Return to Play Buzz: Garland, Chychrun healthy for Coyotes

Welcome to the Return to Play Buzz. The NHL on Tuesday announced its Return to Play Plan that includes two hub cities hosting 12 teams each. The four top teams in each conference will play a Seeding Round Robin and receive a bye into the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and the remaining eight teams in each conference will play four best-of-5 series in the Qualifying Round, though no date has been set for play to resume.

Here is the Return to Play news for Thursday:

Arizona Coyotes

Conor Garland and Jakob Chychrun are expected to be ready for the Arizona Coyotes against the Nashville Predators in the Western Conference Qualifying Round when the NHL returns, general manager John Chayka said Wednesday.

Garland, a forward, had a lower-body injury and last played in a 3-2 loss at the Calgary Flames on March 6. The NHL paused the season six days later due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus.

Chychrun, a defenseman, missed seven games with a hip injury.

Goalie Darcy Kuemper has had more time to recover from a lower-body injury that sidelined him for two months. He returned Feb. 25 and started three straight games from March 4-9.

"The silver lining to all of this is that teams will be coming back, for the most part, at full strength," Chayka said. "Darcy had a chance to really rehab and get to being 100 percent. Conor Garland was a guy who was going to be probably out for the season. [Chychrun] got some time to rehab.

"Starting off from a really good base of having basically everybody healthy, I think, it's pretty intriguing and for us, I think it could be helpful." -- Alan Robinson, independent correspondent

Florida Panthers

The Florida Panthers expect to have forward prospects Henrik Borgstrom (lower-body injury) and Owen Tippett (upper body) available when they face the New York Islanders in the Eastern Conference Qualifying Round.

Borgstrom, who had three shots on goal in four games with the Panthers in October, last played March 7, with Springfield of the American Hockey League. The 22-year-old, selected by the Panthers with the No. 23 pick of the 2016 NHL Draft, had 23 points (11 goals, 12 assists) in 49 AHL games.

Tippett, who last played Jan. 25, led Springfield with 40 points (19 goals, 21 assists) in 46 games. The 21-year-old, chosen by the Panthers with the No. 10 pick of the 2017 NHL Draft, has one goal in seven NHL games, all in 2017-18.

"We want to bring them in and have them evaluated by our staff, to see what their status is moving forward," Panthers general manager Dale Tallon said Thursday. "But by all accounts they're both ready to go and would be a welcome addition to our team."

Tallon said 23-year-old defenseman Brady Keeper, who had 18 points (six goals, 12 assists) in 61 games, also could be recalled from Springfield. He has one game of NHL experience, in 2018-19.

"You don't want to bring too many to disrupt the flow of practice and being a unit," Tallon said. "But I'm sure we'll have a few of our top prospects here." -- Tracey Myers, staff writer

Pittsburgh Penguins

Kris Letang said he has no reservations about being in the Pittsburgh Penguins lineup against the Montreal Canadiens in the Eastern Conference Qualifying Round despite having a compromised immune system.

The 33-year-old defenseman said Thursday that he has been assured it would be safe for him to play during the coronavirus pandemic, which caused the NHL to pause the season March 12.

"I had my fair share of questions," said Letang, who is Pittsburgh's representative in the NHL Players' Association. "They've all been answered. I can say I would be safe to play."

Letang had a stroke Jan. 29, 2014, before returning for the Penguins' final three games of the 2013-14 regular season and playing 13 games in the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

In his 14th NHL season, Letang led Penguins defensemen with 44 points (15 goals, 29 assists) in 61 games this season.

The three-time Stanley Cup champion with the Penguins (2009, 2016, 2017) said he is relieved to focus on playing again.

"It's great," Letang said. "The guys have been sitting at home. They don't really know what to expect. … If you have a plan established, it's already a good sign. We now just have to make sure guys are getting ready in the safest environment possible, and get ready to play." -- Wes Crosby, independent correspondent

New York Rangers

The New York Rangers are not sure if suspended forward Brendan Lemieux will be available at the start of the Eastern Conference Qualifying Round against the Carolina Hurricanes.

Lemieux was suspended by the NHL on March 13 for a hit on Colorado Avalanche forward Joonas Donskoi on March 11, the final game each team played before the NHL paused the season March 12 due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus.

The League said at the time that the parameters of Lemieux's suspension would be determined after a Return to Play Plan was established. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman revealed that plan Tuesday, but the suspension has not yet been resolved.

"We have to wait and see what the story is with Lemieux regarding his suspension," Rangers president John Davidson said Thursday. "Will they drop that because it's playoffs or a play-in type of situation? We don't know, so we have to have a filler there."

Davidson also said the Rangers will rely on their medical staff to determine if it's safe for rookie forward Kaapo Kakko to play.

Kakko has Type 1 diabetes, which puts him at a higher risk for more serious complications if he contracts the coronavirus.

"We've thought about that quite a bit," Davidson said. "We've had internal discussions. I know that he's skating and working out like a madman to try to get ready to come back. I'm sure he's going to want to play, but it's important for everybody to be taken care of regarding their health. It doesn't matter if you're a 19-year-old young player or if you're an older executive, everything has to be done in the right fashion. If he hypothetically cannot play, he cannot play. We're going to take care of him. He's a big part of us. If he can play, he's going to play. I'm sure he's going to want to play, but we listen to the science, we listen to the medical people. They're going to tell us what to do."-- Dan Rosen, senior writer

Boston Bruins

Cam Neely said he's confident the Boston Bruins can pick up where they left off after they had the best record in the NHL in the regular season.

"I think our guys recognize that we had a legitimate chance to do well and have a deep run in the [Stanley Cup Playoffs]," the Bruins president said Wednesday. "Obviously, our goal all along is to win the Stanley Cup. That goal is not going to change. From what I understand, talking to some of the guys, they're anxious and excited."

The Bruins won 16 of their final 20 games before the NHL paused the season March 12 due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus. Boston, which lost Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final at home to the St. Louis Blues last season, was 44-14-12 and had the most points (100) and the highest points percentage (.714) in the League.-- Amalie Benjamin, staff writer

Colorado Avalanche

Nathan MacKinnon said for the first time in his NHL career he believes the Colorado Avalanche are legitimate contenders for the Stanley Cup.)

"This is kind of the first year I really felt like we could win," MacKinnon told TSN in remarks published Wednesday. "The first six years of my career, the goal was just to make the [Stanley Cup Playoffs]. I guess this would have been the fourth time I actually made it, but the real first time I guess that I think I could actually win."

Colorado (42-20-8, .657 points percentage) finished second in the Central Division and will play in a Seeding Round Robin as part of the Return to Play Plan announced by the NHL on Tuesday.

The Avalanche, St. Louis Blues, Vegas Golden Knights and Dallas Stars will play each other once to determine the top four Western positions for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

"It's great that we can play some meaningful games against the top teams in the West for seeding," MacKinnon said in an episode of "Dreger Cafe." "... I think that's a pretty good format, how they're doing it. You know, there's no perfect way, everybody had to get creative and it seems like a good place to start." -- Mike Battaglino, staff writer

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