Welcome to the NHL Buzz. With the regular season underway, NHL.com has you covered with all the latest news.
Vegas Golden Knights
Defenseman Alex Pietrangelo is expected to return when the Golden Knights host the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday (6 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS, NHLN, NBCSCH, TVAS2).
“He practiced full go, so I anticipate he’ll be in the lineup tomorrow,” coach Bruce Cassidy said. “He’ll have to make that call himself. If he is, good to have him back.”
Pietrangelo missed the past five games with an upper-body injury after taking a puck to the head during a 4-1 victory against the San Jose Sharks on Oct. 12.
“I’ve never been hit like that,” Pietrangelo said. “It got under my shield somehow. … It’s good to get back in with the guys and get back in the locker room. That’s the things you miss.”
Center Nicolas Roy will be out Friday and also miss the game Saturday at the Los Angeles Kings. He sustained an undisclosed injury during a 3-2 victory against the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday. -- Paul Delos Santos
Boston Bruins
Milan Lucic will be out "a minimum of a couple weeks" because of a lower-body injury, coach Jim Montgomery said Thursday.
The forward has missed the past two games after taking a puck to his leg in a 4-2 win against the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday and did not play against the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday.
Lucic's linemate Jakub Lauko, will be out at least a week with a fracture in his face sustained after taking Blackhawks forward Jason Dickinson's skate up high during the third period of the Bruins' 3-0 win on Tuesday.
"He gets reevaluated in a week," Montgomery said.
The Bruins recalled forwards Jesper Boqvist and Patrick Brown from Providence of the American Hockey League on Thursday, and sent defenseman Ian Mitchell to Providence.
Forward Danton Heinen has been practicing with Boston on a professional tryout contract since training camp, but there is no update on his potential contract status. -- Joe Pohoryles
Pittsburgh Penguins
Alex Nedeljkovic was placed on long-term injured reserve by the Penguins and is week to week with a lower-body injury.
The goalie was injured in a 4-1 loss to the Dallas Stars on Tuesday, although he played the entire game.
By being placed on LTIR, Nedeljkovic will be out at least 10 games at 24 days.
"Tried to practice today," Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said Wednesday. "It was bothering him to the point that we have to take further action just with the evaluation process."
Magnus Hellberg was recalled from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the AHL on Wednesday and served as the backup for Tristan Jarry against the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday.
Defenseman John Ludvig is out indefinitely with a concussion; he left at 10:41 of the second period of his NHL debut against the Stars on Tuesday. Ludvig fell to the ice after hitting forward Radek Faksa in the neutral zone, staying down for several minutes before being helped to the locker room by teammates Noel Acciari and Marcus Pettersson.
"I'm disappointed for him," Sullivan said. "He was so excited to play his first NHL game. I thought he was playing really well in that first part of the game. It's unfortunate. I feel badly for him."
Ludvig was claimed off waivers by Pittsburgh from the Florida Panthers on Oct. 9. The 23-year-old was selected by Florida in the third round (No. 69) of the 2019 NHL Draft. -- Wes Crosby
Buffalo Sabres
Devon Levi continues to deal with a lower-body injury that will keep him out of the lineup when the Sabres visit the New Jersey Devils on Friday (7 p.m. ET; MSGSN, MSG-B, SN1).
Levi has not dressed for the past three games after starting each of Buffalo's first four games of the season. He participated in an optional morning skate Oct. 21 but hasn't skated with the team since.
"He hasn't regressed, which is a good thing, but it also hasn't resolved," Sabres coach Don Granato said. "The soreness hasn't resolved to the point that under our situation with three goaltenders and [Eric] Comrie and [Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen] playing well in their last two games, we're not pushing it based on all of that. We don't need to push it. We have three goalies and that's the luxury when it comes to this, but we're waiting for some more soreness to resolve for him."
Levi is 1-3-0 with a 3.26 goals-against average and .892 save percentage.
Comrie has started two games in his absence, going 1-1-0 with a 2.05 GAA and .923 save percentage. Luukkonen made his season debut in a 6-4 win against the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday. -- Heather Engel
Detroit Red Wings
Alex DeBrincat was in the lineup for the Red Wings against the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday after being a game-time decision because of an illness.
The forward leads the NHL with nine goals and is third with 13 points in seven games this season.
Defenseman Jeff Petry missed his third straight game with an upper-body injury. He's expected to return against the Bruins on Saturday.
Minnesota Wild
Jared Spurgeon and Matt Boldy could practice when the Wild return from their three-game road trip, which began at the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday.
"Both are progressing," coach Dean Evason said. "Where and when they slot in, I don't know yet. But both are on ice, both are skating, both are shooting, both are handling the puck. We're getting close."
After playing Thursday, the Wild play at the Washington Capitals on Friday and at the New Jersey Devils on Sunday.
Spurgeon was placed on long-term injured reserve Wednesday. The defenseman has not played since sustaining an upper-body injury during a preseason game Oct. 5. He had 34 points (11 goals, 23 assists) in 79 regular-season games last season and two assists in six Stanley Cup Playoff games.
Boldy, a forward, missed his fifth straight game because of an upper-body injury. He has a goal and an assist in two games this season.
"We talked about Boldy coming on the trip [but] because of our practice schedule, we decided to leave him there so he could get quality skates there because he'd only have this morning skate," Evason said. "Nothing tomorrow, nothing the following day, nothing the following day. So just to take warmup and work out, we wanted to leave him at home."
Evason also said there is no timetable for Frederik Gaudreau to play. The forward has been playing through an upper-body injury sustained against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Oct. 14 but did not travel on the road trip. -- Adam Kimelman
