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 hasn’t been any significant updates about their progress since last week's article – thanks to @Harjas_Grewal for filling in for me last week! If you ever need injury updates for a specific player, shoot me a message on Twitter @BrennanDeSouza. 

Rickard Rakell – Is officially day-to-day with an upper-body injury. It looked like the back of his head hit the ice after he had his legs taken out from under him. If this is a head injury, it'll be difficult to put a timeline on it because concussion-like symptoms tend to be unpredictable. He got off to a slow start with seven points in his first 20 games of the season but went on to post 15 points in his next 16 outings. 

John Gibson – Anaheim's netminder is day-to-day with a lower-body injury. Gibson's last start was on March 26^thand the team's next game is Friday April 2^nd– so he will have had a week to recover from whatever he's dealing with. Seeing as his status is day-to-day, I assume the injury isn't too severe, which would suggest he'll be ready to go on Friday. 

Antti Raanta – Last week, coach Rick Tocchet revealed that Raanta would be out a while with a lower-body injury. I guess we consider him week-to-week until we hear otherwise. 

Darcy Kuemper – Suffered a knee injury on March 8^thand was originally expected to miss about four weeks. Here we are, three weeks later and there's no news of Kuemper skating yet. It seems like he may be sidelined for longer than we originally thought, with no real concrete timetable for his return. With both Kuemper and Raanta injured, Adin Hill steps into the starting role for Arizona. Hill has been pretty good this season, sporting a 4-3-1 record alongside a 2.44 GAA and .920 save percentage. 

Tuukka Rask – Seemed to injure his back on March 7^thafter a collision with New Jersey's Miles Wood. He returned on March 25^thbut only lasted 20 minutes as he reaggravated the injury and was forced to leave the game. He wasn't practicing on Monday and coach Bruce Cassidy revealed that Jaroslav Halak and Dan Vladar would be splitting starts this week, indicating that Rask won't be an option until next week at the earliest. 

Ondrej Kase – The Bruins forward was working with the team's skill coach prior to Tuesday's practice. There's still no timetable for his return and this isn't really a significant milestone in his recovery, seeing as he's been skating on his own for a few weeks now. Kase has been out since January 16^th, when he suffered an upper-body injury in Boston's second game of the 2021 campaign.

Dylan Cozens– The Sabres' rookie is expected to miss about a week of action with an upper-body injury. Considering the Sabres are out of the playoff race, the team has no reason to rush the 20-year-old forward back into the lineup. The decision to prioritize his long-term well-being was reiterated by General Manager Kevin Adams, who said the team doesn't want to put Cozens on the ice if he's not 100-percent. 

Carter Hutton – Is officially week-to-week with a lower-body injury but there's no timetable for his return just yet. With that being said, he is expected to be back at some point before the season ends. The 35-year-old netminder has struggled this season, posting just one win through 13 games, with a 3.47 GAA and .886 save percentage. 

Jack Eichel – Buffalo's captain continues to rehab and make progress from an upper-body injury but there's still no timetable for his return. With that being said, the team is hopeful he'll return at some point this season. On one hand, it makes no sense to rush Eichel back with the Sabres well out of the playoff race. On the other hand, all these losses must be taking a toll on the team mentally, so it'll help to end the season on a high note with Eichel back in the lineup. 

Teuvo Teravainen – The 26-year-old forward is still recovering from a concussion and there's no timetable for his return. Dealing with a concussion is an unpredictable process and the recovery period varies from person to person. He continues to skate on his own but hasn't been able to take contact in a full practice just yet.  

Petr Mrazek – The Hurricanes netminder has practiced with the team a few times in recent weeks.  We seem to be in the final stages of the recovery process, and I expect his return is just around the corner. 

Bowen Byram – Has been skating recently as he works his way back from an upper-body injury, but he won't be available for Wednesday's clash with the Coyotes. He'll be re-evaluated before the team makes a decision about his status for Friday's game against the Blues. 

Pavel Francouz– Still out long term with a lower-body injury and there's no timetable for his return. He suffered the injury during practice back in January and hasn't played a single game this season. 

Joonas Korpisalo – The Blue Jackets netminder is day-to-daywith a lower-body injury. He missed Tuesday evening's game against the Lightning but was a full participantfor the team's skate that morning. ConsideringElvis Merzlikinsstopped 37 of 38 shots en route to a 3-1 win over the Blue Jackets on Tuesday, I expect he'll get the nod again on Thursday. Korpisalo could be available to serve as backup though. 

Joel Kiviranta – On March 27^th, we heard that the Stars forward would be out for a weekwith a lower-body injury. We still have a few days left in that timetable, which would suggest that Kiviranta is close to being back in the lineup. 

Alexander Radulov – The 34-year-old forward is dealing with a lower-body injury and is not with the team as they continue their road trip which finishes April 8^thand includes five more games. While Radulov could join the team at some point, COVID protocols make commercial travel quite difficult. As such, it seems likely that he'll miss these next five games. 

Bobby Ryan – The Red Wings forward is day-to-day with an upper-body injury but isn't expected to miss more than a week of action. 

Jonathan Bernier – Has been working out on the ice with the team's goalie coach and is expected to start practicing soon. He's been sidelined since March 18^thwith a lower-body injury. 

