NHL Player News
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Mikael Granlund C | SJ
Sharks' Mikael Granlund: Playing against Blues
Granlund (upper body) will be in action to face St. Louis on Thursday, Max Miller of NHL.com reports.
Granlund will avoid missing any time after being injured in Wednesday's matchup with Dallas. The 32-year-old center is riding a three-game point streak while racking up three goals and five assists in his last seven outings. With Granlund fully fit, he figures to maintain his first-line role alongside William Eklund and Fabian Zetterlund.
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Zach Hyman C | EDM
Oilers' Zach Hyman: Won't play versus Wild
Hyman (undisclosed) will be out of action against Minnesota on Thursday, Tony Brar of Oilers TV reports.
Hyman will miss out Thursday while mired in a six-game goal drought during which he put 15 shots on net. After putting up 77 points in 80 regular-season games last year, Hyman is struggling to produce at that level in 2024-25 and is currently on pace to barely break the 30-point threshold. An extended injury absence certainly won't improve his chances of stringing together points.
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Ryan Poehling C | PHI
Flyers' Ryan Poehling: Pots first goal of season
Poehling scored his first goal of the season in Wednesday's 4-1 loss to the Hurricanes.
The 25-year-old center used a partial screen from a Carolina defender to sneak a shot past Pyotr Kochetkov early in the second period. Poehling's checking-line role gives him little fantasy appeal, but he is on pace for a career-best season with seven points through 17 appearances.
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Nick Paul C | TB
Lightning's Nick Paul: Ruled out versus Jackets
Paul (undisclosed) will not be in the lineup against Columbus on Thursday after head coach Jon Cooper told reporters, "He will be out tonight so we will reevaluate him in Tampa when we get back," per Gabby Shirley of FanDuel Sports Network Florida & Sun.
Paul will be sidelined for the first time this season, having played in all 17 games for the Bolts. In those outings, the 29-year-old winger has notched five goals, eight assists and 25 shots while averaging 16:24 of ice time. As long as Paul doesn't spend a significant chunk of time on the shelf, he should be capable of reaching both the 20-goal and 40-point thresholds for the second consecutive campaign.
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John Tavares C | TOR
Maple Leafs' John Tavares: Two-point effort in win
Tavares collected two assists in Wednesday's 3-0 win over the Golden Knights.
Both points came in the third period as the Leafs pulled away. Tavares has picked up his scoring pace since Auston Matthews (upper body) was sidelined, and over the last six games the 34-year-old center has four goals and eight points.
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Fraser Minten C | TOR
Maple Leafs' Fraser Minten: First career goal a game-winner
Minten scored the game-winning goal in Wednesday's 3-0 victory over the Golden Knights.
In just his fifth career NHL game and his first of the season, the 2022 second-round pick opened the scoring by snapping home a slick feed from William Nylander midway through the first period. That was all the offense Joseph Woll would need on the night. Minten missed the beginning of the campaign with an ankle injury, but in five games for AHL Toronto after getting healthy he recorded two goals and four points. The 20-year-old has the skills, speed and hockey IQ to fill a middle-six role for the Maple Leafs while the team deals with a rash of injuries, and he even saw some power-play shifts Wednesday. Minten could have some short-term fantasy value until the Toronto forward ranks are closer to full strength.
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Kent Johnson C | CLB
Blue Jackets' Kent Johnson: Activated from injured reserve
The Blue Jackets activated Johnson (shoulder) from injured reserve Thursday.
Johnson was off to a great start with two goals and three assists in his first four games before a shoulder injury knocked him out of the lineup, forcing him to miss 14 games. Johnson, who was selected fifth overall in 2021, is expected to play alongside Adam Fantilli and James van Riemsdyk on the second line Thursday when Columbus hosts Tampa Bay. He should also see power-play time on the second unit as he is eased back into the lineup.
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Wyatt Johnston C | DAL
Stars' Wyatt Johnston: Scores, assists in win over Sharks
Johnston had a goal and an assist in Wednesday's 5-2 win over the Sharks.
Johnston enjoyed an excellent start to the season and cracked the scoresheet in his first five appearances, but he's cooled off since then. This was his first multi-point outing of the campaign, and excluding that five-game stretch at the beginning of the season, he only has four points (two goals, two assists) in 13 contests. Given that Johnston had 65 points in 82 regular-season outings in 2023-24, this is not the kind of start neither he nor fantasy managers were hoping for.
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Chandler Stephenson C | SEA
Kraken's Chandler Stephenson: Distributes three helpers in win
Stephenson recorded three assists, two shots on goal, two blocked shots and a plus-3 rating in Wednesday's 3-0 win over the Predators.
The Kraken's second line carried the scoring, with Stephenson's three assists leading the way. He set up goals by Daniel Sprong and Brandon Montour before drawing a secondary helper on Yanni Gourde's empty-netter. This was the third time Stephenson has earned multiple assists in a game. He's settled into a playmaking role, though he's assembled just one point streak this season. The 30-year-old center has a goal, 12 helpers, 20 shots on net and a minus-3 rating over 20 outings, and fantasy managers likely want to see more consistency on a game-to-game basis.
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Mikael Granlund C | SJ
Sharks' Mikael Granlund: Exits late in loss
Granlund (upper body) left Wednesday's game versus the Stars in the third period, Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now reports.
Head coach Ryan Warsofsky didn't have an update on Granlund's status. The center was pulled from the game late in the third period after a high hit, so it's likely he was in the concussion protocol. The injury leaves him in doubt for Thursday's game against the Blues. Givani Smith would likely draw into the lineup and Alexander Wennberg would move up if Granlund can't play Thursday. Prior to his exit, Granlund scored a shorthanded goal and added his 400th career assist in the 5-2 loss.