Gawanke, 19, was a fifth-round pick (No.136 overall) in 2017 and signed after his third season with Cape Breton (QMJHL), where he had 17 goals and 40 assists (57 points) in 62 games this season.
Wennberg has appeared in four games in the second round but has averaged just 10:30 TOI and is expected to be replaced by Markus Hannikainen (undisclosed) on the fourth line in Game 6.
With Petr Mrazek out, Nedeljkovic comes up to serve as Curtis McElhinney’s backup on Wednesday. Nedeljkovic was excellent this season, going 34-14-1 with a 2.26 GAA and .916 SV% in 51 AHL games and was 3-1 with a 2.00 GAA and .923 SV% in four AHL playoff games before being called-up. It remains to be seen how long he will remain with Carolina.
Nutivaara was hurt in Game 2 in Tampa Bay and will miss his third straight game with an upper-body injury. Adam Clendening will remain in the Blue Jackets lineup while Nutivaara and Ryan Murray are out.
Thornton was suspended for Game 4 but will replace Lukas Radil in the lineup for Game 5, and will skate with Marcus Sorensen and Kevin Labanc. Thornton has a point in each game, scoring one goal on eight shots with two assists through three games in the series.
Vlasic missed Games 3 and 4 but will be back in the Sharks lineup for Game 5. There is no word on who he is expected to play with but there’s a chance he skates on the top pair with Brent Burns. Vlasic, who had one goal and one assist in Game 1, will replace Tim Heed.
Thornton will miss Game 4 in Vegas after being suspended for one game and is expected to be replaced by Joonas Donskoi. Thornton is eligible to return to the lineup for Game 5 in San Jose.
Nutivaara absorbed a big hit from Nikita Kucherov towards the end of Game 2 (Kucherov was suspended one-game for the hit) and it will cost Nutivaara at least one game as well. Nutivaara was on the ice for warmups but was a late scratch, which suggests that he won't be out long term. Adam Clendening will replace him on the blueline.
Vlasic played just 7:02 TOI in Game 2 before leaving with an undislcosed injury. Tim Heed is expected to replace Vlasic on the blueline and skate next to Justin Braun.
White was on the ice for Wednesday’s practice but will not be available for Thursday’s game. White will miss his second straight game, which means Chris Tierney will move up into the top-6.
Veronneau was born in Ottawa and signed with the Senators after finishing his senior year at Princeton University. The 23-year-old forward was first on the team in assists (24), second in goals (13) and points (37) in 31 games. Signing with the depleted Senators could mean that Veronneau could get an opportunity to play in the NHL right away.
Kurashev was a fourth-round pick (No.120) in 2018 and is in his third year in the QMJHL. The 19-year-old centre will remain in Quebec (QMJHL), where he leads the team in goals (28), assists (34) and points (62).
