Anaheim Ducks
Ryan Strome will not accompany the Ducks on their season-opening, two-game road trip, which begins at the Seattle Kraken on Thursday (10 p.m. ET; KHN, Victory+, KING 5, KONG). The forward, who is dealing with an upper-body injury, had 41 points (10 goals, 31 assists) in 82 games with Anaheim last season and has missed a total of three games in his three seasons there.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Bryan Rust returned to practice Wednesday in a regular jersey. The forward, who has been dealing with a lower-body injury, did not practice in his usual spot on the top line but was an extra skater in line rushes. The Penguins play their home opener against the New York Islanders on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; SN-PIT, MSGSN, TVAS).
Buffalo Sabres
Owen Power (undisclosed) returned to practice in a noncontact jersey Tuesday, and Sabres coach Lindy Ruff is "cautiously optimistic" the defenseman will be available for their season opener against the New York Rangers on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; MSG-B, MSG). Power, the No. 1 pick at the 2021 NHL Draft, “strained something” during practice Sept. 29. ... Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (lower body) has been ruled out for Thursday. Buffalo's No. 1 goalie did not come out for the second period of a 5-3 loss to Pittsburgh on Oct. 1, but Ruff said the injury was not the same as the lower-body injury Luukkonen dealt with earlier in training camp. … Zach Benson (undisclosed) was back on the ice Monday and is expected to play Thursday; the forward had not practiced since Sept. 30. … Mattias Samuelsson (upper body) practiced in a regular jersey Tuesday. The defenseman was labeled week to week after reaggravating an injury on Sept. 26, but Ruff said Monday he was "definitely a possibility" to play Thursday. ... Goalie Alexandar Georgiev was placed on waivers with Colten Ellis making the Sabres roster.
Tampa Bay Lightning
Zemgus Girgensons is expected to be out week to week for the Lightning with an undisclosed injury. The forward was injured on a hit from Florida Panthers forward Carter Verhaeghe in a 7-0 preseason loss on Oct. 4. "I'm not going to sit here and err to say he's coming back anytime soon, " coach Jon Cooper said Wednesday. Girgensons had six points (two goals, four assists) and 47 penalty minutes playing in all 82 games for Tampa Bay last season. The Lightning open their regular season against the Ottawa Senators on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; The Spot, TSN5, RDSI).
St. Louis Blues
Oskar Sundqvist is week to week because of a lower-body injury, the Blues announced Tuesday. The forward was injured during practice Sunday and needed help leaving the ice. St. Louis plays its season opener at home Thursday against Minnesota (8 p.m. ET; FDSNWIX, FDSNNO, FDSNMW). ... Forward Milan Lucic, who joined the Blues for training camp on a professional tryout agreement, will remain with the team while rehabbing an undisclosed injury. "He got banged up in the last couple [of preseason] games," general manager Doug Armstrong said. "We're going to rehab him here, get him back up health-wise to 100 percent and likely reconnect on an in-season PTO to get him up and running and see where he's at then."
Ottawa Senators
Drake Batherson was placed on injured reserve Monday and will be unavailable when Ottawa plays its season opener at Tampa Bay on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; The Spot, TSN5, RDSI). The forward sustained an upper-body injury during the first week of training camp, but he could play when the Senators visit the Panthers on Saturday. ... Tyler Kleven was also placed on IR; the defenseman didn't play in a preseason game after Sept. 21.
Philadelphia Flyers
Cam York (lower body) will miss Philadelphia’s season opener at Florida on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS, NBCSP). Flyers general manager Daniel Brière said Monday they had been trying to gauge the severity of the injury. "At the moment it's a day-to-day thing," Briere said. "We're trying to find out a little bit more. Are we looking at a week? Are we looking at two weeks? Are we looking at two days? That's what we're trying to figure out right now." York was placed on injured reserve Monday.
