NHL Hockey Player News

Kassian's status for the Oilers season opener is up in the air. If he is unable to play on Wednesday, the Oilers may have to sign Colton Sceviour to take his place. Head coach Dave Tippett said that he expects Sceviour to replace Kassian on the third line with Derek Ryan and Warren Foegele if he is unavailable.

The Predators selected Matier with the No.124 overall pick in this year's NHL Entry Draft. The 18-year-old defenseman had nine assists in 56 games with the Ottawa 67's in his draft year.

Brown found himself on the roster bubble in Vegas but gets a chance to crack the Flyers roster after being picked up off of waivers. With Kevin Hayes out to open the season, the Flyers are a little thin down the middle, which is why they added the 29-year-old Brown. He has just three points (2G / 1A) in 33 career NHL games with Carolina and Vegas.

Barre-Boulet was an undrafted free agent who has put up outstanding point totals in the QMJHL and AHL. Last season he had 12 points (8G / 4A) in 10 games with Syracuse but just three goals in 15 games with the Lightning. In Seattle, he'll have a chance to make an immediate impact, especially with four forwards on the COVID-19 protocol list to open the season.

Jonsson-Fjallby was claimed off of waivers by the Sabres last week but quickly returns to Washington. The Capitals were the only team to put a claim in for Jonsson-Fjallby, so he was eligible to be sent to the AHL. The 23-year-old winger had 10 goals and five assists (15 points) in 31 games with Hershey last season.

Brooks split his 2021 season between the NHL and AHL. With the Maple Leafs, he scored four goals with one assist (five points) in 14 games. With the Marlies, he had 13 points (4G / 9A) in 17 games. In Montreal, he'll have a chance to play an early-season role while Cedric Paquette and Paul Byron are sidelined.

Bennett was forced to miss Saturday's preseason game due to COVID-19 protocol but was back on the ice for Monday's practice session. This is a good sign for his availability for the Panthers' season opener vs. the Penguins on Thursday.

Boyle was in Penguins' camp on a PTO and earned a roster spot for at least the early part of the season. With both Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin out, the Penguins are in serious need of centres and Boyle figures to open the season as their fourth-line centre.

With both Wyatt Kalynuk and Caleb Jones going down with injuries late in training camp, Gustafsson has been signed to play on the third pair and second power-play unit early the season. After a breakout 60-point (17G / 43A) season in 2019, Gustafsson has struggled to find a stable home. In 95 games since, Gustafsson has tallied just nine goals and 34 assists (41 points) with the Blackhawks, Flames, Flyers and Canadiens.

With the Panthers adding a bunch of bodies up front in recent months, Lammikko was set to lose his roster spot in 2022. The 25-year-old forward had four goals and one assist (five points) in 44 games with the Panthers a season ago but is known more for his defensive game and penalty killing abilities. With Brandon Sutter and Tyler Motte both out to start the season, Lammikko has a good chance to make an impression early.

Juulsen is a former first-round pick who had his career thrown off track due to headache issues but gets a fresh start in Vancouver. It's a homecoming for the Surrey, BC native, who had no points in four NHL games and one assists in five AHL games a season ago.

Juolevi was the No.5 overall pick in 2016 but has struggled to make an impact at the NHL level to-date. A lot of that can be blamed on a variety of injuries that hurt his development along the way. Still, he's just 23-years-old and goes to Florida, where he could break into their top-6 at some point.

Vesey went into Devils training camp on a PTO and came out with a one-year deal after scoring two goals in three preseason games. Most recently, Vesey was in Vancouver, where he had just three assists in 20 games in 2021.

Zibanejad is entering the final year of a five-year, $26.75M contract and is now signed through the 2030 season. The $8.5M AAV cap-hit represents a $3.15M AAV raise for the 28-year-old centre, who has registered 199 points (95G / 104A) in 195 games over the last three seasons.

Johnson didn't play a lot in 2021, registering just one goal in 13 games with the Rangers. This preseason, he was in Avalanche camp on a PTO and earned a one-year deal to be their No.6 defenseman to open the season. With Devon Toews out, Johnson should be a fixture on the blueline in the early part of the season but will likely fall back into a reserve role once Toews is healthy enough to play.

Neal was in Blues' training camp on a PTO and earned a contract by leading them with four goals in four preseason games. Neal is expected to open the season on the Blues' third line with Robert Thomas and Vladimir Tarasenko. The veteran winger had just five goals and five assists (10 points) in 29 games with the Oilers a season ago.

Boldy suffered a fractured ankle in Thursday's preseason game vs. the Blackhawks. The injury will keep him sidelined until early-to-mid November and will likely force him to start the season in the AHL to get back up to speed.

Gauthier is a former first-round pick of the Maple Leafs, who spent 2021 with the Arizona Coyotes. He played most of his time in the AHL, tallying two goals and five assists (seven points) in 18 games with Tucson. He'll likely report to Binghamton (AHL) to start the 2022 season.

Boldy appeared to be on track to make the Wild out of training camp but now it looks like he could miss some time to start the season. The injury could open the door for fellow prospect Marco Rossi to make the team, but it's more likely that recent waiver pickup Rem Pitlick claims that spot.