Zadina, who was expected to be a lock to make the Red Wings roster, did not do enough in the preseason to make the team. Zadina will head to Grand Rapids for some seasoning and could be one of their first call-ups if he plays well with the Griffins.
Davidson, 27, was in Chicago on a professional tryout and appears to have cracked their opening night roster. Davidson played for the Canadiens, Oilers and Islanders last year, compiling four goals and three assists (seven points) in 51 games. Davidson might be in the Blackhawks’ top-6, beating out Brandon Manning.
McLeod was selected in the second-round (No.40) of this summer’s draft and enjoyed a strong training camp. The Oilers have plenty of depth down the middle, so McLeod returns to the Steelheads, where he had 70 points (26G / 44A) in 68 games last year.
The Blackhawks picked Boqvist with the No.8 overall pick in this summer’s draft. The dynamic offensive defensman was unable to crack the opening night roster, so he heads to London for his first season in North America—he played in Sweden last year.
Ducks GM Bob Murray announced on Wednesday that Perry underwent surgery to repair his right knee and the initial timetable is set for 20 weeks of about five months. This is a tough blow to a Ducks team that looked as deep as they have in years, but opens the door for young forwards like Troy Terry and Sam Steel to play big roles right out of the gate.
Jones suffered an MCL sprain during Tuesday’s preseason game vs. the Sabres and will miss at least one month. This is another blow to Columbus’ blueline, who will also be without Ryan Murray (groin) to start the season and Zach Werenski is coming off of major off-season shoulder surgery. Werenski should be ready for the start of the year and anchor the top power-play unit with Jones out.
Eaves had shoulder surgery last season and still has not been cleared for contact in training camp. Eaves could join his teammates for practice later this week, but head coach Randy Carlyle does not expect him to be in the lineup on October 3rd.
Kesler joined his teammates for Sunday’s practice but still has not been cleared for contact. Head coach Randy Carlyle said Kesler is unlikely to play in the season opener on October 3rd, which means Sam Steel could get an early look on the second or third line. Kesler is in the midst of a slow build-up after hip surgery in 2017.
Schultz is dealing with a “nagging” upper-body injury but the Penguins don’t think it is anything serious. It sounds like Schultz will get some time off to end training camp to make sure he is ready for the start of the regular season.
Bogosian will be evaluated later today, but head coach Phil Housley called him day-to-day for now. Bogosian has had terrible luck with injuries during his career, so this comes as no surprise. Bogosian could miss the start of the season, which starts next Thursday.
Galchenyuk was hurt in last Tuesday’s preseason game and will miss the start of the regular season. The first-year Coyote could miss a couple of weeks and his injury could lead to Clayton Keller moving to centre for the time being.
Smith has three-years left on his contract, that has a modified no-trade clause. Placing him on waivers may be a way around the no-trade, but Smith is one of the better forwards on a bad Senators team and giving him away for nothing seems counterproductive. The 30-year-old had 19 points (5G / 14A) in 68 games a season ago.
Allen was sidelined with back spasms during the start of training camp, but has been cleared for game action on Tuesday. This is great news for the Blues, who kick-off the regular season next Thursday (Oct. 4th). Allen had one of his worst seasons in 2017-18, going 27-25-3 with a 2.75 GAA, .906 SV% and one shutout. He had a negative (-10.34) goals saved above average for the first time since 2015.
Suzuki was the prized prospect that the Canadiens received in the Max Pacioretty trade but was unable to crack the opening night roster. The 2017 No.13 overall pick returns to Owen Sound, where he has scored 87 goals with 109 assists (196 points) in 129 games over the last two seasons.
Theodore saw some time in the AHL last year, but quickly showed he belonged in the NHL, scoring five goals and six assists (11 points) in just eight games with the Chicago Wolves. With the Golden Knights he registered 29 points (6G / 23A) in 61 games and is a front-runner to lead the Vegas blueline in ice-time this season. Theodore may have to battle with Colin Miller for top power-play time, but he is a candidate for a 10-goal, 30-assist season on a strong Vegas squad.
Ferland was acquired along with Dougie Hamilton from the Flames this offseason and will look to build off of a career-best 41 points (21G / 20A) in 2018. Ferland will be held off of the ice for “a few days” according to Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind’Amour, so it doesn’t sound like he’s in any danger of missing the start of the season.
Byron has enjoyed the best seasons of his career during his last two years in Montreal. The 29-year-old winger has registered back-to-back 20 goals seasons while averaging 39 points during that span. Byron is a versatile forward, who is capable of playing up and down the Canadiens’ lineup.
Reinhart set new career-highs in goals (25) and points (50) during the 2017-18 season. The former No.2 overall pick (2014) is expected to land a top-6 role and players with either Jack Eichel or Casey Mittelstadt in a new-look Sabres’ lineup. Reinhart has 60-point upside as he enters his fourth full season.
Wood just wrapped up his first full NHL season with 19 goals and 13 assists (32 points) in 76 games. The 2013 fourth-round pick will be hard pressed to land a top-6 role in New Jersey but is a serviceable bottom-6 winger who brings some toughness to the Devils’ lineup.
Green could miss the start of the regular season due to a virus that was attacking his liver. The Red Wings sent Green to see some specialists after he complained about fatigue during training camp. GM Ken Holland told reporters that he is “on the backside” of the infection. His likely absence to begin the season means that two of Dennis Cholowski, Libor Sulak, Filip Hronek and Joe Hicketts will make the opening night roster.
