NHL Hockey Player News

Ottawa will be without one of their toughest players to begin the 2026-27 season after they announced Kurtis MacDermid begin the year on the injured/non-roster player list due to an upper-body injury. The 32-year-old bruising forward last scored in the NHL in 2023-24 with Colorado, having appeared in over 58 games since he last found the back of the net.

Foegele failed to appear in any of Ottawa's preseason games and will start the 2026-27 regular season as an injured/non-roster player due to an undisclosed injury. The 30-year-old left-winger is entering his 10th NHL season and first full season in Ottawa after picking up six goals, eight points and 27 SOG in 21 games with the Senators after being acquired from Los Angeles at last years' trade deadline.

Merzlikins time in Columbus has come to an end after seven up-and-down seasons, after the team announced Monday that they had traded the goaltender (with 18% salary retained) alongside Miles Wood and Kirill Marchenko from Columbus for Emil Andrae, Matthew Knies, Steven Lorentz, and a 2nd-round pick. After multiple trade requests, Merzlikins leaves Columbus second all-time in team wins behind his new counterpart, Sergei Bobrovsky. He is expected to now be a part of a three-headed tandem and play a backup role behind Bobrovsky alongside Anthony Stolarz.

Marchenko had expressed his displeasure in Columbus and finds himself now a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs on Monday after Toronto acquired him alongside Miles Wood and Elvis Merzlikins (18% retained salary) from Columbus for Emil Andrae, Matthew Knies, Steven Lorentz, and a 2nd-round pick. Immediately after signing, the 26-year-old signed a six-year, $12.5 million AAV contract extension ($75M total).

After three strong seasons in Toronto, Matthew Knies time as a Maple Leaf is up after Columbus acquired the 23-year-old power forward alongside Steven Lorentz, Emil Andrae, and a 2027 2nd-round pick (SEA) from Toronto for Kirill Marchenko, Miles Wood, and Elvis Merzlikins (some salary retained). Knies hit career highs in assists (43), points (66), PPP (16) and TOI/GP (18:48) across 79 games played in 2025-26 but had a glaringly ugly -30 plus/minus. He is now expected to play a key role in Columbus' top-six.

Faber suffered an upper-body injury in Friday's preseason game and has been retroactively placed on Injured Reserve. He will miss at least one regular-season game before he is eligible to return to the lineup. The 24-year-old Faber had a career-high season in 2025-26, playing predominantly alongside Quinn Hughes and scoring 51 points (15G / 36A) in 80 games.

Timmins has struggled to stay healthy at the NHL level, failing to surpass 52 games played in all but one of his seven seasons and will start the 2026-27 campaign on Injured Reserve with a lower-body injury. The 28-year-old appeared in 39 games for the Sabres last season, picking up eight assists, 18 PIMs and a -8 plus/minus.

Edmundson battled injury through training camp but returned to practice on Monday. That said, following practice, Head Coach Peter Laviolette said that Edmundson is still day-to-day. The 33-year-old Edmundson is entering his third season with the Kings. He had 23 points (2G / 21A) last season in 82 games.

Rust will begin the 2026-27 season sidelined, as he recovers from an upper-body injury. The 34-year-old Rust matched a career high with 65 points (29G / 36A) in 72 games last season. Penguins' newcomer Nicholas Robertson has a chance to see an elevated role during Rust's absence.

Although DeBrusk missed practice on Monday, Canucks Head Coach Manny Malhotra said he will travel with the team, which is an encouraging sign. The 29-year-old DeBrusk was slated to open the season on Vancouver's top line alongside Elias Pettersson and Jonathan Lekkerimaki.

Demko's 2025-26 season ended in January after a hip injury that required surgery, but he is hopeful to make his 2026-27 debut in December. Demko, who has battled a myriad of injuries in recent seasons, had a 2.90 GAA and .895 SV% in 20 appearances last season (8-10-1). The Canucks begin the 2026-27 season with Kevin Lankinen and Leevi Merilainen as their goaltending tandem.

The Oilers acquired Jarry from the Pittsburgh Penguins last season to help solidify their crease, but he just added more uncertainty and was eventually outdueled by Connor Ingram. Now, with Ingram retired and newly acquired Frederik Andersen (undisclosed) sidelined, Jarry will start the 2026-27 season with an opportunity to prove himself and earn the trust of new bench boss Mike Babcock. The 31-year-old Jarry had an ugly 3.86 GAA and .857 SV% in 19 appearances (9-6-2) with the Oilers last season.

Burakovsky exited Saturday's preseason game with an undisclosed injury, and the team has yet to provide a concrete update on his status. The 31-year-old forward averaged 16:25 of ice time and scored just 33 points (11G / 22A) last season, while posting a career-worst -32 plus/minus in 75 games with the Chicago Blackhawks. He hopes to rediscover his offensive prowess in an elevated role with the Senators this season.