NHL Player News

Walman (lower body) will shift to injured reserve Saturday, according to Max Miller of NHL.com.

San Jose will activate William Eklund (upper body) from injured reserve in a corresponding move. Walman will miss his sixth straight game versus New Jersey on Saturday. He has amassed five goals, 25 points, 80 shots on net, 47 blocked shots and 30 hits in 31 appearances this season.

Matheson recorded two assists, eight shots on goal and three hits in Friday's 4-2 loss to the Blackhawks.

Matheson has earned five assists over his last nine contests. The eight shots on net Friday marked a season high for a single game. The 30-year-old blueliner has 20 points, 72 shots on net, 75 blocked shots, 31 PIM, 24 hits and a minus-7 rating through 36 outings overall. Matheson continues to fill a top-four role.

Kaiser logged an assist in Friday's 4-2 win over the Canadiens.

This was Kaiser's first action since he was recalled from AHL Rockford on Sunday. The 22-year-old defenseman filled in for Connor Murphy (groin) in Friday's contest. Kaiser has two helpers, 33 shots on net, 33 hits, 54 blocked shots and a minus-3 rating over 29 appearances. He's not guaranteed to stick in the NHL once the Blackhawks' defense gets back to full health.

Vlasic notched an assist, three blocked shots and two PIM in Friday's 4-2 win over the Canadiens.

Vlasic ended a seven-game drought when he helped out on a Nick Foligno's insurance tally in the third period. The 23-year-old Vlasic's dip on offense coincides with the return of Seth Jones from a broken foot. Vlasic still plays important minutes for the Blackhawks, but he's seen a reduced power-play role. Overall, he has a career-high 17 points with 64 shots on net, 81 blocked shots and a minus-11 rating over 39 appearances this season.

Forsling scored a goal on three shots in Friday's 3-2 shootout win over the Penguins.

Forsling has gotten on the scoresheet in two of the last three games, logging a goal, an assist and nine shots on net in that span. The 28-year-old defenseman is up to six goals, 15 points, 102 shots on net, 42 blocked shots, 37 hits and a plus-19 rating over 40 appearances. He's on pace for his lowest point total in four years, but he's still a decent fantasy blueliner for his all-around contributions.

Connauton was recalled from AHL Tucson on Saturday, Cole Bagley of KSL Sports reports.

Connauton last played in the NHL during the 2021-22 campaign, scoring once and adding two assists in 39 regular-season games between Florida and Philadelphia. The 34-year-old defenseman has five goals and nine points across 24 AHL games with Tucson this season.

Per Stefen Rosner of NHL.com, George (upper body) is day-to-day and won't be available for Sunday's matchup versus Boston.

George left Thursday's 2-1 loss to Toronto due to concussion protocol after receiving a reverse hit from Max Domi in the second period. Dennis Cholowski will replace George in Sunday's lineup. The 20-year-old George has one goal, four assists and 30 blocked shots in 25 games this season.

Lauzon (lower body) isn't expected to play against Calgary on Saturday, per Nick Kieser of 102.5 ESPN Nashville.

Lauzon will miss his second straight game. He has accounted for one assist, 25 shots on goal, 34 blocked shots, 127 hits and 37 PIM through 28 appearances this season. With Lauzon and Adam Wilsby (upper body) unavailable, Justin Barron and Spencer Stastney will occupy spots on the blue line in Saturday's lineup.

Blankenburg registered an assist, two shots on goal, two hits and a plus-2 rating in Friday's 3-0 win over the Canucks.

Blankenburg has earned four points and a plus-6 rating over his last six contests. The 26-year-old has been up to the challenge in a larger role as injuries pile up on the Predators' blue line -- the team was without Adam Wilsby (upper body) and Jeremy Lauzon (lower body) in Friday's contests. Overall, Blankenburg is at four points, 26 shots on net, 15 hits, 18 blocked shots and a plus-9 rating through 17 appearances this season.

Josi notched an assist, two shots on goal, three blocked shots and a plus-2 rating in Friday's 3-0 win over the Canucks.

Josi has just two assists over six contests since he returned from missing four games due to a lower-body injury. His ice time has been substantial in that span, but the Predators' continued struggles on offense have still impacted his production. Overall, the 34-year-old blueliner has 25 points, 105 shots on net, 62 blocked shots, 34 hits and a minus-22 rating through 35 appearances this season.