Tyler Bertuzzi – No real updates as he hasn't been skating recently. Up until this point, he's gone through cycles where he'll skate for a few days and then he won't skate for a few days. He'll need to feel comfortable skating consistently before he can eventually start practicing with the team. He'll also need a few practices to work his way back to game-level intensity, so I'd say he's at leasta few weeks away from a return, but it could very well take longer than that. He suffered the back injury in late January and has been sidelined ever since. 

Anthony Duclair – The Panthers winger Is expected to miss seven to 10 days with what looks like a shoulder injury. 

Aaron Ekblad – The 25-year-old defenseman underwent surgery to repair a fracture in his lower extremities and will be sidelined for the next 12 weeks. Ekblad was having an excellent season, posting 22 points through 35 games, with 11 of those points coming with the man advantage. 

Patric Hornqvist – Has missed the team's last three games with what seemed to be an upper-body injury, sustained after a big hit from Nikita Zadorov on March 25^th. Fortunately, he's expected to return to the lineup on Saturday against the Blue Jackets. 

Aleksander Barkov – Florida's captain could be back from a lower-body injury as early as Thursday. If he isn't able to make his return on Thursday, he should be available for Saturday's clash with Columbus. Barkov has been excellent this season, posting 37 points through 31 appearances. 

Tyler Toffoli – While he won't be in the lineup on Thursday against the Senators, he's progressing wellin his recovery from a lower-body injury and should be available within the next few games.  Toffoli leads the team with 27 points in 30 games this season. 

Filip Forsberg – The Predators forward is week-to-week with an upper-body injury. While his overall production on the year is solid, he found himself in a bit of a slump with two points in eight games prior to the injury. 

Mark Borowiecki – Nashville's defenseman is week-to-week with an upper-body injury. He's been sidelined since March 11^th.

Matt Duchene – The 30-year-old center is officially week-to-week with a lower-body injury. On March 6^th, it was announced that he'd miss three to five weeks as a result of this injury. We're about three and a half weeks into that original timetable. 

Ryan Ellis – Like many of his teammates, Ellis is out on a week-to-week basis. On March 2^nd, the team announced that he'd miss four to six weeks with an upper-body injury. We're four weeks into that timetable, so hopefully he's able to start skating and practicing within these next couple of weeks. 

Nico Hischier – Underwent surgery on March 15^ththat came with a recovery timeline of approximately three weeks. We're about two weeks into that timetable and he's started doing some physical activity. 

Austin Watson – The Senators forward sustained a fracture in his thumb and hand after blocking a shot on March 22^nd. He's expected to miss four to six weeksas he recovers from the injury. 

Matt Murray – Ottawa's netminder was a full participant in Wednesday's practice but still hasn't been cleared to play. He suffered an upper-body injury during warmup on March 14^thand has been sidelined ever since, with no timetable for his return. 

Tristan Jarry – The Penguins goaltender is day-to-day with an upper-body injury. He didn't skate on Wednesday and probably won't be available for Thursday's game against the Bruins. He got off to a slow start in January, posting a 3.92 GAA and .859 save percentage through six appearances. He's bounced back nicely since then, winning 13 of his 19 starts while registering a 2.45 GAA and .923 save percentage. Casey DeSmith has also been excellent recently and makes for a solid addition to your fantasy roster during Jarry's absence. 

Kasperi Kapanen – Is week-to-week with a lower-body injury. The 24-year-old forward was having a strong showing with the Penguins as his 21 points through 30 appearances translate to a 57-point-pace in a typical 82-game season. 

Brandon Tanev – Was a full participant in Wednesday's practice. That's certainly an encouraging sign in his recovery from an upper-body injury which has kept him sidelined since March 18^th. 

Evgeni Malkin – The Penguins superstar was placed on long term injured reserve retroactive to March 16^th. As a result, he's required to miss at least 24 days, which means the earliest he can return is April 11^th. It could very well be longer than that, depending on how he progresses from this lower-body injury. He hasn't been skating recently but is going through rehab protocol off the ice. 

Vince Dunn – Is officially day-to-day with a lower-body injury. He skated on Wednesday and will be re-evaluated on Thursday before a decision is made about his status for Friday's clash with Colorado.  

Colton Parayko – Was on the ice for Wednesday's practice. There's still no timetable for his return as the team continues to monitor his progress each day. 

Erik Cernak – On March 25^th, the team announced he was day-to-day with a lower-body injury. Cernak was on the ice for Wednesday's practice but only stayed on for 10 minutes. Coach Jon Cooper said Cernak was a few steps behind in his recovery, so It doesn't sound like the defenseman's return is imminent. 

Ryan McDonagh – Was a full participant in Wednesday's practice and is very closeto returning from a lower-body injury. 

Frederik Andersen – Is officially day-to-day with a lower-body issue that's bothered him frequently this season. He has a medical appointment on Thursday which should provide more information as to what the next steps will look like. 

Elias Pettersson – Continues to skate on his own as he recovers from a wrist injury. There isn't a concrete timetable for his return, and he's expected to miss a few more games. 

Alex Pietrangelo – In terms of health, Pietrangelo is ready to return to the lineup on Wednesday against the Kings. However, whether or not he actually plays will depends on the processing of paperwork to activate him from long-term injured reserve. 

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). 

Jake DeBrusk

Brendan Lemieux

Zach Parise

Eric Staal

Joel Armia

Adam Gaudette