NHL Player News

Kyrou scored a power-play goal on two shots and added two hits in Thursday's 7-2 win over the Jets in Game 3.

Kyrou has scored two power-play goals on eight shots over the first three games of the playoffs. He's still seeing top-six minutes and ample power-play time, which gives Kyrou plenty of chances to make an impact. He may not be the Blues' top scorer, but he should be pretty consistent on offense.

Thomas notched four assists, including two on the power play, added two PIM and went plus-3 in Thursday's 7-2 win over the Jets in Game 3.

Thomas had two assists in each of the first and third periods as the Blues dominated on home ice. This was Thomas' third four-point effort since March 25. He's put up five points, five shots on net, three hits and a minus-1 rating over three playoff contests. Thomas is playing on the first line and first power-play unit, so he's in a great position to continue putting up substantial scoring numbers.

Karlsson logged a shorthanded assist in Thursday's 5-2 loss to the Wild in Game 3.

Karlsson set up Reilly Smith's tally in the third period, but the Golden Knights couldn't build on that goal. The helper was Karlsson's first point in three playoff outings. The center has added three shots on net and a minus-1 rating so far in the postseason after logging 29 points, 119 shots on net and a plus-17 rating over 53 regular-season appearances.

Trenin registered an assist in Thursday's 5-2 win over the Golden Knights in Game 3.

The Wild have gotten little offense from their depth players, but the fourth line combined for a goal Thursday. Trenin set up Marco Rossi's first-period tally. This was just the third point in the last 25 games for Trenin, who offers far more physicality than offense. In the regular season, he had 15 points, 85 shots on net, 241 hits and 54 PIM across 76 appearances, and he's already racked up 15 hits and five blocked shots over three postseason outings.

Rossi scored a goal on four shots, dished a power-play assist and added two PIM in Thursday's 5-2 win over the Golden Knights in Game 3.

Rossi's play during the first two games of this first-round series earned him a demotion to the fourth line. He was still there in Game 3, but he was able to make an impact with the Wild in control of the line matchups on home ice. This ended a five-game point drought for the 23-year-old center, who may struggle on offense if he remains stuck in the bottom six. Rossi had 24 goals, 60 points, 136 shots on net and a plus-3 rating over 82 regular-season outings.

Matthews had a goal and an assist in a 3-2 overtime win over Ottawa in Game 3 on Thursday.

His goal was one of those SportsCenter moments. The Leafs rimmed the puck behind the net where Mitch Marner deftly touch-passed the puck right onto Matthews' stick. The puck was behind Linus Ullmark so fast that the netminder hadn't even pivoted his head in the direction of the puck -- he was actually still looking over his opposite shoulder as the shot was taken. It was nice to see Matthews get more offensive-zone time in this game. Head coach Craig Berube had used both Matthews and Marner in heavy rotation on starts in the defensive zone in Games 1 and 2. Matthews is one of the best two-way players in the world, so the defensive-zone starts make sense, even if we'd like to see a lot more offense from him.

Barkov suffered an undisclosed injury during Game 2's 2-0 victory over Tampa Bay on Thursday. Head coach Paul Maurice didn't have an update on the 29-year-old's status after the game, Colby Guy of The Palm Beach Post reports.

Barkov sustained the injury on a hit from Tampa Bay's Brandon Hagel in the third period that resulted in Hagel receiving a five-minute major for interference. Barkov registered an assist across 15:41 of ice time before exiting the game. He had 20 goals and 71 points in 67 regular-season appearances. If Barkov can't play, then Tomas Nosek might draw into the lineup.

Cirelli (undisclosed) will play against Florida in Game 2 on Thursday, per the NHL media site.

Cirelli was regarded as a game-time decision after exiting Game 1 on Tuesday due to the injury. He had 27 goals and 59 points across 80 appearances during the regular season. Cirelli is projected to skate on the second line alongside Brandon Hagel and Jake Guentzel versus the Panthers.

Dach (elbow) was reassigned to AHL Rockford on Thursday, according to Charlie Roumeliotis of WGN Radio.

Dach missed Chicago's final 13 regular-season outings due to the injury, but he's presumably healthy now based on his reassignment. The 22-year-old had two goals, seven points, 17 PIM and 86 hits across 25 appearances with Chicago as a rookie in 2024-25. He's also provided 12 goals and 26 points in 33 regular-season outings with Rockford.

Vilardi (upper body) will not play in St. Louis for Game 3 on Thursday, Murat Ates of The Athletic reports.

Vilardi traveled with the Jets to St. Louis ahead of Thursday's game and participated in the morning skate, albeit in a non-contact jersey. Vilardi will miss his 14th straight game and is doubtful for Game 4 on Sunday at this time. Vilardi ended the regular season with 27 goals and 61 points in 71 games, all career highs. Alex Iafallo will continue to play on the top line with Kyle Connor and Mark Scheifele in Vilardi's absence.