NHL Buzz: Kochetkov expected to return for Hurricanes against Kraken

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Carolina Hurricanes

Pyotr Kochetkov is expected to play against the Seattle Kraken on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET; FDSNSO, KHN, KONG).

The Hurricanes goalie has missed the past four games because of a concussion.

"I think he cleared [concussion protocol] last night, so he should be good to go," Carolina coach Rod Brind'Amour said Tuesday.

Kochetkov was injured when the knee of Carolina defenseman Sean Walker appeared to hit him in the head in overtime during a 5-4 shootout loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Nov. 23.

Spencer Martin has started all four games with Kochetkov out, going 2-2-0 with a 4.45 goals-against average and .827 save percentage, including losses on back-to-back days to the Florida Panthers on Friday and Saturday.

The Hurricanes signed goalie Dustin Tokarski to a one-year, two-way contract Monday that will pay the 35-year-old $775,000 if he's in the NHL. Tokarski was assigned to Chicago of the American Hockey League on Tuesday and is 4-1-0 with a 1.61 GAA and .933 save percentage in five games for the Wolves this season. He last played in the NHL with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2022-23.

Carolina is without goalie Frederik Andersen, who is recovering from surgery for a knee injury announced Nov. 21. He was expected to miss 8-12 weeks. -- Kurt Dusterberg

Detroit Red Wings

Patrick Kane was placed on injured reserve Tuesday, retroactive to Nov. 23, because of an upper-body injury.

The forward will miss his fifth straight game when the Red Wings begin a two-game road trip at the Boston Bruins on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET; HULU, ESPN+, SNO, SNE, SN1). Coach Derek Lalonde said Monday that Kane could play at the Ottawa Senators on Thursday.

Detroit recalled defenseman William Lagesson from Grand Rapids of the American Hockey League on Tuesday and the 28-year-old could make his Red Wings debut. He has five points (two goals, 13 assists) in 13 AHL games.

The Red Wings recalled goalie Sebastian Cossa from Grand Rapids under emergency conditions Monday.

The 22-year-old is 9-4-1 with a 2.21 goals-against average and .925 save percentage in 14 AHL games this season. He was selected by the Red Wings in the first round (No. 15) at the 2021 NHL Draft.

“A dream come true,” Cossa said Monday. “I’ve never been to Boston before. I’m really excited to just get on the road with the team and get to know some of the guys more. Just kind of living this lifestyle, it’s obviously a dream come true.”

Ville Husso is expected to start against the Bruins on Tuesday.

Cam Talbot, the Red Wings' No. 1 goalie, left a 5-4 overtime loss to the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday during the second period because of a lower-body injury. Goalie Alex Lyon (lower body) was placed on injured reserve Monday, retroactive to Nov. 27.

“Optimistic in the fact that he was able to [play] an extra two or three minutes for us after tweaking it, and then obviously walking around today,” Lalonde said of Talbot on Monday. “But he’ll get an image of it and we’ll have a better feeling.”

Tampa Bay Lightning

Nikita Kucherov did not practice Tuesday and the forward remains day to day because of an undisclosed injury.

Kucherov was injured during a 3-2 overtime win against the Nashville Predators on Friday. He left in the second period, but later returned and got the assist on the game-winning goal by Brayden Point. Kucherov did not play in a 5-3 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday.

Assistant coach Jeff Blashill said he is hopeful Kucherov, who leads the Lightning with 34 points (12 goals, 22 assists) in 22 games, will be at practice Wednesday.

"He's still day to day. … This is a good opportunity here for a lot of guys to rest over the last two days," Blashill said. "There's just lots of things that creep in to guys during the year. I hope he'll practice tomorrow, and we'll go from there."

Forward Nick Paul, who has missed the past six games because of a lower-body injury, was a full participant in practice and could be ready to return to the lineup as early as Thursday against the San Jose Sharks.

"I'm feeling good," Paul said. "It's nice to have these four days here to get skating with the guys. I came in [Monday] and have been doing my due diligence to try and get back. Today was the first full day and I felt good."

Paul, who has 13 points (five goals, eight assists) in 17 games this season, had missed four games total in the previous four seasons.

"This is one of those that you can't really push or it gets worse," Paul said. "I hate sitting out and kind of watching the boys ... you just hate that feeling that you could be out there helping and just really do anything. It just [stinks]."

Forward Mitchell Chaffee, who has missed the past three games because of an undisclosed injury, was a limited participant in practice and forward Jake Guentzel left the ice early but Blashill had no further details.

