Here's the latest injury news from across the NHL! If you're looking for information about a specific player and don't see their name in this article, there probably haven't been any significant updates about their progress since last month's Injury Ward. If you ever need injury updates for a specific player, shoot me a message on Twitter @BrennanDeSouza!

Josh Manson – Is day-to-day with an upper-body injury. Manson suffered the injury during a scrap with Jordan Greenway in Monday's game against the Wild. He didn't practice with the team on Tuesday and it doesn't sound like he'll be available for Wednesday's rematch with Minnesota. 

Oliver Ekman-Larsson – The Coyotes defenseman is officially week-to-week with a lower-body injury and is expected to miss the next three to four weeks of action. He suffered the injury when Evander Kane hooked him into the boards during Saturday's game against the Sharks. Kyle Capobianco entered the lineup in Ekman Larsson's absence and saw significant power-play minutes on Monday against the Golden Knights. With that being said, I expect Jakob Chychrun will be the most productive member of Arizona's blueline over the next month. He already has four points in the team's first three games. 

Matt Grzelcyk – The 27-year-old defenseman left Monday's game against the Islanders after getting tangled up with Jordan Eberle and presumably overextending his shoulder. As I write this, we're still waiting to hear more about the injury and whether he's expected to miss any time. He was practicing with the team on Wednesday morning and could very well be available to face the Flyers on Thursday. Grzelcyk began this season with a new opportunity on the Bruins' top power-play unit. Charlie McAvoy should take over that role if Grzelcyk's were to miss any time.  

Ondrej Kase – Missed Monday's game against the Islanders with an upper-body injury. He reportedly took a hit to the head/neck area during Saturday's clash with the Devils. Kase's status for Thursday's game against the Flyers remains up in the air as I write this. 

David Pastrnak – Last week, he skated with his teammates for the first time since undergoing hip surgery in September. The procedure came with a recovery period of five months, originally setting the stage for a return in mid-February. Fortunately, it sounds like he's slightly ahead of schedule and could be ready at some point in early-February. While it's encouraging to see him back on the ice, he was skating gingerly. We'll have to see how his body reacts to more intense skating in the coming weeks. The Bruins are certainly missing Pastrnak as the team has scored just three goals through three games in 2021. 

Carter Hutton – During Tuesday's game against the Flyers, Hutton took some contact up high when Ivan Provorov was pushed into his crease. The collision occurred in the second frame and Hutton managed to play out the period. He reportedly began feeling the effects of the collision during the second intermission and didn't come back out for the third. Expect a more detailed update from the team in the coming days. The Sabres could be in trouble if Hutton misses an extended period of time as Linus Ullmark has been absent recently due to personal reasons. If both Hutton and Ullmark are unavailable, Jonas Johansson might be forced into a few starts although he doesn't seem ready for NHL action just yet.  

Jonathan Toews – During the offseason, Chicago's captain had been experiencing symptoms that left him feeling drained and lethargic. He's currently working with doctors to better understand the nature of his condition and isn't in a position to join the team any time soon. He was placed on long-term injured reserve (LTIR) last week and therefore won't be eligible to play until early-February. Even though he'll be eligible to return by then, there's so much uncertainty surrounding his situation, I wouldn't expect him to be back until much later. 

Kirby Dach – He underwent surgery to repair a wrist fracture in late-December. The procedure comes with a recovery period of four to five months, so Dach will likely miss the entirety of the 2021 regular season. 

Pavel Francouz – Is day-to-day with a lower-body injury. The 30-year-old netminder was strong when called upon last season, posting a 21-7-4 record alongside a 2.41 GAA and .923 save percentage. 

Andre Burakovsky – The Avalanche forward missed Tuesday's game against the Kings and is officially day-to-day with an upper-body injury. In his absence, Colorado's top-six featured Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen and Gabriel Landeskog on one line, with Nazem Kadri, Brandon Saad and Joonas Donskoi on another line. 

