Welcome to the NHL Buzz. Each day during the regular season, NHL.com has you covered with all the latest news.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Michael Bunting was placed on injured reserve and is out indefinitely after having surgery Wednesday to remove his appendix.
The forward did not practice a day after having one assist in 13:17 of ice time during a 6-1 loss at the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday.
"He'll be out here for the next little while," Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said Thursday. "I don't know the timeframe at this point, but that's that."
Bunting has 29 points (14 goals, 15 assists) in 58 games this season with 15 points (nine goals, six assists) on the power play.
"He makes it hard on our opponents in a number of different ways," Sullivan said. "He also has an uncanny ability to irritate people out there. That helps the group. When you have players like that, I think it drags us into the fight and that's an important aspect of becoming a team and making sure that we're invested emotionally into the game. He's one of those guys."
Forward Emil Bemstrom was recalled from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League and Bokondji Imama was activated off injured reserve ahead of Thursday's game against the Philadelphia Flyers. Imama was a full practice participant Wednesday after missing four games with an upper-body injury.-- Wes Crosby
New York Rangers
Adam Fox was placed on injured reserve on Wednesday with an upper-body injury and is out indefinitely.
The defenseman was injured at 3:16 of the third period in a 5-1 win at 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 shoulder after hitting the ice. He did not move his left arm while 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.
K'Andre Miller could play against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Friday (7 p.m. ET; MSGSN, NHLN, SNO, TVAS). The defenseman skated in a red, non-contact jersey but was paired with Will Borgen and on the second power-play unit with Zac Jones, Reilly Smith, Jonny Brodzinski and Will Cuylle at practice Thursday. He sustained a lower-body injury in the second period against the Islanders.
Chris Kreider (upper body) could return Friday after not playing Tuesday. The forward was on a line with Cuylle and Mika Zibanejad and the first power play.
J.T. Miller (illness) did not practice, but the forward is possible against the Maple Leafs.
Defenseman Matthew Robertson was recalled from Hartford of the American Hockey League on Wednesday. -- Dan Rosen
Florida Panthers
Matthew Tkachuk is out at least the next two games with a lower-body injury, coach Paul Maurice said.
The Panthers host to the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday in a rematch of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final. Tkachuk's former team, the Calgary Flames, visit Amerant Bank Arena on Saturday.
Maurice did not have much of a timeline other than saying Tkachuk is out near term. The forward was injured while playing for the United States at the 4 Nations Face-Off. After sitting out the final 12:36 of the third period against Canada on Feb. 15, Tkachuk did not play against Sweden on Feb. 17.
Tkachuk was in the lineup for the championship game against Canada on Feb. 20, but was limited to 6:47 of ice time and did not play in the third period or overtime of a 3-2 overtime loss.
Maurice said Tkachuk was at the Panthers training facility Thursday.
"We just don't need to hurry right now because he is not playing on the weekend," Maurice said. "We're not jamming him back into the game. We're just going to make sure we see as many people as we need to see, and we get a really good handle on how it wants to be." -- George Richards
Vancouver Canucks
Quinn Hughes had an assist on Conor Garland's overtime goal in return from an undisclosed injury, a 3-2 win against the Los Angeles Kings at Crypto.com Arena on Wednesday.
The defenseman and captain missed six games because of an undisclosed injury.
"He's a driving force," Canucks coach Rick Tocchet said. "He has the puck possession a lot. He's not afraid to make plays. He's our star player. Not only that, I think in the dressing room, he's a calming influence for a lot of guys."
Hughes played 21:38 after not participating in line rushes during warmups, creating confusion over his availability. He was considered a game-time decision following a strenuous workout at a morning skate.
Tocchet said the lineup card including Hughes was handed in roughly 90 seconds before the deadline.
"That's probably the longest I've ever gone making a lineup," he said.
Hughes' injury kept him from playing for the United States at the 4 Nations Face-Off. His 46 assists lead the NHL at his position, and his 60 points rank third. -- Dan Greenspan
Nashville Predators
Roman Josi is being evaluated and did not play against the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday.
The defenseman is day to day with an upper-body injury. Nashville's captain was boarded by Florida Panthers forward Sam Bennett and did not play the third period of a 4-1 loss Tuesday.
"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 returned against the Boston Bruins on Thursday.
The defenseman, who was on long-term injured reserve, missed 11 games with a lower-body injury sustained in a 3-1 loss tp 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.
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, was not inthe lineup. Hudson Fasching, a forward who hadn't played since he sustained an upper-body injury in a 5-4 overtime win against the Bruins on Jan. 5, replaced Pierre Engvall. -- Stefen Rosner
Boston Bruins
Trent Frederic is week to week with lower-body injury and did not play against the New York Islanders on Thursday.
The forward exited a 5-4 overtime loss to the Maple Leafs on Tuesday early in the second period and did not return after a hit by Jake McCabe.
Riley Tufte, who was a healthy scratch Tuesday, replaced Frederic against the Islanders.
Frederic has 15 points (eight goals, seven assists) in 57 games this season. -- Joe McDonald
Toronto Maple Leafs
Chris Tanev is day to day with an upper-body injury and will not play for the Maple Leafs at 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 against the Rangers.
William Nylander played 21:21 against the Bruins but the forward did not take a shift in overtime. His status against the Rangers Friday is uncertain.
"More of a maintenance day for him today," Berube said. "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."
Max Pacioretty (tightness) practiced on a line with center Connor Dewar and right wing Alex Steeves Wednesday. Pacioretty has missed three games and is a possibility to return Friday. -- Dave McCarthy
