NHL Buzz: Kucherov out for Lightning against Maple Leafs
Broberg back for Blues; Hyman hopeful to return during Oilers road trip
© Mark LoMoglio/NHLI via Getty Images
Tampa Bay Lightning
Nikita Kucherov was not in the lineup for the Tampa Bay Lightning in Saturday's 5-3 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs at Amalie Arena.
In Friday's 3-2 overtime win against the Nashville Predators, Kucherov did not play in the second period but returned for the third.
The 31-year-old forward is tied for fifth in the NHL with 34 points (12 goals, 22 assists) and has four assists in the past three games. This was the first game Kucherov has missed this season.
Last season, Kucherov led the NHL with career highs of 144 points and 100 assists.
St. Louis Blues
Philip Broberg returned for the Blues in a 3-2 overtime loss to the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday after missing the past 12 games with a right knee injury and had three shots on goal in 24:08 of ice time.
The defenseman was injured against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Nov. 2 when forward Mitch Marner fell on his leg in the second period of a 4-2 Blues win.
Broberg was activated off injured reserve Friday.
"He impacts the game with the puck and without the puck," Blues coach Jim Montgomery said. "The transitional game that I think he impacts the most just because of his ability to see plays, end plays, make plays.
"When you get a player that can eat up north of 20 minutes, it allows you to take minutes away from other guys that have been over-taxed, whether it's a (Ryan) Suter, a (Colton) Parayko or Faulk. They've been eating up a lot of minutes. We can reduce them by two, add a little bit more to [Broberg] and it strengthens the depth of our third pairing."
Broberg has nine points (two goals, seven assists) in 12 games this season, his first with St. Louis after signing a two-year, $9.16 million contract on Aug. 20.
The Blues were 5-6-1 without Broberg in the lineup.
Forward Pavel Buchnevich did not play against the Flyers after leaving in the second period of a 3-0 win against the New Jersey Devils on Wednesday with a lower-body injury.
Buchnevich skated briefly during an optional morning skate Saturday but will be replaced in the lineup by Alexandre Texier.
"You don't want to take any risks of exacerbating what's happened to the lower body injury," Montgomery said. " -- Lou Korac
Edmonton Oilers
Zach Hyman returned to Oilers practice on Thursday and could return to the lineup at some point during their three-game road trip.
The forward has missed the past three games with an undisclosed injury he sustained in a 5-2 win at the Ottawa Senators on Nov. 19. Hyman left the game late in the second period after colliding with Senators defenseman Nick Jensen at Ottawa's blue line.
Edmonton began its road trip with a 4-3 overtime win at the Utah Hockey Club on Friday. It will also play at the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday and Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday.
"Hyman will not be playing this weekend, and we're hopeful that he's playing in Vegas," Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch said Friday.
Hyman has eight points (three goals, five assists) in 20 games this season. He had a career-high 77 points (54 goals, 23 assists) last season.
"I'm feeling all right," Hyman said following practice Thursday. "I'm obviously not playing right now, so I'm getting better every day and just trying to get back out there. I don't really have a timeline, I'm going on the trip and taking it day by day.
"Like any player, I don't like missing games, I love playing hockey so I love being out there with the guys. It helps when we win and it's more frustrating when we lose. It's out of my control and hoping to get better day-by-day." -- Derek Van Diest
New York Rangers
Chris Kreider and Filip Chytil each returned for the New York Rangers in a 4-3 win against the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday.
Kreider, who had missed the past three games with back spasms, had two shots on goal in 18:22 of ice time. Chytil, who had missed seven in a row with an upper-body injury, had one shot on goal in 16:22.
To make room for Kreider and Chytil, Reilly Smith and Jonny Brodzinski were scratched.
The Rangers had lost five games in a row prior to Saturday. -- Dan Rosen
Utah Hockey Club
Maveric Lamoureux will be out 4-6 weeks for Utah because of an upper-body injury.
The 20-year-old rookie defenseman has three points (one goal, two assists) in 15 games this season. He was selected by the Arizona Coyotes in the first round (No. 29) of the 2022 NHL Draft.
Utah (9-10-3), which has lost four of its past six games, visits the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday (10 p.m. ET; Utah16, SCRIPPS).
Chicago Blackhawks
Laurent Brossoit had a follow-up arthroscopic surgery on his right knee and will be re-evaluated in six weeks, the Blackhawks said on Friday.
The goaltender had surgery on the meniscus in his right knee on Aug. 27 and was expected to need 5-7 weeks to recover. Blackhawks coach Luke Richardson said the recent procedure, which took place on Tuesday, was "just to clean up after the first one, so unfortunately that set him back."
"I'm sure he's really frustrated but the key is to look after it now and that was the right decision," Richardson said of Brossoit prior to the Blackhawks' 3-2 loss to the Minnesota Wild on Friday. "So, we'll just have to be patient."
Brossoit, who signed a two-year, $6.6 million contract with the Blackhawks on July 1, was expected to split time with Petr Mrazek. The 31-year-old has skated on his own a few times but hasn't been part of a full practice this season.
He was 15-5-2 with a 2.00 goals-against average. 927 save percentage and three shutouts in 23 games (22 starts) for the Winnipeg Jets last season. -- Tracey Myers
San Jose Sharks
Barclay Goodrow was placed on injured reserve Thursday with an upper-body injury.
The forward played 2:08 before leaving in the first period of a 4-3 loss to the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday. He was hit up high by Senators forward Ridly Greig with 1:50 remaining.
Goodrow has two goals in 25 games this season.
Forward Ethan Cardwell was recalled from San Jose of the American Hockey League and scored his first NHL goal in an 8-5 win against the Seattle Kraken on Friday.
"Just [his] play without the puck," Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky said. "Making sure you're above players, making sure you're responsible with it, playing towards his identity, not getting away from it and try to force things. I think he gave us some good legs and energy last time he was here, and he's got to build off that."
Forward Mikael Granlund returned and had a goal and an assist against the Kraken. He had missed the past two games due to an upper-body injury. -- Max Miller
Colorado Avalanche
Miles Wood was placed on injured reserve on Thursday with an upper-body injury.
The forward played 10:43 in a 2-1 shootout win against the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday.
Wood, who previously missed seven games with an upper-body injury earlier this month, has three points (two goals, one assist) in 16 games this season.
Forward Chris Wagner was recalled from Colorado of the American Hockey League on Thursday. He has one goal in 12 games with the Avalanche this season and one goal in five AHL games.
