VANCOUVER – Zack Kassian's return to the Vancouver Canucks lineup didn't last long.

In his return after missing two games with a back injury, Kassian had a long, spirited fight with Blues forward Chris Stewart just 2:41 into Tuesday night's game against St. Louis.

Both players threw wild punches, but few appeared to connect cleanly, and both players returned to action after serving their penalties.

MONTREAL – Buffalo Sabres forward Thomas Vanek limped to the dressing room in the second period of Tuesday's game against the Montreal Canadiens after getting hit with a puck during a Buffalo power play.

Vanek was hunched over on the bench in pain after he was hit with the shot by Sabres defenseman Christian Ehrhoff, and went to the dressing room at the next whistle.

The Sabres announced during the second intermission that Vanek suffered an upper-body injury and will not return.

Despite the fact all 30 of the NHL's general managers will be in Toronto on Wednesday, expectations of significant movement on the trade front this week should be tempered -- even though the NHL trade deadline looms two weeks away.

There is no denying that the seeds for future deals could be planted Wednesday, when the general managers get together for a one-day meeting in Toronto, but a number of GMs told NHL.com that the majority of trade hype coming out of the meeting won't carry much weight in the run-up to the April 3 deadline.

A lack of time to formally consummate a face-to-face deal, as well as the fact trade discussions rarely have to be conducted in person, are the main reasons cited by those GMs for their pessimism about the meeting setting in motion a trading frenzy.

PITTSBURGH -- Contrary to popular belief -- and to some good-natured ribbing from teammates in the locker room -- Mark Eaton is not the sole cause for the Pittsburgh Penguins' defensive resurgence in recent weeks.

The stay-at-home defenseman was signed late last month and made his season debut in a March 2 victory at the Montreal Canadiens.

Pittsburgh hasn't lost since. What's more, the Penguins have the appearance of an entirely different team defensively during March.

It can't be entirely a coincidence, can it?

"I can't take any credit for that," Eaton said with a look that was part amused and part horrified that he'd claim he's the reason for the turnaround in Pittsburgh's defensive fortunes.

It has been proven time and again there are many paths to the National Hockey League, and plenty of players take an unconventional route.

The college hockey season has reached its own "March Madness" with the final weekend of conference tournaments starting in a couple days and the NCAA Tournament beginning the following weekend.

That also means it is time for college hockey's version of a free-agent frenzy, as players who weren't drafted prior to turning 20 get ready to sign professional contracts.

The Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday reportedly recalled defenseman Jake Gardiner and sent blueliner Korbinian Holzer to the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League.

Gardiner has spent most of this season in the minors after scoring seven goals and finishing with 30 points in 75 games as a rookie in 2011-12 with the Maple Leafs. He has 10 goals and 31 points in 43 games for the Marlies, going scoreless in two games for the Maple Leafs.

For the past couple of weeks NHL.com fantasy hockey insider Pete Jensen has taken over The Front Line graciously, but after a two-week absence, I am here for you again and ready to jump back into the fantasy hockey pool.

So what did I miss? Sidney Crosby is still the best. Chris Kunitz is quite valuable himself, ranking second among all players in Yahoo! fantasy leagues. No one is even close to as good as a duo as Crosby and Kunitz, who have recorded a point on the same goal 28 times (seven more than the next best NHL duo, Steven Stamkos and Martin St. Louis).

What else? Mike Ribeiro is tied for the NHL-lead with 16 power-play points (Andrei Markov). Evander Kane leads the NHL in shots on goal with 126 -- 10 more than Alex Ovechkin, who's second on the list. Jiri Tlusty is the only NHLer with five multi-goal games (Kunitz, Marian Hossa and Patrick Marleau all have four). Other than Crosby, St. Louis is the only other player to have at least 30 assists (he has 31; Crosby has 35).

Pittsburgh Penguins center Evgeni Malkin skated with the team at practice Tuesday and afterward told reporters he hopes to play in the next game, Friday at the New York Islanders.

Malkin will not play Tuesday against the Washington Capitals, the sixth straight he'll have missed due to an upper-body injury. The team has said this injury is not related to the concussion he sustained last month.

Frank Selke Jr., who served as president and general manager of the Oakland Seals, died Monday. He was 83.

Selke, the son of Hockey Hall of Famer and former Montreal Canadiens GM Frank Selke, worked at the Montreal Forum in various roles, rising to the role of vice president of marketing and promotions.

He also worked in radio and television in Montreal and was the TV host for "Hockey Night in Canada."

The Tampa Bay Times reported Monday that the injury sidelining Tampa Bay Lightning center Vincent Lecavalier is a broken bone in his left foot.

In addition, forward Ryan Malone is out indefinitely with a shoulder injury, and defenseman Victor Hedman is day-to-day with an upper-body injury. They were injured in Monday's 4-2 win against the Philadelphia Flyers.