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Ottawa Senators
Josh Norris will be out "an extended period of time" for the Senators because of an upper-body injury.
The center was injured after colliding with Nashville Predators forward Cole Smith in the second period of a 4-1 loss Tuesday.
"I don't have any more, really, info, but we'll have some more info later on," Senators interim coach Jacques Martin said Thursday. "Too early to know (the timeline)."
Norris has 30 points (16 goals, 14 assists) in 50 games this season. He missed the preseason and the first three games of the regular season after tweaking his shoulder in training camp.
He was limited to eight games last season, injuring his shoulder in a game against the Arizona Coyotes on Oct. 22, 2022, then returning Jan. 18, 2023. and playing three games before having season-ending surgery.
"There's not much you can do," Martin said. " ... Those are things that you've got to take a positive attitude with, put the work in that's required to do, do the rehab that you have to do and then get back and working at it. It's just unfortunate because I thought Josh was probably playing his best hockey of the season for us."
Defenseman Travis Hamonic is week to week with an undisclosed injury sustained in the third period against the Predators.
The Senators host the Arizona Coyotes on Friday (7 p.m. ET; RDS, TSN5, SCRIPPS). -- Callum Fraser
Toronto Maple Leafs
Joseph Woll started for the Maple Leafs for the first time in almost three months when they hosted the Arizona Coyotes on Thursday.
The goalie had not played since sustaining a high ankle sprain in a 4-3 win against the Ottawa Senators on Dec. 7.
"He looks good, feels good, we'll give him every minute that we can to get through the day and all that kind of stuff," Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said Thursday. "The plan is for him to play and be activated tonight before the game but with any player coming off of the IR, to make sure they're good."
Ilya Samsonov backed up Woll, who made 36 saves with Toronto of the American Hockey League in a 4-1 win against Laval in a conditioning stint Feb. 23.
"I do think [trusting everything will be fine] is important especially for the nature of the injury," Keefe said. "Every injury is different, but there's some that are a thing. It sits there in your mind, especially with his position, because he got injured with a certain movement that he has to repeat countless times in a game, and that was probably the biggest hurdle for him to get over."
Woll is 8-5-1 with a 2.80 goals-against average and .916 save percentage in 15 games (13 starts) for the Maple Leafs this season.
Defenseman Timothy Liljegren missed his second straight game with an undisclosed injury. He skated prior to the morning skate but remains day to day. -- Dave McCarthy
Columbus Blue Jackets
Kent Johnson will be out indefinitely for the Blue Jackets with an upper-body injury.
The forward was injured in a 4-1 loss at the New York Rangers on Tuesday; he had three shots on goal in 14:42 of ice time, and was on the ice for his last shift when the game ended.
Johnson has 16 points (six goals, 10 assists) in 42 games this season.
Alexandre Texier took his spot in the lineup against the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday.
Arizona Coyotes
Clayton Keller likely will be sidelined until next week for the Coyotes because of an upper-body injury.
The forward was injured in a 4-3 overtime loss at the Winnipeg Jets on Sunday. He did not play in a 4-2 loss at the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday.
Keller wore a no-contact jersey at the morning skate but did not play at the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday or at the Ottawa Senators on Friday.
"Day to day but not tomorrow," Coyotes coach Andre Tourigny said. "It'll be a few days at least. Washington (on Sunday) is a stretch so next week."
Keller leads Arizona in goals (22), assists (30) and points (52). -- Dave McCarthy
Minnesota Wild
Marat Khusnutdinov signed a two-year, entry-level contract with the Wild on Wednesday that runs through next season. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The 21-year-old forward has 20 points (six goals, 14 assists) in 49 games for HK Sochi in the Kontinental Hockey League this season, and is the team captain. Khusnutdinov played six games with SKA St. Petersburg before he was traded to HK Sochi on Oct. 10.
Wild general manager Bill Guerin said the plan is for Khusnutdinov to play for Minnesota as soon as he's available, pending visa processing. Guerin said he hopes that will be within the week.
"I think Marat is the type of player that can help us right now," Guerin said. "All the assets that he has, he's a solid two-way player. He's got speed, he's tenacious. Those are the things we're looking for. We want to make sure we put him in a situation that he can succeed in. And timing of when he gets into the lineup is going to be important, but he will eventually get in the lineup."
Selected in the second round (No. 37) of the 2020 NHL Draft, Khusnutdinov has 75 points (22 goals, 53 assists) in 162 KHL games over four seasons from 2020-24.
The Wild played at the Nashville Predators on Thursday.
