NHL Buzz: Quinn Hughes game-time decision for Canucks
Fox out indefinitely for Rangers; Nichushkin returns for Avalanche
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Vancouver Canucks
Quinn Hughes will be a game-time decision for the Canucks against the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday (10 p.m. ET; MAX, truTV, TNT, SN).
The defenseman has missed six games because of an undisclosed injury, which also caused him to miss the 4 Nations Face-Off after he was selected to play for the United States.
"He's skating out there today, and he's going to go pretty hard to see how he felt," Canucks coach Rick Tocchet said following the morning skate.
Hughes has not played since a 5-3 loss at the Dallas Stars on Jan. 31, when he had an assist to extend his point streak to eight games (five goals, seven assists).
Hughes leads NHL defensemen in assists (45) and is third in points (59).
The Canucks (26-20-11) are 3-2-1 without Hughes and enter Wednesday one point behind the Calgary Flames for the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference. -- Dan Greenspan
New York Rangers
Adam Fox was placed on injured reserve on Wednesday with an upper-body injury and will be out indefinitely.
The defenseman was injured at 3:16 of the third period of a 5-1 win against the New York Islanders on Tuesday, when he got tangled with Islanders forward Kyle MacLean and fell to the ice, landing on his left shoulder. He was called for hooking on the play.
Fox immediately grabbed his left shoulder after hitting the ice. He did not move his left arm as he quickly skated off the ice and went down the tunnel to the locker room.
The injury is not considered to be season-ending.
Fox is second on the Rangers and tied for fourth among NHL defensemen with 48 points (five goals, 43 assists) in 58 games this season.
The Rangers recalled defenseman Matthew Robertson from Hartford of the American Hockey League to take Fox's place.
Defenseman K'Andre Miller also sustained a lower-body injury in the second period against the Islanders.
There has been no update on his status.
The Rangers next play the Toronto Maple Leafs on Friday (7 p.m. ET; MSGSN, NHLN, SNO, TVAS). -- Dan Rosen
Colorado Avalanche
Valeri Nichushkin returned against the New Jersey Devils on Wednesday after missing 21 games with a lower-body injury.
The forward had been a full participant at practice Tuesday, skating on a line with Jonathan Drouin and Casey Mittelstadt.
"It can't be underestimated how much he means to this team," defenseman Cale Makar said Wednesday. "Obviously, he does so much for us, eats a lot of minutes and then plays up into lineup in every situation. So it'll be a huge addition for us, and hopefully he's back to Valeri form. He looks pretty good out there."
Nichushkin has 17 points (11 goals, six assists) in 21 games this season. He missed the first 17 games of the season while in Stage 3 of the NHL/NHL Players' Association Player Assistance Program, which included being suspended without pay for a minimum of six months.
"From power play to PK, from his size (6-foot-4, 210 pounds), from going to the netfront, 5-on-5 -- there's so many things he does with that frame of his," Drouin said Tuesday. "So, it's nice to have him back." -- Ryan Boulding
Ottawa Senators
Brady Tkachuk missed his second straight game for the Senators when they played the Winnipeg Jets on Wednesday.
The forward confirmed he sustained a lower-body injury while playing for the United States at the 4 Nations Face-Off. He skated on his own ahead of practice Tuesday, took one line rush with Claude Giroux and Tim Stutzle, and then left practice, although he said that was part of the plan.
"I think it was just a smart decision to [sit out Saturday against the Montreal Canadiens]," Tkachuk said following practice Tuesday. "I didn't feel like I had the pop, and I started to feel it a little bit. … So, maybe take the time for one more [game] just to be ready to go, but yeah, we'll just have to wait and see."
Tkachuk has 44 points (21 goals, 23 assists) in 56 games this season.
Forwards Josh Norris and Shane Pinto also did not play Wednesday.
Norris has missed the past six games since sustaining a mid-body injury Feb. 1. Pinto has missed four games since sustaining an upper-body injury Feb. 4.
"Brady wants to play, he always wants to play," Ottawa coach Travis Greene said. "So do all of our hurt guys. But between the players and the medical staff, we decide what's best for the player." -- Callum Fraser
Nashville Predators
Roman Josi is being evaluated and is day to day with an upper body injury.
The defenseman was boarded by Florida Panthers forward Sam Bennett in a 4-1 loss on Tuesday. Josi did not play in the third period and his status for Thursday's game against the Winnipeg Jets (8 p.m. ET; FDSNSO, TSN3) is unclear.
The Predators rotated defense pairs at practice Wednesday, and Jake Livingstone could enter the lineup if Josi isn't able to play on Thursday.
