6 hours agoColorado Avalanche winger Artturi Lehkonen (shoulder) might not be ready for training camp ahead of the new season. He's set to undergo shoulder surgery next week, and Avalanche general manager Chris MacFarland has suggested Lehkonen faces a race against time to get healthy for camp. The 28-year-old has just finished his second full season with the Avalanche. After missing time early in the campaign with a neck injury, Lehkonen posted 34 points (16 goals, 18 assists) in 45 games. He has totaled 43 goals and 51 assists in 125 games during his entire stay in Denver.Source: Aarif Deen
6 hours agoDallas Stars center Roope Hintz (upper body) could be available again for the team in Saturday's Game 2 against Edmonton. Stars head coach Pete DeBoer said on Friday that Hintz is a possibility for the contest. The Finnish forward has been sidelined for three games with an upper-body injury. Hintz's return would give a big boost to Dallas, although he hasn't been quite at his best in the postseason. Through 11 appearances, Hintz has registered two goals and four assists. He will presumedly jump right back to the top line and the first power-play unit if he's good to go on Saturday.Source: Elliotte Friedman
6 hours agoFlorida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky will head out for a fifth win in six games on Friday against the Rangers. The Russian netminder enjoyed a very strong finish to the first-round series against Boston and also started the Eastern Conference Finals in spectacular form. Bobrovsky posted his second career postseason shutout in the series opener with a 24-save effort in a 3-0 win. The two-time Vezina Trophy winner has allowed 2.18 goals with a .909 save percentage and owns a 9-3 record through his first 12 playoff appearances of the year.Source: Steve Goldstein
6 hours agoNew York Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin will hope to get back on track as the Eastern Conference Finals continue on Friday. He received no goal support and took a 3-0 defeat against Florida in Game 1 of the series, suffering a third loss in four games. Shesterkin has struggled to make it to the win column after going unbeaten in each of the team's first seven postseason games of the year. It's been a disappointing spell for Shesterkin lately, but he still owns strong numbers. The Rangers No. 1 has gone 8-3 in the playoffs, allowing 2.37 goals with a .926 save percentage.Source: Vince Z. Mercogliano
6 hours agoNew York Rangers center Filip Chytil could start Game 2 against the Panthers on Friday on the top line. According to Rangers reporter Vincent Z. Mercogliano, Chytil wore the same blue jersey as first-liners Chris Kreider and Mika Zibanejad during the morning skate. Jack Roslovic has previously skated with the two, but he worked in the bottom-six group during the session. Health issues have limited Chytil to only 10 regular-season and two playoff appearances in 2023-24. He logged a fairly uneventful 9:17 of action in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals after returning from a three-game absence.Source: Vince Z. Mercogliano
7 hours agoNew York Rangers right wing Kaapo Kakko is reportedly in danger of being a healthy scratch for Game 2 against Florida on Friday. The 23-year-old has largely been ineffective in the 2024 postseason, finishing with only two points (one goal, one assist) in 11 outings. Matt Rempe is seen as his potential replacement in the lineup. The move would give the Rangers a lot more muscle on the ice, as Rempe has racked up 23 hits in seven playoff outings. Offensively, he's contributed one goal with three shots on goal while averaging 6:18 of ice time.Source: Vince Z. Mercogliano
4 days agoNew York Rangers forward Filip Chytil (illness) was a full participant in Monday's practice and is likely to return for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Florida Panthers on Wednesday. Chytil missed the final three games of New York's second-round series against the Carolina Hurricanes with an illness, which was terrible timing given he had just come back from a concussion and was only able to play in one game before being hit by the illness. The 24-year-old skated on the third line alongside Alexander Wennberg and Kaapo Kakko during practice and was also a part of the second powerplay unit. His return would be a major boost for the Rangers' depth, which will be needed against a hard-checking Florida team. Source: Mollie Walker
4 days agoDallas Stars defenseman Jani Hakanpaa (undisclosed) did not practice on Monday and is considered day-to-day ahead of Game 1 of the Western Conference Final on Thursday. Hakanpaa has been out of the Stars' lineup since Game 1 of their first-round series against the Los Angeles Kings where he suffered an undisclosed injury. It would be a surprise to see the burly d-man back in the Stars lineup early in the series given his inability to practice. If he does return, he will likely replace Alex Petrovic on the third pairing alongside Ryan Suter.Source: Lia Assimakopoulos
4 days agoDallas Stars center Roope Hintz (undisclosed) practiced on Monday and is considered day-to-day ahead of Game 1 of the Western Conference Final on Thursday. Hintz missed Games 5 and 6 of the Stars' second-round series against the Colorado Avalanche with an undisclosed injury, but appears to be getting healthier and could return early in their next series. Hintz would be a big addition up the middle for Dallas, who would be able to slide their lineup around to give them an even bigger depth advantage than they already have. If he returns, Hintz would likely play on a line with Jason Robertson as he has most of the season, but nothing is set in stone.Source: Lia Assimakopoulos
4 days agoVancouver Canucks forwards Sam Lafferty and Ilya Mikheyev (undisclosed) will draw back into the lineup for Game 7 against the Edmonton Oilers on Monday. Lafferty will replace Vasily Podkolzin, who will be a healthy scratch, and will play on Vancouver's fourth line. Mikheyev will do his best to replace Brock Boeser (blood clotting) on the Canucks top line alongside J.T. Miller and Elias Pettersson, who have been reunited for this winner-take-all game. It wouldn't be a surprise to see Mikheyev get shifted around during the game, especially if the line gets off to a slow start. Still, he makes for a solid DFS play tonight.Source: Farhan Lalji
4 days agoVancouver Canucks goaltender Thatcher Demko (knee) will not be available for Game 7 against the Edmonton Oilers on Monday. Demko has missed all but the first game of the Canucks playoff run with a knee injury, and although head coach Rick Tocchet has expressed optimism that their star netminder will return soon, it won't happen Monday. Arturs Silovs will be Vancouver's starter, and although he's had his ups and downs this postseason, he's provided much more than the Canucks could've ever hoped for from a third-string goalie.Source: Sportsnet
4 days agoVancouver Canucks winger Brock Boeser (blood clotting) won't play in Game 7 on Monday due to a blood clotting issue. Thankfully, the injury is not career or life-threatening for Boeser, but the star winger won't be able to play in Monday's winner-take-all game against the Edmonton Oilers and is unlikely to return at all these playoffs, even if the Canucks manage to advance. It is an extremely tough break for Boeser and the Canucks, who will miss the 27-year-old and his 12 points (seven goals, five assists) in 12 games. Vancouver will shift Conor Garland onto the powerplay while their entire forward lineup gets a shake-up in Boeser's absence.Source: Irfaan Gaffar
7 days agoFlorida Panthers defenseman Gustav Forsling finished off the Boston Bruins with a late third-period goal in Game 6 of their second-round series. Forsling's tie-breaking goal put a dagger into the Bruins playoff hopes as it came with just 93 seconds left. The 27-year-old blueliner has shown up big this postseason, picking up seven points (two goals, five assists) in 11 games while providing stellar defensive play for the Panthers. Knowing what Forsling has accomplished in his time in Florida, it's crazy to think that the Panthers originally acquired him by claiming him off waivers in 2021.Source: NHL.com
7 days agoDallas Stars forward Jamie Benn scored a clutch game-tying goal in the third period of Game 6 against the Colorado Avalanche, giving the team the opportunity they needed to win it in overtime. Benn scored early in the third on a beautiful passing play, tucking the puck neatly into an open cage. The 34-year-old veteran now has three goals and five assists for eight points in 13 playoff games, including five points in six second-round games. Benn has been a big part of Dallas' outstanding depth all season and has continued to shine in that role in the playoffs.Source: NHL.com
7 days agoDallas Stars forward Matt Duchene scored off a net-front scramble in double overtime of Game 6 to secure Dallas' spot in the Western Conference Final. Duchene's goal gave the Stars a 2-1 win over the Colorado Avalanche, sending the former packing. In a "puck don't lie" moment, Duchene scored the game-winner after being involved in a controversial goaltender interference call earlier in overtime that many thought should have ended the game in the Stars' favor. It ended up not mattering, though, as Duchene scored his second goal of the postseason at the most opportune time. He's added four assists to total six points in 13 playoff games in a depth role for the Stars.Source: NHL.com