It's unclear what is ailing Smith but he will not be available for Thursday's game in Buffalo. Expect Nic Roy or Evgenii Dadonov to move back into the top-6 with Smith out.

It's unclear what is ailing Smith but he will not be available for Thursday's game in Buffalo. Expect Nic Roy or Evgenii Dadonov to move back into the top-6 with Smith out.

Howden has missed the last two games with an undisclosed injury and did not travel out east for the Golden Knights' five-game road trip. Jake Leschyshyn will remain with the Golden Knights and should be in the lineup in Philadelphia.






Coghlan was not on the ice for the morning skate and is not expected to play because of the flu. Zach Whitecloud will return from a six-game absence to replace Coghlan.

Hagg was a healthy scratch in Montreal on Wednesday but will replace Henri Jokiharju (lower-body) in the lineup in St. Louis. Hagg will be back on a pairing with Mark Pysyk.


Hart was scheduled to start on Monday but was unavailable due to an eye infection. He's still not 100 percent, so Martin Jones will start for the second straight night.

Hart was supposed to start Monday vs. the Hurricanes but will not be available due to an eye infection. Martin Jones will start and Kirill Ustimenko will come up from the AHL to backup. The Flyers said that Hart could be available for Tuesday's game vs. the Blues.


The Sabres' defensive shuffle continues on Saturday, with Mattias Samuelsson drawing back into the lineup to replace Robert Hagg on Saturday afternoon.

Hagg has played in 12 straight games but will be a healthy scratch vs. the Islanders on Tuesday. Mark Pysyk will draw back into the lineup to replace him.


Stone has been battling a back issue all season, so he'll get some time to rehab. The move also clears cap space for the Golden Knights to activate Jack Eichel (neck) ahead of his debut on Wednesday. Golden Knights GM said that it's impossible for the team to predict how long they will be without Stone but that they are hopeful that surgery will not be required.

Eichel was acquired from the Sabres in early November and has been cleared to make his debut on Wednesday after missing the first four and a half months following neck surgery. To make room for Eichel, the Golden Knights had to put Mark Stone (back) on LTIR. Eichel will start on the top line with Max Pacioretty and Evgenii Dadonov in his debut, as well as the top power-play unit.

Nick Cousins is week-to-week with a lower-body injury, so Smith comes up from the AHL and should play in the bottom-6 on Tuesday. Smith has spent most of the season in the AHL, posting 10 goals and 12 assists (22 points) in 33 games with Milwaukee.

