6 hours agoPittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang (heart) skated with a regular jersey in Thursday's practice just 10 days after suffering the second stroke of his career. It's still unclear when and if Letang can return to action, but it's certainly a very encouraging sign to see him back at practice so soon after the incident. He missed a little over two months after his first stroke. Even at 35, Letang has remained a vital piece for Pittsburgh at both ends of the ice, recording 12 points in 21 games this season with 44 hits and 34 blocks. He's been out for four games and Jeff Petry has led all skaters in ice time each time in Letang's absence, recording two points with seven shots, 17 hits and 10 blocks.--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN

6 hours agoWinnipeg Jets defenseman Logan Stanley (foot) will be returning to action Thursday against St. Louis. The towering rearguard has been recovering from a broken foot suffered against St. Louis in a matchup on Oct. 24. He went scoreless in five games prior to getting hurt but did tally 15 hits and six blocks with six penalty minutes. Stanley will provide some very good physical presence in the lineup, although it's currently unclear who makes way for him. With Stanley having picked up 17 points in 100 career games, fantasy managers shouldn't expect him to provide any offense, but the 24-year-old loves to do the dirty work and has averaged 1.8 hits and 1.4 blocks for his career.--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Mitchell Clinton

6 hours agoFlorida Panthers goaltender Spencer Knight (illness) has been ruled for Thursday's meeting with the Red Wings. The 21-year-old has started six of the last seven games but is forced to sit out Thursday's action due to a non-COVID illness. Knight has struggled a bit in recent outings, but he still has solid numbers for the season, sitting on an 8-4-3 record with a 2.64 goals-against average, a .919 save percentage and one shutout. Sergei Bobrovsky, who's had some awful times this season, will start against Detroit, entering the action with a 4-6-1 record. Teams have scored 3.72 goals per game against him and Bobrovsky's save percentage stands at a miserable .880, so he's not a very good option for fantasy managers.--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Florida Panthers

6 hours agoFlorida Panthers center Aleksander Barkov (pneumonia) is set to return to action Thursday against Detroit. He has missed the past six games, and the team initially said that Barkov was simply out with a non-COVID illness, but his father has revealed that the Panthers captain had a serious bout with pneumonia, which included having a fever of 103 degrees at one point. Luckily, the talented centerman is feeling better now and can resume the season. Barkov should be ready to rock on the top line again, and he will look to up his points tally from 18 in Thursday's tilt.--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Florida Panthers

7 hours agoSt. Louis Blues winger Pavel Buchnevich (lower body) is forced to miss a second consecutive game Thursday against the Jets. He is bothered by a lower-body ailment and the team considers Buchnevich day-to-day. The Russian winger has exited the lineup at a very bad time because he was riding a season-best three-game goal streak before getting hurt. Through 20 games in total this season, Buchnevich has collected nine goals and 11 assists. He's the only player on the roster to average at least a point per game in 2022-23, so his absence is a big miss for the team, although you wouldn't say so based on the last game when the Blues scored for fun without Buchnevich in a 7-4 victory over the Islanders.--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Jeremy Rutherford

7 hours agoSt. Louis Blues defenseman Torey Krug (upper body) will miss a second consecutive game Thursday versus Winnipeg. Head coach Craig Berube has suggested that Krug still needs a couple of practices before being ready to play again. 2022-23 hasn't been a kind campaign for Krug, with him owning a league-worst minus-22 rating despite getting 11 points in 24 games. His next chance to return comes on Saturday against Colorado. Until then, Calle Rosen will skate with Justin Faulk. The Swedish blue-liner has featured in only 16 games this season, but he has managed to tally a team-best plus-10 rating while posting five points in limited playing time.--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Jeremy Rutherford

7 hours agoToronto Maple Leafs defenseman T.J. Brodie (oblique) will be back in action Thursday against Los Angeles. He returns after sitting out 12 games with an oblique strain. Before going down with the injury, Brodie was able to contribute with two assists in 15 games, while also registering 17 hits and 20 blocks. Brodie is a skillful player, but he rejoins the lineup as a third-pairing defenseman, so it's safe to leave him on the waiver wire.--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Jonas Siegel

