Welcome to the newest edition of the Injury Ward. Here you will find the latest NHL injury updates and also which players may benefit from these situations. My name is Blake Creamer and I will be tackling this topic every single week. I want this article to work for you, so if there are players you want to see, or anything you want added, please reach out to me on Twitter/X @BlakeCreamerAG. Now, let's get to business.

Mikhail Sergachev – Sergachev took a shot off of his foot in Tuesday's game and was unable to finish the contest. He is currently being evaluated so we will know more in the coming days but an appearance in Thursday's game against the Golden Knights seems unlikely at this point. The Lightning's stud rearguard has had a down season compared to what he was able to achieve last year. After potting 27 PPP with a 48% PP share in 2022-23, he only has seven PPP on a 38% PP share this season. Last season was no fluke, but top dog Victor Hedman still has plenty of gas left in the tank and while he is getting the deployment, he will be driving the bike and Sergachev will have to settle for the sidecar.

Andrei Svechnikov – The Canes' beefy Russian made a surprise return to the lineup on Tuesday night and proceeded to pop for a goal, four shots and five hits in just under 16 minutes TOI. Svech is still a massive buy-low as evidenced by his meager shooting percentage (4.3%). Temper your expectations as head coach Rod Brind'Amour cannot be trusted help us with our fantasy teams, but Svechnikov has proven himself as an elite shot and chance generator when healthy. In category leagues, he is even more valuable. Make sure he is rostered as he is still 75% on Yahoo.

Carter Hart – Philly's 25-year-old netminder was scheduled to start on Tuesday night after being sidelined for the previous three games with an illness, but was ultimately unable to go and was forced to miss his fourth straight. Reports mentioned that he had a "setback" with fatigue. The Flyers have improved massively over last season and are currently 6th in the NHL in SA/60 and HDCA/60 at 5-on-5. That is an excellent defensive environment and Hart has been making the most of it. He is 9-6-2 in 17 games so far with a GSAA of 7.08 which is the second highest mark of his career. His next chance to play will be Thursday against the Predators

Mats Zuccarello – The ZUCCHINI MAN! Say it ain't so! It was announced that Zuccarello will be placed on IR with an upper-body injury. This is a week-to-week situation so that is rough news for the Wild who have been playing well as of late. Zuccarello makes his living off the power play and already has 13 PPP this year. Marco Rossi was his replacement in the last game so look for a bump in value there. Ryan Hartman also moves up the lineup and while he doesn't get the ice-time needed to really hit, he is still extremely valuable in multi-category leagues and he has scored in two straight games to boot.

Jared Spurgeon – Sticking with the Wild, "The Block Party" Jared Spurgeon did not accompany the team on their recent two-game road trip as he has been dealing with the dreaded lower-body injury. In his stead, Brock Faber has been a revelation taking reps on the top power play unit while chugging some serious minutes on the ice.

Faber's last four games:

The 21-year-old deserves a look if Spurgeon misses any more time and should probably be rostered currently. It's not a guarantee that Spurgeon goes right back onto the top power play unit. Either way, both players are somewhat average offensively but if Faber is going to get this type of deployment and opportunity, he is approaching must-add territory.

Charlie McAvoy (upper-body) and Pavel Zacha (upper-body) both returned to the Bruins lineup on Tuesday and looked no worse for wear. Head coach Jim Montgomery mentioned that Zacha is 100% but he's not going to go that far with McAvoy so it's likely he is playing through something. Both players are crucial to the offense in Boston so deploy them confidently.

Josh Morrissey – Last season's surprising breakout star took a puck to the face in Monday's game against Montreal and was questionable to play in Wednesday's game due to facial swelling. Things appear to have subsided and he has declared himself good-to-go for the contest. Get him back in your lineups as he has picked up where he left off last year and he has actually increased his shot total from 2.2 to 2.6 in the last 365 days. He is currently pacing for 74 points.

Adin Hill – The news isn't good on the Adin Hill front. He returned from injury to start last Sunday's game, only to leave six minutes in with another injury. He didn't look right in the crease and did not return. He is currently being evaluated for an undisclosed injury, but I imagine that the Golden Knights will be a lot more cautious with their star tendy moving forward. He did not join the team for their current three-game road trip so the earliest he could return would be next week at some point. Logan Thompson has been holding down the fort going 5-2 in seven starts for Vegas.

Ville Husso – The situation in Detroit's crowded crease has just become a lot clearer with news on Husso's most recent injury. He will now be out week-to-week and with an update telling us that Alex Lyon will be out until after Christmas, it is now up to James Reimer to steer the ship.

