NHL Buzz: Stone could return for Golden Knights against Ducks
Fowler expected back for Ducks; Kane placed on injured reserve by Red Wings
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Vegas Golden Knights
Mark Stone could return for the Golden Knights when they play the Anaheim Ducks on Wednesday (10 p.m. ET; Victory+, SCRIPPS, KCOP-13, TVAS2).
The forward and Vegas captain practiced in a regular jersey Tuesday; he has been out of the lineup since Nov. 6, when he sustained a lower-body injury against the Edmonton Oilers.
Stone has 21 points (six goals, 15 assists) in 13 games this season.
"For him, it's probably just as important to get around his teammates again, get going, see some light action," Golden Knights coach Bruce Cassidy said Monday. "I think he got through it OK." -- Paul Delos Santos
Anaheim Ducks
Cam Fowler will return for the Anaheim Ducks when they host the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday (10 p.m. ET; Victory+, SCRIPPS, KCOP-13, TVAS2).
The 32-year-old defenseman has missed the past 11 games with an upper-body injury. Fowler last played in a 5-1 loss to the Vancouver Canucks on Nov. 5.
"Cam's been patiently waiting, he's been around a long time," Ducks coach Greg Cronin said. "He's going to give us a real boost tonight because he's got so much experience and poise with the puck."
Fowler has two assists in 12 games this season. He's on pace to play in his 1,000th NHL game early next month, becoming the first defenseman and second player in Ducks history behind Ryan Getzlaf leads (1,157) to play in that many.
Fowler will enter the lineup in place of Pavel Mintyukov, who will be a healthy scratch for the second time this season.
"He's going to get an opportunity to watch the game and learn from it," Cronin said of Mintyukov, the 10th pick in the 2022 NHL Draft. "It's good for guys to watch. He's a young kid." -- Dan Arritt
Detroit Red Wings
Patrick Kane (upper body) was placed on injured reserve Tuesday, retroactive to Nov. 23.
The forward missed his fifth straight game when the Red Wings began a two-game road trip at the Boston Bruins on Tuesday, a 3-2 overtime loss. Coach Derek Lalonde said Monday that Kane could play at the Ottawa Senators on Thursday.
Detroit recalled defenseman William Lagesson from Grand Rapids of the American Hockey League on Tuesday. He has five points (two goals, 13 assists) in 13 AHL games.
The Red Wings also recalled goalie Sebastian Cossa from Grand Rapids under emergency conditions Monday. The 22-year-old, who was selected by the Red Wings in the first round (No. 15) of the 2021 NHL Draft, is 9-4-1 with a 2.21 goals-against average and .925 save percentage in 14 AHL games this season.
He served as the backup Tuesday to Ville Husso.
“A dream come true,” Cossa said Monday. “I’ve never been to Boston before. I’m really excited to just get on the road with the team and get to know some of the guys more. Just kind of living this lifestyle, it’s obviously a dream come true.”
Cam Talbot, the Red Wings' No. 1 goalie, left during the second period of a 5-4 overtime loss to the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday because of a lower-body injury. Goalie Alex Lyon (lower body) was placed on injured reserve Monday, retroactive to Nov. 27.
“Optimistic in the fact that he was able to [play] an extra two or three minutes for us after tweaking it, and then obviously walking around today,” Lalonde said of Talbot on Monday. “But he’ll get an image of it and we’ll have a better feeling.”
Los Angeles Kings
Trevor Lewis is expected to miss 4-6 weeks because of a lower-body injury.
The veteran forward was injured in the first period of the Kings 5-2 win against the Ottawa Senators on Saturday.
Lewis was put on injured reserve Wednesday. A two-time Stanley Cup winner with the Kings, his next game will be his 1,000th in the NHL. He has seven points (three goals, four assists) in 25 games this season.
Goalie Darcy Kuemper will be available against the Dallas Stars on Wednesday (10 p.m. ET; Victory+, MAX, TNT, SN360, TVAS). He is expected to back up David Rittich after missing seven games because of a lower-body injury. -- Dan Greenspan
Calgary Flames
Justin Kirkland will be out for the season after having ACL surgery.
The forward played 1:05 in a 5-2 loss at the Columbus Blue Jackets on Nov. 29 before leaving after two shifts with a lower-body injury.
Kirkland has eight points (two goals, six assists) in 21 games this season and is tied for the NHL lead with three shootout goals.
"He was a great story this year for us and how he came up and how he contributed right away in different ways, whether it's the shootout or stepping out there to get into a fight for a teammate," Flames coach Ryan Huska said. "He was doing a lot of great things and was someone who stayed with it and over the years, kept believing in himself, got himself an opportunity and now because of an unfortunate injury he's going to be gone for the remainder of the year. But knowing him and what he's gone through, he's going to do everything he can to come back stronger than ever. I know you're going to see that from him."
Kirkland is the second player on the Flames to haveACL surgery this season; Anthony Mantha will miss the remainder of the season after he sustained an ACL injury at the Montreal Canadiens on Nov. 5.