"I think there's a concern when someone leaves the ice and you have to be aware of it," Blashill said. "We'll know more information tomorrow." -- Corey Long

Minnesota Wild

Forward Mats Zuccarello was placed on long-term injured reserve and defenseman Jonas Brodin and forward Jakub Lauko were placed on injured reserve Tuesday.

Zuccarello will miss his ninth straight game because of a lower-body injury when the Wild play the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday (8 p.m. ET; FDSNWIX, FDSNNO, SNP). Brodin (upper body) and Lauko (lower body) each will miss his fourth straight game.

"He's doing some light activity," Wild coach John Hynes said of Zuccarello. "He has increased from basically doing nothing to now he’s doing some light stuff, using the gym. I think it’s going to be now, say this week getting into the activity and getting himself moving around again. And then I think next week we might have a better feel on if we're going to advance that to on the ice and there will be a whole process with that as well."

Forward Liam Ohgren and goalie Jesper Wallstedt were recalled from Iowa of the American Hockey League.

Ohgren does not have a point in eight NHL games this season but has six points (five goals, one assist) in eight AHL games. Wallstedt has not played in the NHL this season and has a 4.34 goals-against average and .860 save percentage in 10 AHL games. -- Jessi Pierce

Winnipeg Jets

Nikolaj Ehlers was placed on injured reserve Tuesday retroactive to Nov. 29 because of a lower-body injury.

The forward left a 4-3 loss against the Vegas Golden Knights on Friday early in the second period following a collision with Golden Knights forward Pavel Dorofeyev, who appeared to step on Ehlers' foot during the play.

"We got home, he was able to see our doctors," Jets coach Scott Arniel said. "Lower body, a little bit worse than [we thought] at first. We'll just see. He'll probably be out a week to 10 days, but hopefully less than that. We'll just kind of monitor him every day."

Ehlers, who ranks third for the Jets this season with 25 points (nine goals, 16 assists) in 24 games, did not play in a 3-1 loss to the Dallas Stars on Sunday.

Forward Brad Lambert was recalled from Manitoba of the American Hockey League on Tuesday. He has 11 points (three goals, eight assists) in 16 AHL games.

"We saw him in training camp," Arniel said. "He had a real good camp for us. It's him coming up and doing what he needs to do best. He's a skater, he has great offensive instincts. There's stuff that we will go over about how we play without the puck. This is an opportunity for him again to go out and show the organization and his teammates that he can help us."

Winnipeg hosts the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday (8 p.m. ET; TSN3, FDSNMW). -- Darrin Bauming

Colorado Avalanche

Casey Mittelstadt will face the Sabres for the first time Tuesday (7 p.m. ET; KTVD, MSG-B, ALT) since he was traded to the Colorado Avalanche on March 6 for defenseman Bowen Byram.

The center, selected by Buffalo in the first round (No. 8) of the 2017 NHL Draft, had 186 points (62 goals, 124 assists) in 339 games during seven seasons with the Sabres.

"It was nice to see the guys last night," Mittelstadt said. "I think that's the main thing. Grew up with a lot of those guys and had some really good relationships with them. But on the emotion side of it, I guess I really have no idea until tonight. I'm excited to be back though. Should be fun. A lot of good memories and good friendships here. I think that's what I'll cherish most."

Mittelstadt has 18 points (seven goals, 11 assists) in 25 games with the Avalanche this season. He had 10 points (four goals, six assists) in 18 regular-season games last season and nine points (three goals, six assists) in 11 Stanley Cup Playoff games, his first experience in the postseason.

"It's been fun," he said. "It's a different group, for sure, a little older. But I think I've fit in well, and there's definitely probably some better hockey to be played by me. But for the most part it's been awesome. The guys have been great, very welcoming, and it's a group of guys that are dialed in and works very hard. I think I blend in well with that crowd, and, yeah, it's been exciting."

Byram, selected by the Avalanche with the No. 4 pick at the 2019 NHL Draft, has 14 points (four goals, 10 assists) in 24 games with the Sabres this season. He had 63 points (23 goals, 40 assists) in 146 games during his four seasons with Colorado, including winning the Stanley Cup in 2022.

"Kind of became my second home," Byram said of his time in Colorado. "Went there as a young kid, and feel like I kind of developed into a young man. A lot of good people in that organization that helped me out and was a lot of fun. It's exciting to get to see everyone and catch up." -- Heather Engel

New York Islanders

Jean-Gabriel Pageau is expected to return to the lineup when the Islanders visit the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET; RDS, TSN2, MSGSN).

