Welcome to the NHL Buzz. Each day during the regular season, NHL.com has you covered with all the latest news.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Kevin Hayes is week to week for the Penguins because of an upper-body injury.
The 32-year-old forward did not practice Sunday; he has missed two games since playing 9:40 in a 4-3 shootout loss to the New York Islanders on Nov. 5. Hayes has four points (three goals, one assist) in 14 games this season after being acquired in a trade from the St. Louis Blues on June 29.
Cody Glass is out indefinitely because of a concussion; the forward was injured Thursday during a 5-1 loss at the Carolina Hurricanes. Glass, who was acquired in a trade with the Nashville Predators on Aug. 13, has four assists in 14 games.
Neither will play when Pittsburgh hosts the Dallas Stars on Monday (7 p.m. ET; Victory+, SN-PIT, TVAS).
Forward Matt Nieto scored Saturday in his first game of a conditioning loan with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League. He has not played in the NHL since Nov. 30, 2023, and had laparoscopic surgery to his right knee Jan. 4 and reconstructive MCL surgery on his left knee May 2.
“When you think about his rehab, it’s been a year since he’s played a game,” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. “So, it’s a long time. For him to get into some game-real scenarios, I think is essential, quite honestly.” -- Wes Crosby
Columbus Blue Jackets
Dante Fabbro was claimed off waivers by the Blue Jackets from the Nashville Predators on Sunday.
The 26-year-old defenseman did not have a point in six games this season, his sixth with Nashville after being a first-round pick (No. 17) at the 2016 NHL Draft. He was minus-3 and averaged 13:06 of ice time per game.
“Dante Fabbro is a puck-moving defenseman that can play in all situations and adds mobility and depth to our back end,” general manager Don Waddell said.
Fabbro has 72 points (16 goals, 56 assists) in 315 regular-season games and one assist in 17 Stanley Cup Playoff games, all with the Predators.
Columbus also placed forward Kent Johnson on injured reserve retroactive to Oct. 17. The forward has missed the past nine games because of an upper-body injury.
The Blue Jackets (5-7-2) lost their fifth straight game (0-4-1), 4-2 at the Anaheim Ducks on Sunday.
Vancouver Canucks
Jonathan Lekkerimaki is expected to make his NHL debut when the Canucks host the Calgary Flames on Tuesday (10 p.m. ET; SN1, SNP).
The 20-year-old forward was recalled from Abbotsford of the American Hockey League on Sunday. He will likely replace forward Brock Boeser who is out indefinitely because of an upper-body injury, on a line with J.T. Miller and Pius Suter where he skated Sunday.
"Try to enjoy the moment and have fun, so very excited," Lekkerimaki said. "My role for the team is to play offense and shoot lots, so try to do my best there."
The Tullinge, Sweden, native was chosen by Vancouver in the first round (No. 15) of the 2022 NHL Draft. He has seven points (five goals, two assists) in seven AHL games this season, his second in North America.
"It's obviously a huge piece for us, a guy that can make a play under pressure, a guy who's got a good shot -- a great shot -- thinks the game, can make plays, so I'm excited to see how he plays," Canucks coach Rick Tocchet said. "He's progressing at a really high level down there from what I've been told, obviously scoring goals, but making the little plays and his play without the puck."
Vancouver sent forwards Arshdeep Bains and Nils Aman, and goalie Arturs Silovs to Abbotsford. Goalie Ty Young was recalled for practice Sunday.
Silovs is 0-2-1 with a 4.77 goals-against average and .808 save percentage in four games (three starts) this season. He has only started one game for the Canucks since Oct. 15. Silovs made 23 saves in Abbotsford’s 4-2 win against Bakersfield on Sunday and could be recalled by Vancouver on Monday.
"We've got to get him into games," Tocchet said. -- Kevin Woodley
New York Islanders
Mike Reilly is out indefinitely for the Islanders because of an upper-body injury and missed his fourth straight game when the Islanders lost 4-3 in overtime to the New Jersey Devils on Saturday.
The 31-year-old defenseman has been out since sustaining the injury Nov. 1 at the Buffalo Sabres. He does not have a point in 11 games this season.
Alexander Romanov (upper body) also missed his fourth straight game and sixth of seven. The defenseman skated on his own Saturday morning and will join the team for a five-game road trip that begins Tuesday at the Edmonton Oilers.
Romanov was also injured Nov. 1 after he took a hit from Sabres forward Jordan Greenway behind his own net in the second period.
Adam Pelech is out 4-6 weeks for New York after the defenseman was also injured in Buffalo. -- Stefen Rosner
Seattle Kraken
The Kraken reacquired forward Daniel Sprong on Friday in a trade with the Canucks for future considerations.
“Obviously, we’ve been struggling to score some goals lately, so we were looking at that," Seattle general manager Ron Francis said. "I had a conversation with [Canucks general manager] Patrik [Allvin] the other day, and Daniel’s name came up. Obviously, with us, he had a good season, scored 20 goals with us, 18 last year. He knows our team, our locker room, and we thought it was a low-risk gamble to give him a shot.”
The 27-year-old has three points (one goal, two assists) in nine games this season and 162 points (86 goals, 76 assists) in 353 career NHL games with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Anaheim Ducks, Washington Capitals, Detroit Red Wings, Kraken and Canucks.
Sprong played 82 total games with the Kraken during the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons, compiling 52 points (27 goals, 25 assists).
“I know when we first got him, it took a while to get to know him, and sort of build that trust and relationship," Francis said. "I think even when he left, it wasn’t like he left on bad terms with us. It was basically him coming off of 20 goals and playing on our fourth line, we didn’t have the money to pay him at that point. So, we said, ‘Go and test the market,’ and good for him. He ended up getting a couple million dollars, and that’s why we couldn’t keep him.”
After spending the 2023-24 season with the Red Wings, Sprong signed a one-year contract with the Canucks as a free agent July 20.
"Honestly, he's a great kid," Vancouver coach Rick Tocchet said. "I couldn't get him in a top-six role, to be honest. There's some other guys ahead of him for what I needed in that role and I don't think it was fair to him to play fourth line 10 minutes. It's hard because he's a skilled guy. So it's basically that and a couple of younger guys I figured that could do that role for us."
The Kraken opened a six-game homestand with a 4-3 overtime win against the Vegas Golden Knights on Friday and host the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday.
“We're not playing the way we think we're capable of playing, and we're trying to find our game," Francis said before the game. "And hopefully this gives us a little jolt to get things going in the right direction.”
Los Angeles Kings
Alex Turcotte was placed on injured reserve by the Kings on Saturday with an upper-body injury.
The forward did not play in a 4-2 loss to the Canucks on Thursday when he was ruled day to day, and Los Angeles coach Jim Hiller said it was not concussion related.
The Kings recalled forward Samuel Helenius on an emergency basis from Ontario of the AHL on Saturday prior to their 5-2 win against the Blue Jackets.
Turcotte, the No. 5 pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, has five points (one goal, four assists) in 13 games this season.
