official site reports Thursday.

Verhaeghe had 25 goals and 55 points in 77 regular-season appearances with the Panthers in 2025-26. He skated alongside Sam Bennett and Matthew Tkachuk during Thursday's line rushes. Head coach Paul Maurice did suggest that it would be one of Florida's lines "if we had to drop the puck tonight," but the Panthers will presumably continue to evaluate their options ahead of the season opener.

Bennett (lower body) told reporters Thursday that he feels mentally and physically fresh ahead of the 2026-27 campaign.

Bennett ended last season on the shelf, missing the last three games. He had battled a couple of injuries late in the campaign, but he was still productive with a career-high 58 points over 76 appearances. The 30-year-old is in good shape for 2026-27 and should continue to center the Panthers' second line.