15 hours agoVancouver Canucks winger Andrei Kuzmenko logged a power-play goal and an assist in Wednesday's 6-5 overtime victory against San Jose. He came up clutch for the Canucks, taking the game to the extra frame in the final minutes of regulation and setting up Elias Pettersson for the game-winner 35 seconds from the end of overtime. Kuzmenko now boasts back-to-back multi-point games. He has had a very inconsistent debut year, but it appears that the 26-year-old is starting to heat up again. Through 26 games, Kuzmenko has tallied 13 goals and 12 assists. He is averaging nearly a point per game, but Kuzmenko actually has gone without a point in half of his appearances, so achieving consistency should definitely be the main aim for him.--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN

15 hours agoNew York Rangers center Mika Zibanejad continued his scoring streak with a three-point effort in Wednesday's 5-1 victory over Vegas. He helped to turn a tight game into a comfortable victory with a couple of power-play goals in the third period, and his work also included an assist. Zibanejad has now managed at least one point in six consecutive games and teams have nullified him just once in his past 12 outings. The talented centerman had a pretty rough start to the season, but he has found his rhythm now as Zibanejad sits on 15 goals and 17 assists with 28 games played. 10 his goals have come on the power play and only Edmonton's Leon Draisaitl (11) has more this season.--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN

15 hours agoEdmonton Oilers forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins factored in three goals in Wednesday's big 8-2 triumph over the Coyotes, scoring twice and posting one assist. He scored the opening goal on the power play and one of Nugent-Hopkins' assists also came with the man advantage. In 17:59 of ice time, the Oilers No. 93 fired off four shots in total, and he ended up as plus-one for the game. RNH is on pace to smash his previous career highs, as he sits on 30 points through 27 games. We're only a couple of seasons removed from Nugent-Hopkins having a 35-point year, so he's been truly spectacular in 2022-23 and managers have to make sure that he isn't hanging around somewhere on the waiver wire.--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN

15 hours agoEdmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid produced his second four-point performance in three games on Wednesday, dominating against the Coyotes with two goals and two assists. He started out with a pair of power-play assists and eventually helped the team to ice the game with two third-period goals that lifted Edmonton to an 8-2 victory. It was just four games ago that McDavid hit the 40-point mark for the season, but he's now already past 50 with 24 goals and 28 assists. The Oilers captain has exploded for 11 points in four games this month, and he'll head into the next matchup holding a seven-game point streak, which includes eight goals and nine assists.--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN

16 hours agoBoston Bruins goaltender Linus Ullmark produced his second shutout of the campaign Wednesday, keeping Colorado at bay with 23 saves in a 4-0 win. This marks an eighth consecutive victory for Ullmark, who is carrying a ridiculous 15-1-0 record for the season. He has grabbed 15 wins with only 18 appearances and just three goaltenders in NHL history have needed fewer games to record their first 15 regular-season wins with a club. Teams have been getting only 1.82 goals per game against Ullmark and the Swedish netminder boasts a .939 save percentage. Managers who picked him up must feel like geniuses, with the Bruins No. 1 being the runaway leader in all the major goalie categories.--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN

16 hours agoBoston Bruins left wing Taylor Hall was the most productive player in Wednesday's 4-0 win over Colorado, scoring two of the goals and handing out one assist. He finished with five shots in total and was plus-four for the game in 14:11 of action. It appears that getting dropped to the third line has shaken the former MVP back to life, as Hall has amassed seven points during a four-game point streak and teams have held him without a point just twice in his past 10 outings. Hall is the second top goal-scorer for the Bruins with 11 goals and he has tallied 20 points in 25 appearances, which isn't a bad return at all.--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN

16 hours agoColumbus Blue Jackets winger Patrik Laine struck twice in Wednesday's embarrassing 9-4 defeat to Buffalo. He netted the team's first goal in the second period when the Blue Jackets were already down 6-0, and Laine also had the team's third goal. These were his only shots on target in the game. Columbus can't get its act together, but Laine has stayed strong regardless. He has notched four goals and one assist in four games since returning from an ankle sprain, and the 24-year-old sniper boasts nine points in 12 games for the whole season.--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN

16 hours agoBuffalo Sabres right wing Alex Tuch had the most productive outing of his career Wednesday, finishing a 9-4 victory over Columbus with four points. He scored the team's final goal and had three assists in the contest, helping Tage Thompson to produce an amazing five-goal performance. The 26-year-old did the damage in just 13:19 of ice time, and he was plus-four for the game while firing off three shots in total. Tuch is having a big year for the Sabres with 28 points in 26 games, and he has now scored in three consecutive outings.--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN