Welcome to the NHL Buzz. With the regular season underway, NHL.com has you covered with all the latest news.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Jake Guentzel skated before practice on Monday for the first time since the forward sustained an upper-body injury.
Guentzel, who is on long-term injured reserve, hasn't played since Feb. 14, when he had an assist in a 5-2 loss to the Florida Panthers.
Bryan Rust did not travel with the Penguins for their game against the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Arena on Tuesday (10 p.m. ET; TVAS, SNP, SN-PIT), the first of a four-game road trip.
Rust continues to be evaluated for an upper-body injury the forward sustained midway through the third period of a 7-6 win against the Philadelphia Flyers on Sunday.
"To be determined," Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said on if Rust could join the trip at some point. -- Wes Crosby
Dallas Stars
Tyler Seguin is week to week because of a lower-body injury, which coach Pete DeBoer described as a nagging issue that the Stars decided had to be looked at further following a 4-1 loss to the Ottawa Senators on Feb. 22.
"He's been dealing with something from even prior to that game," DeBoer said. "It hasn't gotten better. It's actually gotten worse. I think the Ottawa game was the last straw."
Seguin flew back to Dallas two days later for further evaluation, causing him to miss a 2-1 win at the Carolina Hurricanes on Feb. 24 and their game against the New York Islanders on Monday. The Stars will go back on the road to visit the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday before returning home for games Thursday and Saturday.
Seguin played in the first 58 games this season (45 points; 20 goals, 25 assists) for the Stars (35-16-9), who are first in the Central Division, two points ahead of the Winnipeg Jets. -- Taylor Baird
Washington Capitals
T.J. Oshie is week to week for the Capitals because of an upper-body injury.
The 37-year-old forward left the ice following a noncontact injury during the third period of a 5-3 win against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Feb. 22.
"Obviously, left the game and we'll continue to monitor him," Capitals coach Spencer Carbery said after the game against the Lightning. "I don't think this is a skating today or tomorrow situation, but I don't want to tell you anything definitive on timeline or anything like that. We'll just continue to monitor him."
Oshie has 18 points (10 goals, eight assists) in 38 games this season.
Forward Anthony Mantha returned in a 6-3 win against the Ottawa Senators on Monday, but defenseman Nick Jensen was not able to play after leaving the morning skate early.
"I think Mantha, good chance. Jensen, we'll see," Carbery said prior to the game. "So that will dictate a lot in terms of who dresses and what our lineup will be."
Forward Ivan Miroshnichenko was recalled from Hershey of the American Hockey League.
Forward Nic Dowd (upper body) and defenseman Martin Fehervary (lower body) each skated in a noncontact jersey and did not play Monday.
"Coming along," Carbery said of the pair. "Would like to see them potentially get back into some full practices and we'll see where it goes after that." -- Harvey Valentine
Colorado Avalanche
Valeri Nichushkin has been cleared to resume practicing with the Avalanche by the NHL and NHL Players' Association player assistance program.
The forward has not yet been cleared to return to game action. He entered the program Jan. 15, and his care continues to be administered pursuant to it.
Nichushkin has 42 points (22 goals, 20 assists) in 40 games this season. He scored two goals in his last game, a 3-0 win against the Vegas Golden Knights at Ball Arena in Denver on Jan. 10.
Toronto Maple Leafs
Joseph Woll was a full participant at practice Monday, but the goalie's return to the lineup remains unclear.
"Today was an important day just to get him back with the NHL guys and see where he is at after last week," Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said. "He looks good, says he feels good, but since the practice has ended I haven't had a chance to talk to the medical team about what comes next. It will be a day-to-day thing here as we are getting Joe back up to speed and managing [Woll, Martin Jones and Ilya Samsonov]."
Woll made 36 saves in a 4-1 win for Toronto of the American Hockey League against Laval on Friday, his first game since sustaining a high ankle sprain against the Ottawa Senators on Dec. 7.
"It was good," Woll said of the conditioning stint. "It was a great few days with the guys down there and had a great game and felt really good in it."
Samsonov is expected to start for the Maple Leafs against the Vegas Golden Knights at Scotiabank Arena on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET; TSN4, SCRIPPS).
Timothy Liljegren was absent from practice Monday because of an undisclosed injury he sustained during a 4-3 win against the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday. Keefe said the defenseman is day to day and has not been ruled out for Tuesday.
Mark Giordano practiced and is available for Tuesday. The defenseman has missed five games since the death of his father. -- Dave McCarthy
St. Louis Blues
Justin Faulk was activated off long-term injured reserve Monday in time to return for the Blues against the Winnipeg Jets at Canada Life Centre on Tuesday (8 p.m. ET; TSN3, BSMW).
The defenseman has missed 12 games because of a lower-body injury he sustained during a 4-3 win against the Calgary Flames on Jan. 23. He previously missed five games because of a separate lower-body injury he sustained on Dec. 29 before returning to play five more games before the latest injury.
Faulk participated in full-contract drills at practice Monday. He has 19 points (two goals, 17 assists) in 40 games.
The Blues also play at the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday.
"I think there's a good opportunity that we'll get him in one of the games, if not both of the games," St. Louis coach Drew Bannister said. "We'll see [Tuesday] how he's feeling after today. Today was probably the first full practice that he participated in where there was some contact and physicality. By all accounts, I think he felt pretty good coming out of it, but I think we'll wait and see how he is tomorrow."
Defenseman Matthew Kessel was assigned to Springfield of the American Hockey League. He has two assists in 22 NHL games this season.
"We've asked a lot from him," Bannister said. "We've asked him to play top-four minutes. We've thrown him into the fire here and he's played exceptionally well, but you do see it." -- Lou Korac
New York Islanders
Scott Mayfield is day to day because of a lower-body injury and the defenseman did not travel with the Islanders for a two-game road trip, which began with a 3-2 overtime win at the Dallas Stars on Monday.
The Islanders also play at the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday.
After playing in a 4-0 loss at St. Louis on Thursday, Mayfield missed a 4-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning at UBS Arena on Saturday.
Mayfield, who signed a seven-year contract July 1, has played 41 of the Islanders' 58 games. He previously missed seven games because of a lower-body injury and eight because of an upper-body injury.
Sebastian Aho played on a pair with Mike Reilly on Monday. -- Stefen Rosner