The forward missed two games because of a lower-body injury which occured during the third period of a 6-3 loss to the Boston Bruins on Nov. 27, and missed the final 6:21. He took warmups ahead of a 5-4 overtime loss to the Washington Capitals on Friday but did not play.

"The morning skate was a bit of a test," Pageau said Tuesday. "I'm feeling good. At practice yesterday it felt good, so I'm ready to go."

He has 10 points (five goals, five assists) in 23 games and has won 60.4 percent of his face-offs.

Pageau, who had been skating on the top line with Lee and Bo Horvat since Mathew Barzal sustained an upper-body injury Oct. 30, skated on the third line with Kyle MacLean and Oliver Wahlstrom on Monday.

In the two games Pageau missed, Simon Holmstrom skated on the top line and scored twice in each.

Forward Casey Cizikas did not take part in the morning skate and will be a game-time decision, Islanders coach Patrick Roy said.

Pierre Engvall took Cizikas' place at center on the fourth line Tuesday, and defenseman Grant Hutton rotated in with Dennis Cholowski on the third pair with Scott Mayfield. -- Sean Farrell

Vegas Golden Knights

Mark Stone could return for the Golden Knights when they play the Anaheim Ducks on Wednesday.

The forward will miss his 13th straight game when the Golden Knights host the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday (10 p.m. ET; HULU, ESPN+, SN1), but is nearing a return.

Stone has been out of the lineup since Nov. 6 after sustaining a lower-body injury at Edmonton. He has 21 points (six goals, 15 assists) in 13 games this season and practiced in a regular jersey Tuesday.

"For him it's probably just as important to get around his teammates again, get going, see some light action," Golden Knights coach Bruce Cassidy said Monday. "I think he got through it OK. We’ll find out tomorrow." -- Paul Delos Santos

Philadelphia Flyers

Samuel Ersson practiced Monday for the first time since Nov. 13, and the goalie said there's a chance he could play against the Florida Panthers on Thursday.

Ersson has missed 11 of the past 13 games because of lower-body injuries. He left a 3-0 loss against the Boston Bruins on Nov. 2 and missed two games. He returned to play against the Panthers on Nov. 9 and the San Jose Sharks on Nov. 11, but left practice early Nov. 13 and hadn't skated with the Flyers again until Monday. He was placed on injured reserve Nov. 18.

"Felt good," Ersson said Monday. "Body is feeling good. Mentally, it's good getting back. It's fun to be back. Just enjoying it. ... I've been skating here for a little bit, just ramping it up as we go. I've been taking my time, listening to the body, really making sure that I'm at where I need to be able to go here."

When asked if there was a chance he could return Thursday, Ersson said, "We'll see."

In his absence, Ivan Fedotov has gone 4-1-1 with a 2.57 GAA and .909 save percentage in six games (six starts) and Aleksei Kolosov is 3-3-0 with a 2.74 GAA and .900 save percentage in six games (five starts).

Ersson was 5-2-2 with a 2.70 GAA and .902 save percentage in 11 games (10 starts) prior to the injury and sees it as a challenge to earn his spot back in the lineup.

"Obviously you want to play, and I definitely think I was in a good spot," he said. "You have to remind yourself I know how to play games. It's not going to be any different coming back. It might be a good thing. It'll be a challenge for me but it's also a challenge you want to go ahead and embrace."

Philadelphia also on Monday sent defenseman Helge Grans to Lehigh Valley of the AHL. -- Adam Kimelman

Toronto Maple Leafs

Jake McCabe is expected to return when the Maple Leafs host the Nashville Predators on Wednesday (7:30 p.m. ET; SN, TVAS2, FDSNSO).

The defenseman did not play in a 4-1 win against the Chicago Blackhawks on Monday for precautionary reasons after taking a puck to the head against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday.

"Just to be extra cautious," McCabe said. "Anytime you get a blow to the head, you just want to make sure everything is good to go. It was pretty scary but they take good care of us here so move on from it and keep chugging along. I'm good to go."

McCabe practiced Tuesday in his regular spot on a defense pair with Chris Tanev.

Forwards Max Domi and Max Pacioretty each practiced Tuesday wearing grey jerseys as extras. Coach Craig Berube said they are making progress in their recoveries from lower-body injuries, but will not play Wednesday.

Ryan Reaves is expected to return after serving a five-game suspension from the NHL Department of Player Safety for an illegal check to the head of Darnell Nurse during a 4-3 overtime win against the Edmonton Oilers on November 16.

He skated at right wing on a line with left wing Nikita Grebenkin and center Connor Dewar. -- Dave McCarthy