Welcome to the NHL Buzz. With the regular season underway, NHL.com has you covered with all the latest news.
Chicago Blackhawks
Taylor Hall will return to the lineup for the Blackhawks against the Florida Panthers on Saturday (8 p.m. ET; BSFL, NBCSCH).
The forward, who missed the past two games with a left shoulder injury, practiced Friday and took part in the morning skate Saturday.
"It's great," said Connor Bedard, who plays on the top line with Hall. "Huge lift for us. He's a special player and he does so much for us, so we're all super excited to have him back, and I know he's thrilled to be back, too."
Hall originally sustained the injury when he was hit by Boston Bruins defenseman Brandon Carlo in the second period of Chicago's 3-1 loss on Oct. 11. He has two assists in five games this season.
Hall missed one game before returning to play the next three, but he again left at 8:24 of the second period of a 5-3 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on Oct. 21. Hall came back to start the third, but his last shift came with 7:07 remaining.
"Did he come back early? You never know until someone does that," Blackhawks coach Luke RIchardson said. "I think he was healthy enough to play and he just re-aggravated the same injury. I think he took a little more time, he said he's a quick healer, but I think he took a little more precaution this time and took the extra steps to make sure he's ready to go and probably stay in."
Following its game Saturday, Chicago hosts the New Jersey Devils on Sunday.
"A little [cautious] mentally, just want to make sure that everything's checked off," Hall said Friday. "I certainly don't want to have this happen again. I just want to make sure everything's good. It's not easy coming back from an injury on a back-to-back, too, right? So, we have to figure that out."
Alex Vlasic (concussion protocol) practiced Friday and Saturday but will not play against the Panthers. The defenseman has three assists in eight games this season.
"Vlasic's progressing, but hopefully one more step and a chance that he could play tomorrow," Richardson said. -- Tracey Myers
Nashville Predators
Ryan McDonagh was a late scratch for the Predators, who defeated the Edmonton Oilers 5-2 on Saturday.
The defenseman took part in warmups but left early and is day to day with a lower-body injury.
McDonagh has two assists in 10 games and is third on the Predators in ice time per game (20:00) and second with 25 blocked shots.
Marc Del Gaizo replaced McDonagh in the lineup, getting one assist in 18:02 of ice time in his NHL debut.
Ottawa Senators
Ridly Greig and Mark Kastelic "won't play any time soon," coach D.J. Smith said Saturday.
The forwards each left a 3-2 loss to the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday. Greig sustained a lower-body injury after he crashed into the boards while awkwardly attempting a hit midway through the first period. Kastelic sustained a high ankle sprain when he lost an edge and fell into the boards early in the second period. He was wearing a walking boot at the rink Saturday.
"I think those things are tricky," Smith said of Kastelic's injury. "A lot of times you think it feels really good, and then you get out there and you can't push on it or whatever. We'll do everything we can to get him back."
Greig has seven points (two goals, seven assists) in nine games this season; Kastelic does not have a point in nine games.
"Neither guy will be available here for the next little bit," Smith said. "We'll wait the next couple days to see exactly what the timeline is."
Forwards Roby Jarventie and Zack MacEwen were recalled from Belleville of the American Hockey League. Ottawa next plays against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; SN1, BSSUN).
Jarventie will play center on a line with Drake Batherson and Claude Giroux, and MacEwen will take Kastelic's spot on the fourth line, playing right wing alongside Parker Kelly and center Rourke Chartier. -- Callum Fraser
New York Islanders
Adam Pelech will not play for the Islanders when they host the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday (7:30 p.m. ET; MSGSN, BSSO) because of a lower-body injury.
The defenseman left a 3-0 win against the Washington Capitals on Thursday at 8:34 of the first period after a hit on forward Aliaksei Protas at the Islanders' blue line.
Pelech was on the ice Saturday ahead of an optional morning skate but left before practice officially began. He is considered day to day.
"It's always a difficult hole to overcome with a guy like that who plays important minutes against important players," Islanders coach Lane Lambert said. "But as we do every other time, we have to step up to the plate, and guys are going to have to fill those minutes."
Pelech missed 21 games last season due to an upper-body injury. --Stefen Rosner
Buffalo Sabres
Mattias Samuelsson was placed on injured reserve on Saturday.
The defenseman was injured in the first period of a 5-1 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers on Friday. He has three points (one goal, two assists) and a plus-4 rating in 11 games this season.
“Samuelsson will be out,” Buffalo coach Don Granato said. “Got good news that it doesn’t look like it’ll be long term, but he’s going to be out for a little bit here.”
With Samuelsson out, the Sabres recalled Ryan Johnson from Rochester of the American Hockey League. The defenseman, who was selected by Buffalo in the first round (No. 31) of the 2019 NHL Draft, will make his NHL debut against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday.
Johnson has four assists in nine AHL games this season.
“He had a really good camp, very consistent in camp, played a lot of games in the preseason, and he’s done very well down there," Granato said. "So, that’s continued. It’s all real positive. … Unfortunately, you know, you’re going to have that opportunity at some point to recall him. Even the day we sent him down, we were thinking we looked forward to his first opportunity, which comes tonight.” -- Heather Engel
Montreal Canadiens
Christian Dvorak will make his season debut for the Canadiens against the St. Louis Blues on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; BSMW, SNE, CITY, TVAS).
The Canadiens previously said the forward would miss the first month of the season after having knee surgery March 15 of last season.
"It feels really good," Dvorak said. "It's been a while. It's a good feeling. It's been a long road to get here. A lot of excitement that's for sure. You're just waiting for the day to come really. I've felt ready to go for a while, but it's nice to get those extra couple weeks to hone in on some things, work on your skills and get stronger with the knee. It's been good and ready to roll."
Dvorak had 28 points (10 goals, 18 assists) in 64 games with Montreal last season.
