NHL Buzz: Blues forward Tarasenko skating on own

Welcome to the NHL Buzz. Throughout the 2020-21 season, NHL.com will have you covered with the latest news.

St. Louis Blues

Vladimir Tarasenko
has started skating on his own for the first time since he had offseason shoulder surgery.
The forward was expected to be reevaluated in five months following surgery Sept. 17, and Blues coach Craig Berube said it would probably be a while before he is able to skate with his teammates.
"He's skating," Berube said Tuesday. "He's doing a good job. I think he's worked really hard off the ice, kept himself in good shape from what I've seen. Now he's on the ice skating and that's good. He's putting in the work on the ice now, so we'll see how it goes."
Tarasenko, who began skating on his own Saturday, was injured Oct. 24, 2019, against the Los Angeles Kings and had surgery Oct. 27 before returning to play four games in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
"When we have Vladi, it makes us that much more dangerous. It's nice," Blues captain Ryan O'Reilly said Saturday. "We hope it's getting close here and we'll have him back soon. His presence and the things he does in the game, he's one of the few guys in this League that can just make something out of nothing. He provides so much for us. We'll be excited to have him back, and hopefully it's soon." -- Louie Korac

Los Angeles Kings

Arthur Kaliyev will make his NHL debut against the Anaheim Ducks at Staples Center (10 p.m. ET; FS-W, KCOP-13, NHL.TV).
"Really pumped to play that game, my first game," Kaliyev said Tuesday. "It's going to be a bit nerve wracking but I think just try to take one shift at a time and just try my best out there. I think I'm just going to try to play a part in all three zones. So just try to play my best out there."
The 19-year-old forward scored 98 points (44 goals, 54 assists) with Hamilton of the Ontario Hockey League last season and scored eight points (three goals, five assists) in seven games to help the United States win the 2021 IIHF World Junior Championship.
"He's probably always going to be known for his shot, but he does have good vision and nice hands," Kings coach Todd McLellan said. "His play with the puck, his creativity offensively will be an asset that he'll always have and we'll need to take advantage of as the years go on. His play away from the puck and understanding how he can affect the game that way is something that we'll continually work on, and it will improve over time and he'll become a complete player."-- Dan Greenspan

Edmonton Oilers

Mike Smith skated with the Oilers for the first time since sustaining an undisclosed injury prior to their first game of the season.
The goalie participated in the morning skate Tuesday but will not dress against the Ottawa Senators at Rogers Place (10 p.m. ET, ESPN+, SNOL, TSN5, RDS, NHL.TV).
"He continues to skate [on his own], hasn't skated in a full practice yet," Oilers coach Dave Tippett said after an 8-5 win against the Senators on Sunday. "We have a couple of practices on Thursday and Friday. On the [long-term injured reserve] I don't think he's eligible to come off until after Saturday. He should be good in another week or so, I'm hoping."
Smith appeared to sustain a lower-body injury during warmups of the season opener against the Vancouver Canucks on Jan. 13 but dressed as the backup to Mikko Koskinen.
Smith was placed on long-term injured reserve on Jan. 15, and the Oilers recalled Stuart Skinner from the taxi squad to back up Koskinen for the first 10 games of the season.
Troy Grosenick, who was claimed off waivers from the Los Angeles Kings on Jan. 16, is eligible to dress Tuesday following COVID-19 protocols and will serve as the backup until Smith returns. -- Derek Van Diest

Philadelphia Flyers

Sean Couturier could return to the lineup in a week, general manager Chuck Fletcher said.
The forward sustained a rib injury in a 5-2 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Jan. 15 and was expected to be out for at least two weeks. He began skating Jan. 25 and shot pucks Tuesday.
"He's made really good progress," Fletcher said. "I don't think he's quite day to day yet but hopefully in the next 7-10 days, he can be a player for us."
Philadelphia hosts the Boston Bruins at Wells Fargo Center on Wednesday (8 p.m. ET; NBCSN, SN, TVAS) and Friday.
Couturier said he had difficulty sleeping and would feel pain when he sneezed or coughed the first few days after the injury.
"I've got to be careful with not pushing it too much," he said Jan. 25. "I can do a lot of stuff on the ice but I can't really push it, I've got to let it heal. ... At least I can skate, get a good cardio in me and keep my legs for whenever I'm back."-- Adam Kimelman

Detroit Red Wings

Defenseman Jon Merrill and forwards Adam Erne, Robby Fabbri and Sam Gagner could each be in the lineup against the Tampa Bay Lightning at Amalie Arena on Wednesday (5:30 p.m. ET; NBCSN, SN1, SUN, FS-D).
The four, along with forward Filip Zadina, have been in NHL COVID-19 protocol.
Coach Jeff Blashill said Erne and Fabbri would play Wednesday and the Red Wings would decide on Gagner and Merrill prior to the game. Zadina is likely to return against the Lightning on Friday.
Erne and Fabbri have each missed eight games; Gagner, Merrill and Zadina have missed six.
Fabbri began the season at center but will play on the left wing with center Dylan Larkin, partly to ease in and partly because forward Tyler Bertuzzi likely will miss the next four games and possibly the next six with an upper-body injury, Blashill said.
"We have to make sure we temper our expectations of the guys coming back, and we can't ask them to shoulder too much of the load because of the fact they've been off for a while," Blashill said.
Fabbri said he tested positive twice Jan. 18 and isolated himself in his bedroom. He experienced symptoms from the second day through the fifth, before he began to recover.
"We knew this was the risk coming into the season," Fabbri said. "It's something that everyone's going through, not just professional athletes. It was no joke there for a couple days." -- Nicholas J. Cotsonika