Injury updates on Benn, Datsyuk, Johnson, a handful of prospects, and more

By Ajay DaCosta

The Young Stars tournament in Penticton and Traverse City Tournament are great opportunities for NHL teams to showcase their rookies. However, as Jake Virtanen eloquently pointed out, it’s also an opportunity for the rookies who don’t have a 99 rating in NHL 16 to prove that they can bring grit, pugnacity, and the like to their teams. That always raises the chances that someone’s walk will turn into a limp come training camp.

So who tripped and caught the injury bug in this short week? And how are last week’s patients doing?

ARIZONA Dylan Reese – The Coyotes’ AHL affiliate employed the services of Mr. Reese last year, but will have to go without him for a while, as he severed his Achilles tendon. Not a fantasy stud by any means, but it might be of relevance to his owners (who are obviously in 30-team, 15F/8D/2G leagues, plus farm teams).

ARIZONA Jordan Szwarz – Jaden Schwartz and Jordan Schmaltz of the Blues might’ve thrown on the Potara earrings to form this Coyotes RW. In any case, he got himself injured and will be evaluated by the team soon. Szwarz played 9 games for the ‘yotes last season.

BUFFALO Ryan O’Reilly – Buffalo’s new number one center might need to wait a while before assuming the coveted position. His court date, previously scheduled for September 10^th, was pushed back a second time to October 1^st. For reference, the Sabres hit the ice on October 8^th. O’Reilly has “apologized” for an “unfortunate situation”, and thinks the facts will come out in court, but don’t hold your breath here. The later his court date, the more any penalties (which can include up to six months of jail time) will affect his season.

CALGARY Ryan Culkin – The Flames’ prospect injured his shoulder during the Young Stars tournament, just after returning from an injury to a tendon he sliced in February. He’ll be out from six to eight weeks. Unlikely to affect owners this year, but that’s two significant injuries in succession. These things don’t just keep a player out for x amount of time, they also prevent him from working out and getting better. That can be critical to a prospect at this point in their development.

CAROLINA Noah Hanifin – The top defenseman drafted this year hurt himself blocking a shot in practice, but should be 100% for camp.

DALLAS Jamie Benn – The reigning Art Ross champion will be eased back into the lineup after having surgery on both hips this offseason. Dude’s a tank, so I wouldn’t worry too much. He’ll likely be in the lineup on opening night.

DALLAS Denis Gurianov – Dallas’ latest first rounder might not have fantasy relevance this year, but for those who like to keep on top of their prospects to check for their Band-Aid Boy applicability, he’s out 2-3 weeks with a shoulder injury.

DETROIT Johan Franzen – The Mule hasn’t played since January, but was cleared to play on September 12th. His head injuries have limited him in the past, and the more you get the worse it gets. Franzen’s up to 4, so draft him with that risk in mind.

DETROIT Pavel Datsyuk – Doctors have not yet re-examined Datsyuk’s ankle, but are scheduled to do some sometime soon. The Red Wings’ center is out until around November.

NEW JERSEY Ryane Clowe – You never like to hear any injury news, but it’s even worse when it’s career-ending. Clowe’s doctors have advised him that his concussions have made it too dangerous for him to continue playing professional hockey. He’ll enter Pronger/Savard status, not quite retiring until his contract expires, but don’t expect anything out of him in the future. He’s pseudo-retired.

NEW JERSEY Reid Boucher – The Devils’ promising young forward suffered a concussion during the Traverse City tournament, and will be out indefinitely. Tough break on what can still hopefully be a solid debut as an NHL full-timer

LOS ANGELES Mike Richards – Richards did not appear in court for his hearing on September 10^th; his lawyer did, though, and entered no plea. His case, remanded to December 8^th, will decide just half of Richards’ future in professional hockey. The league might still levy a penalty on him afterwards, and then there’s the not-so-small matter of his play being only AHL-worthy. Just a bad situation all-around.

LOS ANGELES Slava Voynov – No update to last week’s report on Voynov’s legal situation. His future is still up in the air, but he has a job waiting for him in the KHL should he want it.

TAMPA BAY Andrey Vasilevskiy – Tampa’s top goalie prospect began skating for the first time since his vascular surgery. Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times reports him saying that he feels almost as good as he did before the accident. However, don’t expect a quick recovery from him. This isn’t a broken bone that he can just rush back from. Blood clots are really dangerous. 2-3 months is still the expected timeline.

TAMPA BAY Tyler Johnson – Despite Yzerman’s claims that TyJo will be ready for training camp, the Triplets’ center still doesn’t feel like his wrist is 100%. He hopes he won’t be limited in training camp.

TAMPA BAY Kristers Gudļevskis – The defending Eastern Conference Champions don’t seem to have the best luck this year when it comes to injuries. Their backup’s backup now might be out for a little while. Gudļevskis left Tuesday’s game with what’s being reported as an upper-body injury. I can’t thank Pat Quinn enough for inventing that term (he said, sarcastically). Gudļevskis will be re-evaluated on Wednesday.

MONTREAL Noah Juulsen – Montreal’s newest top pick will not be a part of camp due to a concussion. Again, he probably wouldn’t have been relevant this season, but it doesn’t hurt to track how often young players get injured.

MONTREAL Max Pacioretty – Patches is really making a push to be ready for the start of the season. Renaud Lavoie reports that the Habs’ winger skipped golf to focus on rehab. He’s got a history of coming back from injury early, so expect good things.

NY ISLANDERS Kyle Okposo – After a scary injury (a detached retina!), Okposo feels ready to go this season. There are trade rumours surrounding him though, so don’t be too focused on his health and miss any other rumblings.

PITTSBURGH Kris Letang – Pittsburgh’s top defenseman is the only one out there who could put up Karlsson-level numbers… if he wasn’t such a regular in this column. Maybe he’s finally realized that staying healthy is just as important to his team as making the tough plays, but he’s said that it’s a new focus for him this season. His owners (myself included) hope that this means this is the only time he’ll be mentioned here.

PITTSBURGH Evan Wardley – Another prospect, Wardley’s knee was injured pretty badly by a late hit thrown by Charles Hudon of the Montreal Canadiens.

TORONTO Nikolas Brouillard – An undrafted defensive prospect, Brouillard was doing well in rookie camp (according to Renaud Lavoie), but is now is out 4-6 weeks.

ST. LOUIS Jay Bouwmeester – JayBo seems to have completely overcome last year’s groin injury. Expect better from him this season, as the injury plagued him in 2014-15.

WASHINGTON Nicklas Backstrom – Still trudging towards mobility, Backstrom worked on his skating after the Capitals’ Thursday morning workout with their strength coach. He was even able to play in scrimmages, but is still strictly non-contact.

@AjayDaCosta