Aston-Reese underwent shoulder surgery in August and is expected to miss at least the first month of the season. With Aston-Reese out, the Penguins will likely have Evan Rodrigues or Drew O'Connor in their bottom-6 for the first month.
With Bishop out for at least one month, the Stars will continue to lean on Anton Khudobin as their No.1 netminder, as they did during their playoff run. Bishop told The Athletic that the surgery was to repair the meniscus in his right knee and that he is expecting to get back to Dallas in the next couple of weeks and hopes to be on the ice soon.
Depending on when Khudobin gets his visa issues cleared up and arrives in Dallas, he could be in danger of missing the start of the regular season. He will be forced to quarantine for seven days once he arrives in Dallas. With Ben Bishop expected to be out until March, Khudobin will be leaned on to serve as the Stars No.1 netminder for at least a month and a half.
Kapanen is in Finland as he works through immigration issues that have been complicated by COVID-19. HE is not slated to have a visa meeting until later this week and the hopes are that he will be on a plane to Pittsburgh shortly after. However, once he arrives, he would need to quarantine for seven days, which will force him to miss training camp and likely the first game of the regular season.
Olofsson was shaken up after losing his balance and crashing into the post at Saturday's practice. Olofsson tried to return to the skate following a video session but ended up retiring to the dressing room shortly after. Following the practice the Sabres said that Olofsson is still being evaluated, so consider him day-to-day until more information is released.
The Rangers called Zibanejad day-to-day, so it doesn't sound like he's going to miss any regular-season time at this point, but his situation is certainly one worth monitoring as the season approaches.
Eichel suffered an upper-body injury while training and was held off of the ice for the first day of training camp. The Sabres consider Eichel as day-to-day, so it doesn't sound like he will miss any games. In practice, Casey Mittelstadt skated on the top line as a placeholder for Eichel, cantering a line with Taylor Hall and Victor Olofsson on his wings.
As expected, Pastrnak will not be ready for the start of training camp and will miss at least the first few games of the regular season. Pastrnak's original timetable was mid-February, so it looks like that remains true as training camp gets set to begin this week.
Marchand underwent sports hernia surgery in mid-September and was expected to be sidelined until mid-January. On Thursday, the Bruins announced that Marchand has been skating regularly, will be there for the start of training camp and should be good to go for the start of the regular season.
Ustimenko was 1-3-1 with a 3.84 GAA and .889 SV% in five AHL games with Lehigh Valley (AHL) last season and wasn't expected to make a push for an NHL spot in 2020. The former third-round pick may be the future backup in Philadelphia, but he may be sidelined for all of 2021 after undergoing hip surgery.
Hischier suffered a leg injury while training in Switzerland and will not be available for the opening of training camp. Hischier did not have surgery and the Devils do not consider it a long-term injury. The fourth-year centre could be ready for the start of the season but may get out of the gates slowly with a limited training camp.
In a statement, Toews said that he's been experiencing symptoms that have left him feeling "drained and lethargic." He is working with doctors to get a better understanding of his condition and will not join the Blackhawks until he "can get [his] health back to a place where feel [he] can perform at an elite level and help [his] team."
Nylander could be in danger of missing all of the 2021 season after undergoing surgery on Monday, which is part of the reason why the Blackhawks went out and signed veteran Carl Soderberg on Saturday. The 22-year-old Nylander struggled in his first season in Chicago, collecting just 26 points (10G / 16A) in 65 games. His injury opens the door for a lot of competition in the Blackhawks' training camp next week.
The Lightning are hopeful that Kucherov will be available for the playoffs. Kucherov going on LTIR provides the Lightning with $9.5 million in cap space, which is a positive to come out of this. Tampa Bay is pressed up tight against the cap but losing their best player should allow them to get RFA Anthony Cirelli under contract before the start of the season.
Haas was in close contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19. Hass's travel will be delayed, so he is expected to miss the opening of the already abbreviated training camp.
Klefbom is dealing with a shoulder injury and GM Ken Holland said he's still deciding on surgery but will take off the entire 2021 season regardless. Klefbom is hoping to be ready for the fall, when training camp for 2021-22 beings. The Oilers prepared for this possibility, by signing Tyson Barrie to a one-year deal this fall. He'll fill in for Klefbom on the top power-play with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.
Lundqvist took to Twitter on Thursday to announce that he will not be joining the Capitals for the upcoming season. "After many weeks of tests and conversations with specialists around the country, it's been determined that a heart condition will prevent me from taking the ice," Lundqvist said in the statement. Lundqvist was set to share the net with Ilya Samsonov this season but now Samsonov will receive the lion's share of the starts with either Pheonix Copley or Vitek Vanecek serving as his backup.
Last Friday, the Minnesota Wild announced that Zuccarello underwent right arm surgery in Norway and no timetable for his return has been established. Zuccarello broke his right arm in his first game with the Dallas Stars back in 2019 and he missed five weeks. With Zuccarello expected to miss some time to start the season, expect Jordan Greenway to be elevated into a top-6 role.
The NHL injury report is updated daily so that you can see the latest injury news ahead of puck drop in any of today’s matchups. Seeing timely updates to the NHL injury report can make a major impact on your daily fantasy sports picks and wagers on a particular game. All information provided on the NHL injury report is provided directly by the NHL and each respective franchise to ensure accuracy.
While the minimum amount of time spent on the injured reserve list is seven calendar days, there is no maximum amount of time that a player can be placed on the injured reserve list. If a player is set to be sidelined for longer than 24 calendar days or 10 NHL games, then a club may opt to place them on the long-term injured reserve instead. This allows franchises with the ability to exceed the salary cap while a player is placed on this reserve list.
No injury recovery timeline is the same as another as there are several factors that go into the rehab process for a player being affected by injury. Factors include but are not limited to, injury severity, player injury/medical history, age, as well as the location of the injury. Some injuries are able to clear up in a matter of days, while others may take an athlete out of action for the entirety of a season.
