NHL Buzz: Theodore returns, Hertl out for Golden Knights
McAvoy returns to Bruins practice; Mrazek sidelined for Red Wings
Vegas Golden Knights
Shea Theodore returned for the Golden Knights at the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday.
The defenseman hadn't played since he sustained an upper-body injury at the 4 Nations Face-Off on Feb. 12.
"He's been skating, looks good," Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said. "Part of [his] game we missed the most was neutral zone transition breakouts. He can be a one-man breakout for sure, so that part of our game was still solid, but that's one of his best attributes."
Theodore, who has 48 points (seven goals, 41 assists) in 55 games while averaging 22:03 of ice time, resumed skating March 19. He played on a defense pair with Brayden McNabb.
"It's been long, for sure," Theodore said. "You never want to miss any time. Unfortunate injury, but I feel good and hopefully feel stronger. This time of year, any kind of boost is good. I'm feeling fresh resting my legs a little bit over the past couple of weeks, so I just (want to bring) a little bit of energy."
Tomas Hertl did not make the three-game road trip after the forward suatained an upper-body injury during a 4-2 win against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Sunday.
"Tomas went into the end boards real hard after the breakaway," general manager Kelly McCrimmon said on the Vegas Insider Show on Monday. "I think he made an attempt at the rebound before being hit into the boards. He didn't make the trip with us. He remained home, so he won't play this week. He'll get tests done, I think he got some done [Monday] and I think some more [Tuesday] to determine exactly what we're dealing with, but he’ll be missing this trip."
Hertl leads the Golden Knights with 31 goals and is third with 59 points in 70 games this season. He has eight goals in his past 10 games.
"You can’t just plug someone in there and expect them to be Tomas," Cassidy said. "But at the end of the day, we've got a lot of good players. We've got five guys in the lineup regularly that can play center. …We'll put Nic Roy there with (Pavel) Dorofeyev and (Brandon) Saad (tonight). I think Nic’s turned the corner a little bit offensively. He’s a big body as well; plays a little bit like Tomas, so we’ll see how it goes. If not, we’ll move some other pieces around."
Vegas (42-20-8) is first in the Pacific Division, five points ahead of the Los Angeles Kings and Edmonton Oilers. -- Jessi Pierce
Boston Bruins
Charlie McAvoy practiced in a noncontact jersey Tuesday for the first time since sustaining a shoulder injury and infection during the 4 Nations Face-Off last month.
The Bruins defenseman, who was playing for the United States, was hospitalized in Boston during the best-on-best tournament after being injured in Montreal.
McAvoy has 23 points (seven goals, 16 assists) in 50 games this season and leads Boston in time on ice per game (23:40).
"It’s good for the morale of the team to have him around," Bruins coach Joe Sacco said. "He’s progressing the way he should be right now. He’s not pushing himself any more than he has to. When he’s available he’ll be in the lineup. When he’s ready."
Boston (30-33-9) has lost six in a row (0-5-1), including 7-2 at the Los Angeles Kings on Sunday, and trails Montreal by six points for the second wild card in the East.
The Bruins visit the Anaheim Ducks on Wednesday (10 p.m. ET; Victory+, KCOP-13, NESN, TVAS).
Detroit Red Wings
Petr Mrazek is out with an undisclosed injury and did not play at the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday.
The goalie left at 1:38 of the first period in the Red Wings' 5-1 win against the Utah Hockey Club on Monday with an undisclosed injury after making one save. Alex Lyon replaced him and stopped 16 of 17 shots.
"He won't be available for us the rest of this trip, obviously," Detroit coach Todd McLellan said after the game. "We've only got one game tomorrow, and he wasn't scheduled to play, so when we get back to Detroit, he'll get evaluated. We've got the other two that we've got to play, that we can play."
Mrazek, who was acquired in a trade with the Chicago Blackhawks on March 8, is 2-2-0 with a 2.49 goals-against average and .902 save percentage in five games with the Red Wings. Lyon is 12-8-1 with a 2.70 GAA and .901 save percentage in 26 games (22 starts).
Detroit also has Cam Talbot, who is 17-16-3 with a 3.02 GAA and .899 save percentage in 38 games (35 starts) this season.
The Red Wings (33-31-6), who will host the Ottawa Senators on Thursday, are three points behind the Montreal Canadiens for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference.
Buffalo Sabres
Josh Norris did not play against his former team, the Senators, on Tuesday because of a middle-body injury.
The injury is something the center, who was acquired by Buffalo from Ottawa with defenseman Jacob Bernard-Docker before the NHL Trade Deadline on March 7 for center Dylan Cozens, defenseman Dennis Gilbert and a second-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, has been "dealing with throughout the year and kind of reaggravated it."
Tuesday was the sixth straight game he's missed. He traveled with the Sabres on their four-game road trip last week but has not practiced with the team.
"Slow progress, it's felt like, but yeah, I'm feeling better, and hopefully be back soon," Norris said.
Norris said it was reaggravated over an accumulation of games, but it was in a 7-3 loss to the Red Wings on March 12 when it felt the worst.
"Obviously, it's not ideal," he said. "It's always frustrating to be hurt. Wanted to come in here and just join the team and be here for the rest of the year. At the same time, I need to be smart about it, too."
Norris had 156 points (90 goals, 66 assists) in 236 games over parts of six seasons with the Senators. He has one goal and one assist in three games for the Sabres.
Jordan Greenway was absent from the morning skate with a lower-body injury. The forward is day to day, coach Lindy Ruff said. He was injured in the first period a 5-3 win against the Winnipeg Jets on Sunday. -- Heather Engel
Winnipeg Jets
Gabriel Vilardi is week to week for the Jets with an upper-body injury.
Coach Scott Arniel said it was not an ear injury after a puck struck the forward i in a 5-3 loss to the Sabres on Sunday.
Vilardi is third on the Jets in goals (27) and points (61) in an NHL career-high 71 games this season. His 12 power-play goals lead Winnipeg, and his 25 power-play points are second.
"His puck possession skills, his ability to be around the net," Arniel said about what the Jets would miss in his absence. "Obviously the power play, his netfront presence."
Alex Iafallo will replace Vilardi on the top line with center Mark Scheifele and left wing Kyle Connor.
Winnipeg (48-19-4) is first in the West and can clinch a playoff berth Tuesday with one point against Washington or if the St. Louis Blues lose to Montreal in any fashion.
Carolina Hurricanes
Andrei Svechnikov (upper body) did not play against the Nashville Predators at Lenovo Center on Tuesday but is expected to return against the Montreal Canadiens on Friday.
The forward, who has missed seven straight games, returned to practice last week and traveled with the Hurricanes on a four-game West Coast trip.
"I think we're at a point now where he could have went tonight," Carolina coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "But he hasn't had a real good practice, and the way that travel was, it just didn't feel like tonight would be the right night. I would anticipate if everything keeps going in the right direction, he will be in the next game."
Svechnikov has 43 points (18 goals, 25 assists) in 63 games.
The Hurricanes (43-23-4), who have won nine of 10, are second in the Metropolitan Division, nine points ahead of the New Jersey Devils. -- Kurt Dusterberg