Mike Smith – On Friday, the Oilers netminder was placed on long-term injured reserve (LTIR). In being placed on LTIR, Smith has to miss a minimum of 10 games or 24 days. Thus, he won't be able to return until February 6th at the earliest – but I get the feeling he'll be sidelined for longer than that. Mikko Koskinen will be forced to start the vast majority of Edmonton's games while Smith is injured. Koskinen has struggled in his first four appearances, posting a .897 save percentage and 3.80 GAA. 

James Neal – Was deemed unfit to play as the season began and COVID protocols kept him out of the team's first few games. He has since been removed from the COVID protocol list and will travel with the team to Toronto and Winnipeg, indicating he'll be available soon. 

Alex Turcotte – Remains week-to-week with a lower-body injury. 

Marco Rossi – The 19-year-old forward is out indefinitely with an upper-body injury. Wild fans will have to wait a little longer before the ninth overall pick of the 2020 draft makes his NHL debut. Fortunately, they have the luxury of watching rookie sensation Kirill Kaprizov in the meantime. 

Mats Zuccarello – He's been skating by himself but hasn't yet been cleared to practice with the team. He's working his way back to full health after offseason arm surgery and should be considered week-to-week until we hear otherwise. 

Nico Hischier – The young center suffered a leg injury while training in early December. The injury reportedly didn't require surgery and wasn't originally expected to be a long-term issue. He's been working out off the ice and no longer needs a walking boot. It sounds like he's progressing well but we still don't have a timetable for his return. 

Mika Zibanejad – Appeared to suffer an injury when he lost an edge and fell into the boards awkwardly during Tuesday's game against the Devils. It doesn't look like he's participating in Wednesday's practice, which suggests he may not be available for Friday's game in Pittsburgh. Hopefully, we get a more detailed update from the team soon. 

Tim Stützle – The 19-year-old rookie missed Tuesday's clash with the Jets due to a minor injury. Coach D.J. Smith indicated that the team was exercising caution by holding Stützle out of the lineup and that he should be back soon. Consider him day-to-day for now but don't be surprised to see him in the lineup for Thursday's rematch against Winnipeg. 

Sean Couturier – The Flyers center will miss at least two weeks with a costochondral separation. Let me save you a Google search – a costochondral separation is when one or more ribs get separated from the sternum (the bone that sits in the middle of your chest). The injury comes with a lot of pain, especially when you try to breathe deeply. Considering the amount of heavy breathing a hockey player does in an NHL game, I think it'll be well over two weeks before Couturier gets back in the lineup. Morgan Frost stepped into the lineup to fill Couturier's roster spot but has since suffered an injury of his own. Expect a unique lineup from the Flyers when they face the Bruins on Thursday. 

Mike Matheson – Is out long-term with an upper-body injury. 

Nick Robertson – The 19-year-old forward will be sidelined for at least four weeks with a knee injury. 

Patrik Laine – Is day-to-day with an upper-body injury that kept him sidelined for Winnipeg's past two games. He received treatment for the injury on Tuesday morning, so we'll see if he's feeling well enough to face the Senators on Thursday. 

NHL's COVID-19 Protocol List

Below is a list of fantasy-relevant players that are currently unable to practice, travel or play games due to COVID protocols. 

Players can end up on this list for a number of different reasons, including an initial positive test which remains unconfirmed and subject to confirmatory testing, mandated isolation for symptomatic individuals, required quarantine as a high-risk close contact in accordance with the Positive Test Protocol, isolation based on a confirmed positive test result and/or quarantine for travel or other reasons as outlined in the COVID-19 Protocol (Source: NHL.com). 

Teuvo Teravainen 

Jordan Staal 

Warren Foegele 

Jaccob Slavin 

Mikko Koivu

Robby Fabbri 

Mikael Granlund 

Shayne Gostisbehere

Blake Coleman 

Curtis McElhinney