NHL Hockey Player News

Pirri was originally drafted by the Blackhawks in 2009 and played in Chicago for three and a half years. He has bounced around the NHL since then and spent most of his time with Vegas in the AHL. This past season, he had 35 points (15G / 20A) in 38 games with Chicago (AHL) and will be a fringe NHLer with the Blackhawks.

Sikura was a sixth-round pick of the Blackhawks in 2014 and turned pro in 2018. The 25-year-old winger spent most of the 2020 season with Rockford (AHL), where he was second on the team with 33 points (14G / 19A) in 45 games. Sikura has 14 points (1G / 13A) in 47 career NHL games and will be a fringe NHLer with Vegas following this trade.

Kirkland was a third-round pick of the Predators in 2014 but signed with the Flames last summer. He spent the entire 2020 season with Stockton (AHL), where he had six goals and 22 assists (28 points) in 53 games.

Sekera left Game 5 temporarily after getting hurt on a shot block but managed to finish the game. Sekera has been listed as a game-time decision got Game 6 but it seems likely that he will play. If he can't, look for Taylor Fedun to re-join the lineup.

Faksa has not appeared in a game during the series, so it's not surprising that he won't be available for a must-win Game 6. Nicholas Caamano will stick in the lineup with Faksa out.

Hintz will miss his second straight game with an injury that he suffered while crashing into the boards in Game 5. With Hintz still out, Justin Dowling will remain in the lineup for the second straight game.

Hagg appeared in 49 games with the Flyers in 2020, scoring three goals with 10 assists (13 points). The 25-year-old led the Flyers in hits (136) and was tied for fourth in blocked shots (79). Hagg will likely be the Flyers No.6 defenseman in 2021.

Stewart was the No.18 overall pick back in 2006. The 6-foot-2, 242 lbs. winger played 11 years with the Avalanche, Blues, Sabres, Wild, Ducks, Flames and Flyers and totalled 160 goals and 162 assists (322 points) in 668 games.

Staal has one-year left on his contract that carries a $5.7M cap-hit. The Rangers gave up a second-round pick to Detroit to take that deal off of their books, clearing cap-space to get RFA's like Ryan Strome, Brendan Lemieux, Tony DeAngelo and Alexandar Georgiev under contract. Staal comes into Detroit to help replace Jonathan Ericsson and Trevor Daley, who the Red Wings announced they will not be bringing back. The 33-year-old had 11 points (2G / 9A) in 52 games in 2020.

Elson has been a career AHLer and has spent the last three seasons with Grand Rapids. In 2020, the 28-year-old had nine goals with 13 assists (22 points) in 61 games.

Gagner was acquired midseason from the Oilers as a part of the Andreas Athanasiou deal and he scored one goal in six games. The veteran won't be a fantasy asset in 2021 but will help be a mentor in the room, play a bottom-6 role and see some power-play time.

Blandisi started last season with the Penguins but was dealt to the Canadiens in a minor league swap in mid-February. Montreal didn't get much of a look at Blandisi before the season was paused but he registered four points (1G / 3A) in four AHL games and that was enough to get a one-year extension. The 26-year-old has 10 goals and 21 assists (31 points) in 101 career NHL games with the Devils, Ducks and Penguins.

Petry had one-year left on his six-year, $33M contract that he signed in 2015 but earned a fresh four-year extension and got a $750K AAV raise. Petry has recorded three-straight seasons of at last 40 points and has not missed a game over that stretch.