NHL Player News

Laughton was traded to Toronto from Philadelphia on Friday along with a fourth round and a sixth-round pick in exchange for a 2027 first-round selection and Nikita Grebenkin, Chris Johnston of The Athletic reports.

Laughton joins the Leafs needing to get out of a funk, having scored just once in his last 12 contests. Unless he shifts to the wing, it seems unlikely the Ontario native will take on a top-six role with his new club, though he could get minutes with the No. 2 power-play unit. It would take a strong finish to the season, but the 40-point threshold isn't completely out of the question for the 30-year-old Laughton.

Schmaltz scored a power-play goal in Thursday's 4-2 win over the Red Wings.

Schmaltz has two goals and five assists over his last six games, and he's earned four of those seven points with the man advantage. His tally Thursday tied the game at 2-2 in the second period. The 29-year-old is now at 13 goals, 48 points, 132 shots on net and a minus-10 rating over 62 appearances. He's made great progress overall since beginning the campaign with a 23-game goal drought.

Reinhart scored a power-play goal and delivered two assists, including one on the power play, in Thursday's 3-0 win over the Blue Jackets.

Similar to Aleksander Barkov, Reinhart was involved directly in each of the team's three goals. Reinhart opened the scoring with his 32nd goal of the campaign in the early stages of the first period before setting up the remaining two tallies. The 29-year-old winger, who has cracked the scoresheet in eight of his 11 appearances dating back to the beginning of February, has notched 67 points (32 goals, 35 assists) across 63 games this season.

Barkov recorded an empty-net goal and delivered two power-play assists in Thursday's 3-0 win over the Blue Jackets.

Barkov had a hand in each of the three goals scored by the Panthers in this win. Aside from setting up the team's first two goals on the power play, he delivered the final blow with an empty-netter in the dying moments when the Blue Jackets were all out on the attack looking for a late equalizer. Barkov is having another excellent season and has recorded five multi-point games across his last eight appearances, giving him 11 points (four goals, seven helpers) in that span.

Norris, along with Jacob Bernard-Docker, was acquired by the Sabres from the Senators on Friday in a swap for Dylan Cozens, Dennis Gilbert and a 2026 second-round pick.

Norris is a slightly risky play for the Sabres given his injury history -- he hasn't reached the 60-game mark in either of the previous two seasons -- but offers more scoring upside at this point. Through 53 games this year, the 25-year-old center has already notched 20 goals, including six with the man advantage. With Buffalo, Norris could supplant Jiri Kulich as the No. 1 center and get minutes alongside Tage Thompson at both even strength and with the man advantage.

Cozens, along with Dennis Gilbert and a 2026 second-round pick, were brought in by the Senators in a trade with the Sabres on Friday in exchange for Josh Norris and Jacob Bernard-Docker.

Cozens' production has underwhelmed this season, generating just 11 goals and 20 helpers in 61 games -- a far cry from the 68 points he put up back in 2022-23. While the youngster has been filling a second-line center role for the Sabres, he could find himself relegated to the bottom six behind Shane Pinto with his new club. Still, a strong finish to the 2024-25 campaign could see Cozens reach the 40-point threshold for the third straight year -- a mark that would be easier to achieve if he can manage more power-play productivity.

LaBate was loaned to AHL Cleveland on Friday.

LaBate spent the past two weeks with Columbus and recorded an assist, 14 hits, 11 blocked shots and 10 PIM while averaging 9:06 of ice time over six appearances. The Blue Jackets are still dealing with several injuries among their group of forwards, so it's possible that LaBate returns to the NHL club soon. However, Friday's move gives the team flexibility to move him between the AHL and NHL as the season winds down.

Geekie scored two goals in Thursday's 3-2 loss to the Hurricanes.

The 26-year-old continues to thrive on Boston's top line alongside David Pastrnak and Pavel Zacha. Geekie has found the back of the net seven times in 11 games since the beginning of February, giving him a career-high 22 goals on the season in 59 appearances.

Larkin scored his 25th goal of the season on a game-high seven shots on net during Thursday's 4-2 loss to Utah.

The 28-year-old center snapped a brief four-game point drought when he got the Red Wings on the board early in the first period. Larkin secured his fifth career 25-goal campaign in the process, and with 20 games left on the schedule for Detroit, he has plenty of time to reach 30 tallies for the fourth straight season.

Lowry scored a goal and blocked two shots in Thursday's 4-1 win over the Flyers.

The tally was Lowry's first point in seven appearances since he returned from an eight-game absence due to an upper-body injury. The 31-year-old center stretched the Jets' lead to 4-0 midway through the second period. Lowry has 12 goals and 27 points over 55 appearances, and if he can get some momentum on offense, he should cross the 30-point threshold for the third year in a row. He's added 76 shots on net, 102 hits, 47 blocked shots, 26 PIM and a plus-17 rating this season in a middle-six role.