Seth Jones – Jones is out with a shoulder injury and a timeline on his return has yet to be determined. Those of you who picked up Jones later on in your fantasy drafts with the hopes that he could be a steal at that draft position, are probably on the verge of tears with what he has been able to do this season. The hope was that his production would soar on the top power play with super rookie Connor Bedard paired with the hits and blocks he usually brings to the table. Well, that has not gone to plan. He has zero goals on the season and only one PPP to go with it. Plus, his hits have gone down from 1.47 Hits/GP in 2022 to 0.93 Hits/GP currently.

Max Pacioretty – The ramp-up continues for the oft-injured Pacioretty and it appears he is "real close" to getting some game action. He recently completed his first full practice in a full-contact jersey so things are moving along in the right direction. Now would be a good time to go out and acquire this man's services as he is only 24% rostered on Yahoo. In a best-case scenario, I could see Patches cooking at a 60-point pace with terrific metrics under the hood. He should jump onto the top power play unit upon his return.

Cale Makar – Makar has been battling an injury throughout the season and head coach Jare Bednar is trying to buy some time for his elite defender to heal. He has missed three straight contests and is still considered day-to-day. Unfortunately, we may have to keep an eye on his status as the season progresses while he takes care of what ails him. His next chance to play will be Thursday against the Senators. Devon Toews runs the top power play unit in his absence and players like Bowen Byram and Josh Manson should theoretically get a fantasy boost as well.

Jeff Skinner – This man got absolutely trucked by Nathan Mackinnon in a recent game and has landed on the IR. The good news is that Skinner was back on the ice on Wednesday and could play in Thursday's game. Skinner has not been as efficient as he was last season but the underlying metrics are still solid. He is first on the team in iSCF/60 (11.81) and 2nd in SOG/60 (10.5) behind Tage Thompson at 5-on-5. Buffalo has regressed in general and haven't been that explosive offensive juggernaut that we witnessed last season. They have had a bunch of injuries to deal with and their coverage in the defensive zone has looked like a fire drill at times, but Skinner should be good for more than the 60 points he is currently pacing for.

Jack Quinn – The second-year winger made his way back to the lineup after an achilles injury kept him out for the first 32 games. The returns were underwhelming in his first game back and we will need to manage expectations. He skated mostly with Casey Mittelstadt and Kyle Okposo and managed one shot and one hit in just over 14 minutes of action. I don't believe he needs to be added at this time but put him on the watchlist. This is a player who may need injuries to others to make his mark on the team this season.

Jared McCann – After suffering an upper-body injury, McCann was unable to finish the Kraken's last game. He is listed as day-to-day and Kole Lind has been called up to the big club to cover some of the injuries the Kraken face. Yanni Gourde and Kailer Yamamoto will both see some power play time in McCann's absence and could be reasonable streams.

Patrik Laine – If the troubled Blue Jackets winger didn't have bad luck, he would have no luck at all. Laine has a fractured clavicle and will be out at least six weeks. I have no doubt that Laine will be a relevant player in fantasy again, but this season has been a wash up to this point. The Russian line of Marchenko, Chinakhov and Voronkov will see increased deployment and Marchenko in particular could see some increased usage after securing a natural hat trick the other night in a 9-4 drubbing of the Sabres.

Damon Severson – In other Columbus news, Severson is likely to play in one of the Blue Jackets upcoming two games. The new addition has been sidelined with an oblique injury since November 19th.

Jake Oettinger – It appears that Oettinger has avoided a worst-case scenario with his lower-body injury even though he was recently given a week-to-week status by the team. Scott Wedgewood becomes a must-add player in the interim. The Stars are still a decent defensive environment for goalies to succeed so he should be able to secure some counting stats and wins for your teams.

Anton Lundell – Lundell is under the weather as are many players around the league. He will be a game-time decision for Florida on Thursday against St. Louis.

Trevor Zegras and Mason McTavish were both full participants in Wednesday's practice and their return could be imminent. There is a chance that one or both could play in Thursday's game. Zegras is a must-roster to me at this point and is a major buy-low candidate. Expect a slow start, but he is too talented to continue on at a 14-point pace. Bring back the flying V!

That's it for this week's article. Thank you so much for reading. If you are interested in chatting with me one-on-one, you can reach me on a fantasy sports app called Didit. Click HERE I can analyze your roster, answer any questions you have or just talk strategy. The first call is FREE for everyone.

Please follow me on Twitter/X @BlakeCreamerAG and come and check out my fantasy hockey musings on the Apples and Ginos Fantasy Hockey Podcast. Celebrate your day. Bye for now.

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