Injury Ward: Gibson, Trocheck, Merzlikins, Werenski, & Malkin

Brennan Des

2021-02-10

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 recently. If you ever need injury updates for a specific player, shoot me a message on Twitter @BrennanDeSouza!

John Gibson – The Ducks goaltender missed Tuesday's game against the Golden Knights due to  a facial laceration that happened during Monday's practice. Fortunately, it doesn't sound too serious and he should be available for Thursday's rematch against Vegas. Gibson has been excellent for Anaheim this season, posting a 2.48 GAA and .918 save percentage through 11 games.  

Matt Grzelcyk – was a full participant in Monday's practice and is expected to be in the lineup on Wednesday against the Rangers. The 27-year-old defenseman missed the team's last four games due to a lower-body injury. He's been limited to just five appearances this season but has managed to put up three points in those games. 

Jake DeBrusk – He participated in Monday's practice and should be available against the Rangers on Wednesday. He's off to a slow start this season with just one point through six games but missing five games with a lower-body injury certainly hasn't helped. Hopefully he can stay healthy going forward and start performing to his potential. 

Ondrej Kase – Suffered an upper-body injury in Boston's second games of the season (January 16th) and hasn't skated since. He has been working out of the ice but there's no timetable for his return. 

Sam Reinhart – was expected to return from an upper-body injury last Tuesday against the Islanders, but that game got rescheduled due to COVID protocols. Reinhart will have some extra time to recover from the upper-body injury as the Sabres' next game is scheduled for February 15th. There's a lot to like about Reinhart from a fantasy perspective, but I think ice time is an underrated aspect of his value. He averaged over 20 minutes of action last year and is seeing similar minutes this year. 

Vincent Trocheck – Missed Monday's game against the Blue Jackets due to a lower-body injury. Trocheck wasn't definitively ruled out of the game in advance, and actually thought he might be able to play. That leads us to believe that the injury isn't too serious, and he shouldn't be out for too long. He's off to a strong start this year with nine points in nine games. 

Martin Necas – Suffered an upper-body injury in Thursday's game against the Blackhawks after he was hit into the boards and fell to the ice. His head seemed to bounce off the ice, but fortunately it looked like his helmet absorbed much of the impact. Coach Rod Brind'Amour was cryptic in his updates about Necas, saying the 22-year-old forward was going to be out for a little while, but not very long. 

Petr Mrazek – The Hurricanes netminder underwent surgery on his thumb last week and we're still waiting on a timetable for his return. He was off to a strong start this season with two shutouts in his first three games – one of which came against Tampa's lethal offense.  James Reimer has struggled in Mrazek's absence, conceding five goals in each of his last two starts. Despite that, I have faith in Carolina's defense and think Reimer makes for a decent addition to your fantasy roster while Mrazek is sidelined. 

Connor Murphy – Missed Tuesday's clash with the Stars due to a right hip injury. Coach Jeremy Colliton didn't have an update on Murphy after the game and simply said they'd see how it develops over the next few days. I guess we consider him day-to-day until we hear otherwise. 

Nathan MacKinnon – Last week it was announced that a lower-body injury would keep the superstar forward sidelined on a week-to-week basis. We haven't been given any updates since then, partially because Colorado's games have been postponed due to COVID protocols. The team last played on February 2nd, and their next game is set for February 14th. We should get more news about Mackinnon's status once the team gets back in action. 

Devon Toews – The original prognosis had him missing seven to 10 days with a foot injury after blocking a shot on January 28th against the Sharks. His status was later changed to 'week-to-week' but we should get some more information in the coming days as the Avalanche return to play. He's off to a strong start in his first season with Colorado, posting five points in eight games. 

Pavel Francouz – Is officially week-to-week with a lower-body injury. Philipp Grubauer has started nine of Colorado's 11 games, posting seven wins alongside an impressive 1.67 GAA and .934 save percentage. 

Zach Werenski – The Blue Jackets defenseman will be sidelined for a week or two with a lower-body injury. 

Elvis Merzlikins – The 26-year-old netminder is day-to-day with an upper-body injury that he suffered in practice last Wednesday. He has a 2-2-1 record so far in 2021, posting a 2.76 GAA and .913 save percentage. 

