NHL Player News

McDonagh posted two assists in Saturday's 5-1 win over the Panthers in Game 3.

McDonagh has three helpers, five shots on net, five hits, three blocked shots and a plus-3 rating over three playoff contests. He had a hand in goals by Nick Paul and Jake Guentzel in this contest. McDonagh's top-four role isn't in question, and he's been providing well-rounded numbers with a bit of offense and plenty of defensive work over the last two months.

Toews logged a power-play assist and two PIM in Saturday's 4-0 win over the Stars in Game 4.

Toews set up Nathan MacKinnon's goal late in the first period. Through four playoff games, Toews has two points, four shots on net, two hits, 12 blocked shots and a plus-2 rating. The 31-year-old will continue to focus on defense and chip in offense when he can while playing a massive role on the Avalanche's top pairing.

Girard scored a goal on three shots and added three hits in Saturday's 4-0 win over the Stars in Game 4.

Girard scored midway through the third period to produce the final score. The 26-year-old defenseman has impressed in the postseason, earning a goal, two assists, six shots on net, seven hits, three blocked shots and a plus-2 rating over four contests. He's playing on the second pairing and has enough talent to continue to be a decent depth scorer on the blue line.

Sanderson scored a goal and added an assist Saturday in a 4-3 overtime win over the Maple Leafs in Game 4.

Sanderson fired a wrist shot from the left point that fluttered through traffic and past Anthony Stolarz's glove. It came at 17:42 of the overtime frame. Sanderson, the Sens' top defender in 2024-25, has three points (one goal, two assists) in his last two games. He became the third-youngest member of the Senators to score a playoff OT goal (22 years, 292 days), behind Martin Havlat (21 years, seven days) and Kyle Turris (22 years, 248 days). The series returns to Toronto on Tuesday, with the Maple Leafs leading 3-1.

Stecher (undisclosed) has been cleared from his injury and is available to play in Game 4 on Sunday versus the Kings, Daniel Nugent-Bowman of The Athletic reports.

If Stecher draws in, it'll likely be to replace Ty Emberson on the third pairing. Don't expect to see Stecher get much ice time, as the Oilers will likely continue to lean on their top blueliners throughout the postseason.

Hagg was summoned from AHL Henderson on Saturday, per the NHL media site.

Vegas also promoted Matyas Sapovaliv, Tanner Laczynski, Raphael Lavoie, Dysin Mayo, Callahan Burke and Carl Lindbom to serve as Black Aces because AHL Henderson didn't qualify for the Calder Cup Playoffs. The Golden Knights likely won't use any of these players during the NHL postseason, barring a lengthy run of injuries. However, this will be a chance for them to soak up the playoff environment while being around the team.

Kovacevic (undisclosed) is questionable for Sunday's Game 4 matchup versus Carolina, Mike Morreale of NHL.com reports.

Kovacevic sustained an injury early into Friday's 3-2 double-overtime win over the Hurricanes in Game 3. He hasn't earned a point in three outings this postseason while posting two shots on goal and eight hits. If Kovacevic is out for Sunday's game, Seamus Casey or Dennis Cholowski could draw into the lineup.

Heiskanen (knee) won't play in Game 4 against Colorado on Saturday, per Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette.

Heiskanen had five goals and 25 points across 50 regular-season outings with the Stars in 2024-25. He's missed 35 consecutive games between the regular season and playoffs. Heiskanen would likely be playing in a top-four capacity and on the first power-play unit if he were healthy.

Dillon (lower body) won't play in Game 4 versus the Hurricanes on Sunday, Amanda Stein of the Devils' official site reports.

Dillon will miss his third consecutive game. He had two goals, 16 points, 67 PIM, 191 hits and 108 blocks across 82 regular-season outings in 2024-25. Simon Nemec and Jonas Siegenthaler will probably remain in the lineup for Game 4 due to the continued absences of Dillon and Luke Hughes (upper body).

Hughes (upper body) will not play Sunday in Game 4 against the Hurricanes, Amanda Stein of the Devils' official site reports.

It'll be the third straight game Hughes has missed in the series. With Hughes and Brenden Dillon (lower body) ruled out and Johnny Kovacevic's (undisclosed) status still unclear, the Devils will probably lean on Brian Dumoulin, Brett Pesce, Dougie Hamilton and Jonas Siegenthaler in Game 4.