"[Mantha is] in our room every morning now and it does blow me away how quickly they get them moving around now. He's already doing exercises and things in the gym. He's doing really well, and Justin will be joining him shortly, unfortunately."
Minnesota Wild
Forwards Mats Zuccarello and Joel Eriksson Ek, and defenseman Jonas Brodin are each week to week for the Wild.
Zuccarello missed his ninth straight game because of a lower-body injury when the Wild defeated the Vancouver Canucks 3-2 on Tuesday and was placed on long-term injured reserve. Erikson Ek played 21:11, and Brodin missed his fourth straight game.
"He's doing some light activity," coach John Hynes said of Zuccarello. "He has increased from basically doing nothing to now he’s doing some light stuff, using the gym. I think it’s going to be now, say this week getting into the activity and getting himself moving around again. And then I think next week we might have a better feel on if we're going to advance that to on the ice and there will be a whole process with that as well."
Forward Jakub Lauko is day to day with a lower-body injury. He has missed the past four games.
The Wild visit the Anaheim Ducks on Friday (10 p.m. ET; FDSNWIX, FDSNNOX, Victory+, KCOP-13). -- Jessi Pierce
Winnipeg Jets
Nikolaj Ehlers (lower body) was placed on injured reserve Tuesday, retroactive to Nov. 29.
The forward left a 4-3 loss to the Golden Knights on Friday early in the second period following a collision with Vegas forward Pavel Dorofeyev, who appeared to step on Ehlers' foot during the play.
"We got home, he was able to see our doctors," Jets coach Scott Arniel said. "Lower body, a little bit worse than [we thought] at first. We'll just see. He'll probably be out a week to 10 days, but hopefully less than that. We'll just kind of monitor him every day."
Ehlers, who ranks third for the Jets this season with 25 points (nine goals, 16 assists) in 24 games, did not play in a 3-1 loss to the Dallas Stars on Sunday.
Forward Brad Lambert was recalled from Manitoba of the AHL on Tuesday. He has 11 points (three goals, eight assists) in 16 AHL games.
"We saw him in training camp," Arniel said. "He had a real good camp for us. It's him coming up and doing what he needs to do best. He's a skater, he has great offensive instincts. There's stuff that we will go over about how we play without the puck. This is an opportunity for him again to go out and show the organization and his teammates that he can help us." -- Darrin Bauming
Toronto Maple Leafs
Jake McCabe will remain out of the lineup when the Maple Leafs host the Nashville Predators on Wednesday (7:30 p.m. ET; SN, TVAS2, FDSNSO).
The defenseman did not play in a 4-1 win against the Chicago Blackhawks on Monday for precautionary reasons after taking a puck to the head against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday, but practiced Tuesday in his regular spot on a defense pair with Chris Tanev and said he was good to go.
However, Toronto coach Craig Berube said McCabe would not play Wednesday.
"He's out. Just not feeling right. Not feeling good enough to play," Berube said. "It's just how he feels. Hopefully he's feeling better and better everyday and we'll see. This guy is a warrior, he'll play if he can."
Forwards Max Domi and Max Pacioretty each practiced Tuesday wearing grey jerseys as extras. Berube said they are making progress in their recoveries from lower-body injuries, but will not play Wednesday.
Ryan Reaves is expected to return after serving a five-game suspension from the NHL Department of Player Safety for an illegal check to the head of Darnell Nurse during a 4-3 overtime win against the Oilers on Nov. 16.
He skated at right wing on a line with left wing Nikita Grebenkin and center Connor Dewar. -- Dave McCarthy
Philadelphia Flyers
Samuel Ersson practiced on Monday for the first time since Nov. 13, and the goalie said there's a chance he could play against the Florida Panthers on Thursday.
Ersson has missed 11 of the past 13 games because of lower-body injuries. He left a 3-0 loss against the Boston Bruins on Nov. 2 and missed two games. He returned to play against the Panthers on Nov. 9 and the Sharks on Nov. 11, but left practice early Nov. 13 and hadn't skated with the Flyers again until Monday. He was placed on injured reserve Nov. 18.
"Felt good," Ersson said Monday. "Body is feeling good. Mentally, it's good getting back. It's fun to be back. Just enjoying it. ... I've been skating here for a little bit, just ramping it up as we go. I've been taking my time, listening to the body, really making sure that I'm at where I need to be able to go here."
When asked if there was a chance he could return Thursday, Ersson said, "We'll see."
In his absence, Ivan Fedotov has gone 4-1-1 with a 2.57 GAA and .909 save percentage in six games (six starts) and Aleksei Kolosov is 3-3-0 with a 2.74 GAA and .900 save percentage in six games (five starts).
Ersson was 5-2-2 with a 2.70 GAA and .902 save percentage in 11 games (10 starts) prior to the injury and sees it as a challenge to earn his spot back in the lineup.
"Obviously you want to play, and I definitely think I was in a good spot," he said. "You have to remind yourself I know how to play games. It's not going to be any different coming back. It might be a good thing. It'll be a challenge for me but it's also a challenge you want to go ahead and embrace."
Philadelphia also on Monday sent defenseman Helge Grans to Lehigh Valley of the AHL. -- Adam Kimelman
