Huberdeau left the game after being hit by Jets’ defenseman Jacob Trouba and Huberdeau appeared to hit his head off of the ice as he went down. There was no update after the game, but the Panthers are off until Thursday, so he has some time to recover.
Maatta is nearly two weeks into a 3-4 week timetable and his return to practice already suggests that he could return at the front-end of that timeline. Maatta will need to get a couple of practices under his belt before he gets back into the lineup.
Strome struggled with the Islanders at the start of the season, posting just one goal and four assists in 12 games. After being reassigned, he picked up two goals and two assists in eight games with Bridgeport. Strome will be in the Isles’ lineup on Friday.
Maatta was hit from behind into the bench door in Tuesday’s win over the Islanders. He was hospitalized for nearly 24 hours and is now expected to miss 3-4 weeks with an upper-body injury. The Penguins were originally worried about organ damage, so 3-4 weeks isn’t too bad all things considered. Expect the Penguins to recall a blueliner on Wednesday night or Thursday morning.
Maatta spent the night in the hospital and will remain in the hospital on Wednesday and undergo further evaluation. The Penguins were originally concerned about internal organ damage, but that doesn’t appear to be as big of a concern at this point.
Maatta was hit into the open bench door in Tuesday’s win vs. Minnesota. Matt was down on the ice for a few minutes before being helped to the locker room. Matt was held overnight at a nearby hospital for evaluation and an update on his status is expected to come on Wednesday.
Strome has no recorded a point in five games and has been a healthy scratch in two of the last seven games. Strome has struggled to just five points (1G / 4A) in 12 games this season and the Islanders have decided to send him back to the AHL to help him get his game back on track. The Islanders have also been impressed with Steve Bernier, which allowed them to demote Strome.
Strome was a late scratch from Thursday’s game because of an illness and his absence from practice this morning puts his status for Saturday in doubt. The Islanders play at 1 p.m, so expect an update on his status a few hours before game-time.
Strome was a late scratch for Thursday's game and is listed as day-to-day with an illness heading into the weekend. The Islanders have a back-to-back starting on Saturday, so monitor Strome's status leading up to tomorrow's contest with the Devils.
Strome was a a healthy scratch on Saturday, but will get back into the lineup tonight vs. Calgary. He has one goal and four assists in seven games this season. He will replace Steve Bernier in the lineup and should be back on a line with John Tavares.
Maatta was sent down as a paper move to maximize the Penguins cap flexibility but it was always the plan to recall him and have him play in their season opener tonight in Dallas.
This move is believed to be a procedural move to help set them up to get down to their 23-man roster and sneak under the league’s salary cap. Maatta is expected to be recalled prior to their season opener and he should be in the lineup on Thursday.
Huberdeau was an unrestricted free agent, but is now signed through the 2016-17 season. Huberdeau is coming off of a season in which he tallied 15 goals and 39 assists (54 points) in 79 games. He should lead the Panthers in points again in 2015-16.
Backlund, 26, missed 30 games in 2014-15 after undergoing abdominal surgery in late-October. Despite the injury, he managed to post the highest points-per-game of he career by tallying 10 goals and 17 assists (27 points) in 52 games. Backlund is a strong two-way forward who plays in all situations for the Flames.
