NHL Player News

Desharnais (upper body) will not play in Saturday's home contest against the Flyers, per Max Miller of NHL.com.

Desharnais will miss his first contest since his return to the lineup Jan. 19. Across 40 games this season, the 29-year-old blueliner has five points, 60 PIM, 24 shots on net, 72 hits and 67 blocked shots. His next opportunity to return is for the start of San Jose's upcoming three-game road trip, which kicks off Tuesday in Nashville.

Miller scored a shorthanded goal in Friday's 4-3 overtime win over the Maple Leafs.

Miller has scored in consecutive games, and this tally was the first shorthanded goal of his career. The 26-year-old defenseman continues to play in a top-four role and is getting time in all situations while Shayne Gostisbehere (lower body) is out. Miller has 32 points, 101 shots on net, 85 hits, 66 blocked shots, 48 PIM and a plus-8 rating over 61 outings this season. It's already his second-best year on offense.

Nikishin scored a goal on four shots and added two PIM in Friday's 4-3 overtime win over the Maple Leafs.

The goal, Nikishin's 10th of the season, came 41 seconds into overtime. He has three goals and two assists over his last seven contests and has played a larger power-play role recently in the absence of Shayne Gostisbehere (lower body). Nikishin has 27 points, 110 shots on net, 115 hits, 74 blocked shots, 29 PIM and a plus-12 rating over 68 outings as a rookie this season.

Girard (upper body) will be back in the lineup versus Winnipeg on Saturday,

Girard missed five games with the injury. He will play alongside Kris Letang on the second pairing. Girard has three goals and 12 points in 47 games split between Colorado and Pittsburgh this season.

Vaakanainen (upper body) is week-to-week, according to Vince Z. Mercogliano of The Athletic on Saturday.

Vaakanainen sat out Thursday's game versus Columbus after being injured against the Devils on Wednesday. The defenseman has six assists in 33 games with the Rangers this season. There isn't much time left in the regular season, and Vaakanainen may spend the remainder of it on the shelf.

Graves (undisclosed) was removed from injured reserve Saturday, per the NHL media site.

Graves hasn't been in Pittsburgh's lineup since Jan. 21 against Calgary. He played in two games for AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton during a recent conditioning stint. Graves has one goal, 19 shots on net, 35 blocked shots and 15 hits in 19 NHL appearances this season.

Per Claire Hanna of TSN, Sanderson (upper body) has returned to the ice and could be back in action in 7-10 days, according to head coach Travis Green.

Sanderson remains week-to-week, but he has been skating for a few days. He will miss his seventh straight game against Toronto on Saturday, and an exact return date remains unclear. Sanderson has 11 goals and 37 assists, including 19 points on the power play, over 62 contests this season.

Pionk (undisclosed) was activated from injured reserve Saturday, per the NHL media site.

Following a 23-game absence, Pionk appears ready to return to the lineup against Pittsburgh on Saturday. He has registered two goals, eight points, 76 shots on net, 64 blocked shots and 84 hits across 40 appearances this season.

Durzi provided an assist and two hits in Friday's 4-1 loss to the Ducks.

Durzi ended a seven-game point drought with the helper. The 27-year-old defenseman has four assists and a minus-6 rating over 13 appearances since the Olympic break. Durzi has seen his role reduced since the Mammoth traded for MacKenzie Weegar. Durzi is at 23 points, 67 shots on net, 77 blocked shots, 34 hits, 44 PIM and a minus-12 rating over 49 appearances this season, so he can still provide some value in deeper formats.

Helleson has been scratched in eight of the Ducks' 13 games since the Olympic break after sitting out Friday's 4-1 win over the Mammoth.

Helleson's drop in playing time is partly a product of the arrival of John Carlson in a trade from the Capitals. The Ducks have occasionally gone to seven defensemen in the lineup, but that's not what they're currently doing, though Helleson has yet to sit more than four games in a row at any time this season. The 24-year-old has 12 points, 35 shots on net, 57 hits, 73 blocked shots and a minus-7 rating over 53 appearances.