NHL Buzz: Mrazek off IR for Blackhawks, goalie to be available against Kraken

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Chicago Blackhawks

Petr Mrazek was activated off injured reserve and the goalie will be available to play against the Seattle Kraken at United Center on Thursday (8:30 p.m. ET; CHSN+, KHN, KONG).

Mrazek will be the backup to starter Arvid Soderblom. He had missed the past five games because of a left groin injury sustained against the Winnipeg Jets on Dec. 7.

"It’s a relief that it wasn’t anything serious," Mrazek said. "I felt I was just being more careful with it. In the past you stay in the net and you get it worse. Dealing with that and then with the flu, everything in one, was the thing. Just get through it and get back on track."

Goalie Drew Commesso was reassigned to Rockford, the Blackhawks’ American Hockey League affiliate. Commesso was 0-1-0 with a 3.36 goals-against average and .846 save percentage in two games (one start) with the Blackhawks.

Mrazek fell awkwardly after making his fourth save of the game at 10:46 of the first period in Chicago’s 4-2 loss to the Jets. He immediately skated to the locker room. He was given a timeline of 1-2 weeks the day after the injury.

"It happened, I think it was the second shot of the game," Mrazek said. "I thought there was a backdoor play and I just kicked it away too hard and there was no back door. [Jets forward Mark] Scheifele didn’t drive the net how I thought he would. So I stayed for another seven, eight minutes to see how it was going to feel but there wasn’t much going on (not many shots), so I couldn’t test it."

The 32-year-old is 7-11-1 with a 2.83 GAA and .906 save percentage in 20 starts this season. -- Tracey Myers

New York Islanders

Anthony Duclair is expected to be a game-time decision when the Islanders play the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday.

The forward has missed 28 games because of a lower-body injury sustained during a 5-4 shootout win against the Montreal Canadiens on Oct. 19. He has been practicing, and took line rushes at the morning skate before the Islanders lost 4-0 to the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday.

"I think he will be a game-time decision [Saturday]," Islanders coach Patrick Roy said Thursday. "We'll see how he feels, but I honestly feel he's very, very close. There's a big chance he plays in that game."

Duclair has three points (two goals, one assist) in five games this season.

Goaltender Semyon Varlamov was placed on long-term injured reserve, retroactive to Dec. 3, because of a lower-body injury. Varlamov last played Nov. 29, making 21 saves in a 5-4 overtime loss to the Washington Capitals.

Mike Reilly skated before practice Thursday. The defenseman last played against the Buffalo Sabres on Nov. 1. He sustained a concussion during that game, and then needed a heart procedure. There is no timetable for him to return. -- Stefen Rosner

Buffalo Sabres

Rasmus Dahlin is expected to play when the Sabres host the Toronto Maple Leafs on Friday (7 p.m. ET; HULU, ESPN+, SNO).

The defenseman has missed seven games because of back spasms. He played one 39-second shift to start the third period of a 5-4 loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Dec. 3 before exiting the game.

"[I feel] really good," Dahlin said Thursday.

During practice Thursday, Dahlin was back in his usual spots, skating with Bowen Byram on the top defense pair and playing the point on the top power-play unit. It was his first practice since joining the team for its the morning skate Tuesday ahead of their game against the Montreal Canadiens.

"Any time you get a player of his caliber back, it'll be a big boost to the team," coach Lindy Ruff said. "First, getting pucks out of your end, the speed going back for pucks, and then he's a difference-maker with big plays."

Dahlin has 19 points (six goals, 13 assists) and is averaging a Sabres-high 24:42 of ice time in 25 games.

The Sabres will be without Jordan Greenway for a "significant amount of time." The forward will have surgery on a mid-body injury that sidelined him for 10 games before he returned to the lineup Dec. 9. He played three more games, but departed the morning skate early Tuesday and did not play that night against Montreal.

The injury is not expected to be season-ending.

"You go to the physicality, the defending part of the game, he is the one guy that has been rock solid for us in that category, and physical," Ruff said. "I think at some of those games where it got heavy, he was the one guy that it kind of stood out where, he's a big man (6-foot-6, 231 pounds) ... can physically dominate."

Ryan McLeod had a maintenance day and did not practice, and is questionable to play against Toronto, Ruff said. The forward has 15 points (six goals, nine assists) in 32 games. -- Heather Engel

Edmonton Oilers

Viktor Arvidsson will return for the Oilers against the Boston Bruins on Thursday (9 p.m. ET, SN1, NESN), after missing 15 games because of an undisclosed injury.

The forward last played Nov. 12, in a 4-3 overtime win against the New York Islanders, and has five points (two goals, three assists) in 16 games.

Arvidsson said he initially tried playing through the injury for 2 1/2 weeks before sitting out, and was placed on long-term injured reserve Nov. 21.

"It got to a point where it felt like I was just going to hurt myself even more, so I just took some time off and made sure it's good to go now," Arvidsson said. "I'm ready to go, and I wouldn't be back if I wasn't healthy."

Arvidsson practiced Wednesday for the first time since his injury, and took rushes on a line with Adam Henrique and Connor Brown during the morning skate Thursday.

"It's going to obviously be very nice having 'Arvi' back to our lineup," coach Kris Knoblauch said. "Right now we're going to ease him in because we're playing three games in four days and he hasn't played in over a month.

"Obviously he’s going to be a big part of our team and key in 5-on-5, power play and penalty kill, but we're going to try to ease him [back] into those situations." -- Gerry Moddejonge

Tampa Bay Lightning

J.J. Moser is expected be out 8-10 weeks because of a lower-body injury.

The defenseman was injured during an 8-3 win against the Calgary Flames on Dec. 12. Moser was chasing a loose puck and fell, forcing Flames forward Nazem Kadri to jump over him. Kadri scored on the sequence.

Coach Jon Cooper said Tuesday that Moser's status was "week to week."

The 24-year-old has 10 points (two goals, eight assists) and is averaging 19:54 of ice time in 27 games. He has been paired with Lightning captain Victor Hedman for most of the season. -- Corey Long

San Jose Sharks

Vitek Vanecek is expected to miss several weeks because of an upper-body injury the goalie sustained when he was hit in the head with a puck while sitting on the bench during the second period of the Sharks' 4-3 loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday.

"Terrible luck. Feel for the kid," Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky said Wednesday. "We got a stick on a puck, and it goes flying into a bench and he takes one up high. It's unfortunate.

"He's going to be out here a little bit ... [a] couple weeks for sure."

Vanecek is 3-8-1 with a 3.84 goals-against average and .885 save percentage in 14 games (13 starts) this season. He missed six games earlier this season because of a different upper-body injury sustained Nov. 16.

Goalie Yaroslav Askarov was recalled from San Jose of the American Hockey League on Wednesday.

"It's an opportunity," Warsofsky said. "Unfortunate circumstances with Vitek going down, but it's an opportunity for him to play some games, probably consistently."

The 22-year-old is 1-0-1 with a .927 save percentage in two NHL games this season.

The Sharks next play the Colorado Avalanche at SAP Center on Thursday (10:30 p.m. ET; NBCSCA, ALT). -- Max Miller