NHL Hockey Player News

de Haan draws out of the lineup in favour of Keaton Middleton. de Haan has zero goals and seven assists in 38 games this season.

Middleton will slot in for Calvin de Haan, who is a healthy scratch on Friday. Middleton is yet to score a goal and has just one assist in 23 games this season.

Kessel will make his first appearance since December 12th, filling for Colton Parayko, who was late scratch on Friday due to an illness. Kessel has no goals and three assists in 26 games this season.

Parayko was a surprise scratch on Friday, with the team not announcing his absence prior to warmups. Matthew Kessel will draw into the lineup in his place.

Heiskanen exited Tuesday's 4-3 win over the Vegas Golden Knights in the third period with 19:50 time-on-ice after Mark Stone made contact with his knee in an awkward collision. The 25-year-old Heiskanen leads Dallas in time-on-ice (25:10) and is out week-to-week. Before his injury, Heiskanen had five points (0G / 5A) during a five-game point streak.

Hofer played well in relief of Jordan Binnington in Monday's 5-2 loss to the Vancouver Canucks, saving 10 of 11 shots (.909 SV%). The 24-year-old Hofer will start on Friday against the Colorado Avalanche and look to build on his 2.74 GAA and .906 SV% through 18 appearances this season (10-5-1). He has a .925 SV% in his last four appearances (2-1-0). The Blues enter the action on Friday as +158 road underdogs against an Avalanche team coming off a disappointing 5-2 loss to the New York Islanders.

Knies suffered an upper-body injury on January 22nd and has not played since. The 22-year-old Knies is having a productive season in Toronto, scoring 31 points (18G / 13A) in 47 games. He has 12 points (7G / 5A) in his last 10 games. He is officially questionable for Saturday's game against the Edmonton Oilers.

Tavares has not played since January 14th, missing six games, but appears to be nearing a return after practicing in full on Friday. Before his injury, Tavares had been held off the scoresheet in three straight games but is still producing at a near point-per-game pace, scoring 42 points (20G / 22A) in 43 contests. He is officially questionable for Saturday's game against the Edmonton Oilers.

Raty will fill the void left in Friday night's lineup after J.T. Miller was traded to the Rangers. Raty will centre Danton Heinen and Phil Di Giuseppe on Vancouver's fourth line.

A fifth-round pick in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft, Mancini has spent the majority of his first two pro seasons with the AHL's Hartford Wolf Pack. Mancini made his NHL debut with the Rangers earlier this season, and has one goal and four assists across 15 career NHL games. He should compete with Noah Juulsen and Vincent Desharnais for game-time as Vancouver's sixth defenceman.

Chytil joins the Canucks as the key piece in the trade that finally helped the Rangers reunite with J.T. Miller. After being limited to a bottom-six role throughout practically his entire career in New York, Chytil should finally get the chance to excel further up the lineup with the Canucks. He leaves New York after parts of eight seasons with the Rangers, scoring 75 goals and adding 89 assists in 378 career regular season games.

A sixth-round draft pick in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft, Dorrington is yet to make his professional debut. He is currently playing in his third season with Northeastern University of the NCAA. Dorrington has eight goals and 20 assists in 81 career NCAA games.

Signed from the Senators in the off-season, Brannstrom leaves the Canucks organization after just 28 NHL games. He registered three goals and five assists with the Canucks, and excelled during his short stint with Abbotsford (AHL), scoring two goals and adding ten assists in just eight games. It's unclear whether the former 15th overall pick will compete for ice-time in the NHL to start his stint with the Rangers, or if he'll be reassigned to Hartford (AHL).

Perhaps the most anticipated trade of the 2024-25 NHL season, Miller has finally been relocated back to the Big Apple, waiving his no-trade clause to rejoin the Rangers. On a per game basis, Miller is one of the most productive Canucks of all time, joining Pavel Bure as the organization's only other player to finish their Canuck careers with more than a point per game. Some dressing room turmoil quite obviously led to Miller's early departure, and although he's fallen off from the 102-point player he was a season ago, he's still managed 35 points (9G/26A) in 40 games this season. He brings a much needed offensive boost to a team that desperately needs it in the underperforming Rangers.

Miller will likely be held out of the lineup due to a potential trade in the works. Frank Seravalli has reported that Miller has verbally agreed to waive his no-trade clause to return to the Rangers, and the two teams are working towards completing a deal.

With Juuse Saros (illness) unavailable for Friday's game in Buffalo, Gravel was sent down to make room for another goalie on the roster. Gravel has appeared in three NHL games this season, registering one assist.

With Juuse Saros (illness) unavailable, Murray will back up Justus Annunen for Friday's game in Buffalo. Murray is yet to appear in an NHL game for the Predators. He's performed well at the AHL level this season, registering a .927 SV% across 23 appearances.

Hinostroza will take a seat on Friday to make way for the return of Luke Evangelista (lower-body). Hinostroza has zero goals and one assist in 12 games this season.