February 5, 2026
New York Islanders forward Calum Ritchie (lower body) will return from a six-game absence on Thursday against the New Jersey Devils. With Bo Horvat and Mathew Barzal both on the first line, Ritchie will take over center duties on the second line. The Islanders are also expected to use him on the first power-play unit. Ritchie had a four-game assist streak last month and has amassed 15 points (seven goals, eight assists) in 40 outings this season. Anthony Duclair will make way for Ritchie in the lineup.
--Taavi PailkSource: NHL.com
February 5, 2026
Buffalo Sabres left wing Zach Benson (upper body) will miss a second straight game on Thursday against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Benson scored in Monday's 5-3 win over Florida but also sustained an upper-body injury. Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff expects to have Benson back after the Olympic break. Josh Norris (upper body) is also on track to rejoin the lineup when the Sabres resume play on Feb. 24. He will miss his 12th consecutive game on Thursday. Jordan Greenway (abdomen) is also expected to remain out against Pittsburgh. As a result of the injuries up front, Peyton Krebs has joined the first line, giving his fantasy stock a massive boost.
--Taavi PailkSource: NHL.com
February 5, 2026
Washington Capitals forward Pierre-Luc Dubois (abdomen) will return to action on Thursday night against the Nashville Predators. He has been out of commission since Oct. 31, missing 47 games due to abdominal and adductor muscle surgery. Before landing on the shelf, Dubois had a slow start to the season, going scoreless in six games. He is set to center the second line and the second power-play unit on Thursday. Sonny Milano (personal) will come out of the lineup. Dubois may have struggled early this season, but fantasy managers should keep an eye on him, as he set a career high with 66 points only a year ago.
--Taavi PailkSource: NHL.com
February 5, 2026
Pittsburgh Penguins forward Rickard Rakell (lower body) was injured during the morning skate and won't play on Thursday against the Buffalo Sabres. Penguins head coach Dan Muse labeled Rakell day-to-day, so it appears he'll be fine to play for Team Sweden in the Olympics. Rakell has been quiet lately, but he's been productive overall for the Penguins, recording 24 points (10 goals, 14 assists) in 35 appearances. Rutger McGroarty will replace Rakell on the first line. The Penguins also won't have Blake Lizotte (personal) on Thursday, while Noel Acciari (illness) is a game-time decision.
--Taavi PailkSource: NHL.com
February 5, 2026
Tampa Bay Lightning center Brayden Point (lower body) has been ruled out for the Olympics. Carolina Hurricanes forward Seth Jarvis will replace him on Team Canada. Point suffered a lower-body injury on Jan. 12 and has been in a race against time to get healthy for the Olympic tournament. Unfortunately, he won't be ready to play. After a slow start to the campaign, Point had a great four-week stretch before his injury, collecting 19 points (eight goals, 11 assists) in 15 games. He has 30 points (11 goals, 19 assists) in 37 games for the season. Point skated on Thursday morning but will sit out his 10th straight game against the Florida Panthers. With him back on the ice, it appears there's a good chance Point will be available after the Olympic break.
--Taavi PailkSource: NHL.com
February 5, 2026
Calgary Flames forward Jonathan Huberdeau will undergo season-ending hip surgery in March. He played his final game of the campaign on Wednesday night, scoring a power-play goal in a 4-3 victory over the Edmonton Oilers. Huberdeau has been dealing with the hip issue all year and will finish the season with a career-low 25 points (10 goals, 15 assists) in 50 games. Overall, Huberdeau has tallied 194 points (65 goals, 129 assists) in 291 regular-season games with the Flames. He is only three years into an eight-year, $84 million contract, the largest in franchise history. The 32-year-old is expected to be healthy for the start of the 2026-27 season.
--Taavi PailkSource: NHL.com
February 5, 2026
Colorado Avalanche winger Valeri Nichushkin had a three-assist game on Wednesday against the San Jose Sharks, helping his team secure a 4-2 victory. Nichushkin helped Artturi Lehkonen score two second-period goals, and Josh Manson potted the game-winning goal in the third after work from Nichushkin and Nathan MacKinnon. With Martin Necas (lower body) out, Nichushkin has skated on the first line with Lehkonen and MacKinnon. The Olympic break comes at the wrong time for him, as the Russian forward has been pointless only once in his last six outings. For the season, Nichushkin has totaled 12 goals and 34 points in 46 games.
--Taavi PailkSource: ESPN
February 5, 2026
Nashville Predators center Ryan O'Reilly finished Wednesday's high-scoring 6-5 overtime loss to the Minnesota Wild with three assists. The veteran forward started off the night with a power-play assist in the first period and served up an even-strength assist in the second and third periods. O'Reilly has been one of the surprise performers in fantasy hockey this season, averaging a point per game for the first time in his 17-year NHL career. He's on track for an 80-point campaign after managing only 53 points a season ago. In 56 outings, O'Reilly has posted 20 goals and 36 assists. He will attempt to post a three-game multi-point streak on Thursday against Washington, something O'Reilly hasn't done in the regular season since 2016-17.
--Taavi PailkSource: ESPN
February 5, 2026
Minnesota Wild winger Matt Boldy rocked the Nashville Predators with an early hat trick and a four-point performance in Wednesday's 6-5 overtime victory. The 24-year-old posted the fastest hat trick in franchise history to start a game, netting his third goal with just 12:58 played in the first period. Zach Parise held the previous record of 16:33, set in 2016. Boldy completed his big performance with an assist on Jared Spurgeon's game-winning goal late in overtime. The prolific winger became the sixth player in the league this season with at least 30 goals and 30 assists. He has managed 62 points (32 goals, 30 assists) in 54 contests. Boldy will now shift his attention to representing Team USA at the Olympics before continuing the season with the Wild on Feb. 25.
--Taavi PailkSource: ESPN
February 5, 2026
Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Jet Greaves registered a 21-save shutout on Wednesday night in a 4-0 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks. A day after Elvis Merzlikins blanked the New Jersey Devils, Greaves responded with an equally impressive shutout effort. The Blue Jackets kept the opposition from scoring in consecutive days for just the second time in franchise history. Greaves earned his second shutout of the season, improving to 18-12-6. He holds a 2.62 goals-against average and a .910 save percentage. Greaves and Merzlikins have been sharing the workload recently and will likely continue to do so after the Olympic break.
--Taavi PailkSource: ESPN
February 5, 2026
Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Wyatt Kaiser (lower body) exited Wednesday's 4-0 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets in the first period. He appeared to injure his left leg after getting tangled with Blue Jackets defenseman Zach Werenski. Chicago also finished the contest without forward Colton Dach (undisclosed), who left in the second frame. "If we were playing tomorrow, Dach wouldn't play, but he'd be kind of day to day-ish," Blackhawks head coach Jeff Blashill said postgame. "Kaiser would be out for a little bit. Kaiser, I don't want to put out an exact timeline. We'll know more after getting examined tomorrow, but we'll see after the break." Due to the Olympic break, the Blackhawks won't return to action until Feb. 25, giving Kaiser plenty of time to recover. However, he might still miss action if it's a major injury. The 23-year-old has registered 12 points (five goals, seven assists), 58 shots, 47 blocks, and 36 hits in 57 appearances this season.
--Taavi PailkSource: NHL.com
February 5, 2026
Florida Panthers left wing Sandis Vilmanis (upper body) left Wednesday's 5-4 shootout win over the Boston Bruins early, Adam Lichtenstein of the Sun Sentinel reports. The Latvian forward was limited to four shifts and 2:35 of ice time. Vilmanis has contributed two goals and two assists through his first 13 career games this season. He had three points in four games before Wednesday's contest. Given his early exit against Boston, Vilmanis should be considered questionable for Thursday's tilt against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Florida also lost defenseman Tobias Bjornfot (undisclosed) in Wednesday's game.
--Taavi PailkSource: Adam Lichtenstein
February 5, 2026
New Jersey Devils forward Jack Hughes (lower body) won't play on Thursday against the New York Islanders, missing a third consecutive game. After sitting out most of December with a hand injury, Hughes is dealing with a lower-body ailment. Hughes is scheduled to play for Team USA at the Olympics and will have an additional week to recover before the tournament opener against Latvia. The Devils have used Cody Glass in the top six since Hughes landed on the shelf. Before going scoreless in Tuesday's loss to Columbus, Glass had averaged a point per game over a 10-game stretch.
--Taavi PailkSource: Sportsnet
February 4, 2026
Minnesota Wild left wing Marcus Foligno (illness) won't play on Wednesday against the Nashville Predators. The veteran forward will be unavailable for a second consecutive contest due to illness. Several Wild players have been under the weather recently, including Nico Strum, who returned from a one-game absence on Monday against Montreal to fill Foligno's spot in the lineup. Meanwhile, Jesper Wallstedt (illness) also remains unavailable on Wednesday night. Luckily for Minnesota, this will be the team's final game before the Olympic break, and they can get healthy over the next few weeks.
--Taavi PailkSource: NHL.com
February 4, 2026
San Jose Sharks winger Kiefer Sherwood (upper body) will make his team debut on Wednesday night against the Colorado Avalanche. It has been a couple of weeks since the Sharks acquired Sherwood from the Vancouver Canucks, but he hasn't played yet due to an upper-body injury. The 30-year-old has a good chance to make a positive first impression, as the Sharks will use Sherwood on the first line with scoring machine Macklin Celebrini and in-form Will Smith. He is also expected to join the second power-play unit. Sherwood has managed 17 goals and 23 points in 44 outings this season, collecting 10 points (six goals, four assists) on the power play.
--Taavi PailkSource: NHL.com
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