Alexander Radulov – The 34-year-old forward has missed the team's last two games with a lower-body injury. We haven't been given much information in terms of timelines, so I guess we consider him day-to-day until we hear otherwise. He's had a great start to the season, posting 11 points in eight games. 

Tyler Bertuzzi – An upper-body injury will keep him sidelined until at least Monday February 15th. That means he'll miss Detroit's next two games, both of which will be played against the Predators. There's no guarantee that Bertuzzi returns to the lineup on Monday, but we should at least get another update around then. 

Jonathan Bernier – Is getting close to a return after missing almost two weeks with an upper-body injury. I'm not sure if Bernier is the best option for your fantasy roster this season. He's posted a 3.54 GAA and .811 save percentage in four appearances and will be hard-pressed to tally wins with a lacklustre team in front of him. 

Zack Kassian – Suffered an injury after fighting Erik Gubranson in Monday's clash with the Senators and is officially week-to-week

Ethan Bear – The Oilers defenseman has been sidelined since January 30th, when he took a puck to the head in a game against the Leafs. He has been skating recently but there's no timetable for his return. 

Matt Dumba – Suffered a lower-body injury on January 30th when he collided with teammate Jordan Greenway and is expected to be sidelined for a while

Marco Rossi – The ninth overall pick of the 2020 draft reportedly won't play for the Wild this season due to COVID-related complications. While this isn't expected to affect his long-term health, the current priority is for him to rest and focus on getting ready for next season's training camp. 

Joel Armia – Was a full participant in Tuesday's practice and could be available for Wednesday's game against the Leafs. 

Ryan Johansen – The Preds forward is officially week-to-week with an upper-body injury. Johansen's offensive struggles from last season have followed him into 2021 as he's only managed four points through 10 games this year. 

Anthony Beauvillier – Has been skating and rehabbing on his own but we don't have a timetable for his return. He won't be available Thursday but coach Barry Trotz expects him to be ready fairly soon. He's been sidelined for the last two and a half weeks with a lower-body injury. 

Erik Brannstrom – An injury will keep the 21-year-old defenseman sidelined for seven to 10 days

Jared McCann – Is out week-to-week with a lower-body injury. 

Evgeni Malkin – Left Wednesday's practice due to an eye irritation. It sounds like he was taken out due to an abundance of caution, not necessarily because the issue was serious. I don't think this will cause Malkin to miss any game time, but there's no official word on that just yet. 

Robert Thomas – A broken thumb will keep the 21-year-old forward sidelined for four to six weeks

Vladimir Tarasenko – The Blues forward has been skating recently and while his shoulder still isn't 100-percent, he's able to receive passes, make passes, and shoot the puck to a certain extent. He's still weeks away from a return, but this is certainly an encouraging step in the right direction. 

Wayne Simmonds – The Leafs forward is expected to miss six weeks with a broken wrist. He was off to a strong start in Toronto, with five goals in 12 games.

Tyler Motte – Could miss a few weeks with a lower-body injury. It's certainly a significant loss for Vancouver as Motte currently leads the league with 70 hits. 

Shea Theodore – Was held out of the third period in Tuesday's game against the Golden Knights, presumable due to an earlier collision with teammate Nicolas Deslauriers. We're still awaiting a more substantial update on his status. 

Justin Schultz – Has missed the team's last four games after taking a puck to the face during a game against the Islanders on January 28th. He skated with the team on Monday while wearing a face shield and should be considered day-to-day until we hear otherwise. He's off to a strong start in his first year with the Capitals, posting six points through eight games. 

NHL's COVID-19 Protocol List

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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). 

Casey Mittelstadt 

Rasmus Dahlin 

Dylan Cozens 

Taylor Hall 

Rasmus Ristolainen 

Samuel Girard 

Gabriel Landeskog

Andreas Athanasiou 

Jonas Brodin 

Cam Talbot

Nick Bonino 

Nick Bjugstad

Joel Eriksson Ek 

Jared Spurgeon 

Nikita Gusev 

Yegor Sharangovich 

Ty Smith 

Damon Severson 


Jack Hughes

Andrea Johnsson 

Pavel Zacha

Kyle Palmieri 

Travis Zajac 

Mackenzie Blackwood

Sami Vatanen 

Nico Hischier 

Claude Giroux 

Travis Sanheim 

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