"I'm not a doctor," Predators coach Andrew Brunette said. "I don't really know. Obviously with those things, it's day to day. Could be week to week. It could be season-ending. We don't really know yet."
Josi has 38 points (nine goals, 29 assists) in 53 games. The Predators are already without defensemen Jeremy Lauzon (lower body) and Adam Wilsby (upper body), who are each out for the remainder of the season. -- Robby Stanley
New York Islanders
Noah Dobson is expected to return to the lineup against the Boston Bruins on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; MSGSN, NESN, TVAS).
The defenseman, who is currently on long-term injured reserve, has missed 11 games after he sustained a lower-body injury in a 3-1 loss against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Jan. 20.
"He's been working really hard in practice, so I'm not very nervous [to have him back in]," Islanders coach Patrick Roy said. "What I want to see is him just controlling the puck, jumping in on the rush, defending well, and doing the things that he's been doing very well since he's been here."
Dobson has 24 points (six goals, 18 assists) in 46 games, averaging 24:01 minutes per game.
Roy said that defenseman Scott Perunovich, who was acquired from the St. Louis Blues on Jan. 27 for a conditional fifth-round pick at the 2026 NHL Draft, will come out of the lineup.
Forward Hudson Fasching, who hasn't played since he sustained an upper-body injury in a 5-4 overtime win against the Bruins on Jan. 5, will play, replacing forward Pierre Engvall. -- Stefen Rosner
Toronto Maple Leafs
Chris Tanev is day to day with an upper-body injury and will not play for the Maple Leafs against the New York Rangers on Friday (7 p.m. ET; MSGSN, NHLN, SNO, TVAS).
The defenseman left a 5-4 overtime win against the Boston Bruins after only two shifts and 49 seconds of ice time and did not practice Wednesday.
"Day to day, that's good news so we're happy with that," coach Craig Berube said Wednesday.
Philippe Myers, who has been a healthy scratch the past three games, will replace Tanev in the lineup against the Rangers.
Forward William Nylander played 21:21 against the Bruins but did not take a shift in overtime. His status against the Rangers Friday is uncertain.
"More of a maintenance day for him today, I know he didn't finish the game, but I didn't see anything out of that. He would've had the day off anyways," Berube said.
Forward Max Pacioretty practiced on a line with center Connor Dewar and right wing Alex Steeves Wednesday. Pacioretty has missed the past three games with "tightness" according to Berube and is a possibility to return against the Rangers. -- Dave McCarthy
Minnesota Wild
Joel Eriksson Ek (lower body) is week to week and was placed on injured reserve Tuesday.
The forward was injured at practice Monday, The Athletic reported. Eriksson Ek has missed 15 games this season with various lower-body injuries.
"I don't particularly know yet what happened," Minnesota coach John Hynes said. "He practiced yesterday, and later in the day I got notice from the trainers that he was going to be out. I don't know the actual extent other than it's going to be a few weeks for sure, and exactly what it is yet. It wasn't like one thing that happened where it was like, 'OK, this happened.' I was a little bit surprised when I got the news later yesterday."
Eriksson Ek has 24 points (nine goals, 15 assists) in 42 games while averaging 19:38 of ice time. He had a goal and an assist for Sweden during the 4 Nations Face-Off.
"Yeah, (Eriksson Ek is) a guy that plays a lot of key situations for us," Hynes said. "He obviously is a tremendous competitor. So again, when you lose a guy that plays as much as he plays, and the significant role that he plays, you're not counting on one person to take his spot. Someone's going to take his spot on the line per se, but you're going to have to divide up his minutes on the power play, on the penalty kill, 5-on-5. Everyone's got to do their part." -- Jessi Pierce
Montreal Canadiens
Kirby Dach did not play in a 4-0 win against the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday because of a lower-body injury.
The center, who is being evaluated, played 13:43 in the Canadiens' 5-2 victory at Ottawa on Saturday.
Dach has 22 points (10 goals, 12 assists) in 57 games this season. He had season-ending surgery on his right knee last season to repair his ACL and MCL after he was injured in Montreal's second game.
Owen Beck, who was recalled from Laval of the American Hockey League on Monday, took Dach's place at center on the second line with Patrik Laine and Alex Newhook.
Beck has 32 points (13 goals, 19 assists) in 47 games with Laval this season. He has no points through his first eight NHL games, including seven this season.
"When [Beck] first got called up, he was a bit timid," Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki said. "I think when he got called up again, he was playing really good hockey and really showed the player he can be. Hopefully he'll be even more comfortable coming back up." -- Sean Farrell
