Eriksson Ek suffered an upper-body injury when he was sent hard into the boards by Stars defenseman Jani Hakanpaa last Monday night. It's unclear how long he'll be sidelined but he will not be available for the Winter Classic vs. the Blues.
Spurgeon has been dealing with a nagging lower-body injury since last month. He missed eight games, returned to the lineup and reaggravated the injury on the last homestand. It's unclear how long he'll be out but he will not play in the Winter Classic vs. St. Louis.
Both Maatta and Dustin Brown were added to the COVID protocol list on Sunday, joining Quinton Byfield, Phillip Danault and Cal Petersen, who were already on the list.
Spurgeon will be out until after the Christmas break and could be out long-term. Head coach Dean Evason said that "it's not short-term" so expect a more detailed timetable after the teams return from the Holiday break.
Alex Nedeljkovic was added to COVID-19 protocol so Pickard is expected to serve as Thomas Greiss' backup on Saturday. Pickard has gone 9-7-2 with a 2.47 GAA and .926 SV% in 19 AHL games this season.
The COVID-19 outbreak in Calgary continues as seven more players were added to the protocol list, including Pitlick. That brings the total to 16 players.
Brodin missed the last two games with an upper-body injury but will play vs. the Hurricanes. With Brodin back, Jordie Benn will be a healthy scratch. Brodin, who has one goal and six assists (seven points) in his last eight games, will skate with Mathew Dumba.
Schmidt was a third-round pick (No.96 overall) in this summer's NHL Draft. The former USNDT player is now in the OHL and has picked up 11 points (6G / 5A) in 22 games on the Kitchener Rangers' blueline.
