Welcome to the September 16, 2026 edition of Injury Ward! 

Twice a week, we will be providing injury news and updates throughout the season on all of you favorite fantasy hockey players, as well as, the annoyingly injury prone players you painstakingly roster anyway. With camps opening up this week and the NHL's first regular season game less than two weeks away, let's dive into all the injuries you need to know about for the fantasy hockey season ahead.

Kevin Fiala (LW, RW) – LAK – week-to-week: Kevin Bisonette covered this for you in [Sunday's Injury Ward article](https://dobberhockey.com/2026/09/13/injury-ward-checking-in-on-fiala-gustavsson-marchand-and-more/), but in case you haven't heard, Fiala had to undergo an additional procedure to the leg that he injured last February. The Kings released a statement saying he would miss the start of training camp and that a timeline for his recovery will be determined at a later date.

Jonathan Huberdeau (LW) – CGY – out indefinitely: Huberdeau will miss the start of Calgary's campaign, per Pat Steinberg of QR Calgary 770 AM. If you're newer to fantasy hockey, then you may not be aware that Huberdeau popped off for 115 points back in 2022. Managers that do remember that, however, can breathe a sigh of relief knowing that they are now armed with one more reason to avoid nostalgia's temptation come draft day. 

Connor Bedard (C) – CHI – out indefinitely: Scott Powers of the Athletic reports that Bedard is recovering as planned. While you can bank on the young superstar missing games in October, a return in November still looks to be on the horizon for the newly named captain of the Blackhawks. 

Matt Savoie (C, RW) – EDM – out indefinitely: Following his first full pro season in which he compiled 37 points and 138 shots while cracking the lineup for all 82 games, Matt Savoie, 22, will reportedly miss all of training camp and may not be available until late October, per Ryan Rishaug of TSN. While the severity and nature of the injury remain undisclosed, this certainly hampers fantasy manager's expectations for Savoie's season ahead, which could feature a role in the top-six of the Oiler's potent offense.

Tij Iginla (C, LW) – UTA – day-to-day: Iginla is sitting out the rookie games in camp as a precautionary measure, but will still be available for training camp per Kole Bagley of KSL Sports. It's unlikely that Iginla has much of a fantasy impact this season with the big club as it is, but fantasy managers in keeper and dynasty leagues still have hope of his value increasing from a strong showing in training camp this September.

Caleb Desnoyers (C) – UTA – day-to-day: Bagley, also, reported that Caleb Desnoyers, 19, would be held out of rookie camp due to a leg injury sustained while playing for team Canada at the World Junior Summer Showcase. Utah General Manager Bill Armstrong noted, however, that Desnoyers would be available come time for training camp. Like Iginla, he will be battling for a roster spot this September.

Kaiden Guhle (D) – MTL – out indefinitely: TVA Sports reported that Guhle will miss the start of the season for the Canadiens after undergoing surgery this offseason. Guhle's services provide fantasy managers with about two hits, two blocks, and a PIM per game, so banger leagues will surely notice his absence. Guhle has been nagged hard by injuries in recent seasons and only managed to suit up for 94 games total over the past two seasons combined, so this injury may be worth monitoring until further information is disclosed.

Thatcher Demko (G) – VAN – out indefinitely: Demko is still without a timetable for his return, according to Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK. Look for Kevin Lankinen (career metrics of 3.10 GAA, .898 SV%) to carry the bulk of the workload for Vancouver while Demko, the 30-year-old, one time Vezina finalist, tries to regain his form following hip surgery.  

Filip Gustavsson (G) – MIN – day-to-day: Michael Russo of the Athletic reports that Gustavsson is still recovering from his offseason hip surgery and that the 28-year-old netminder may miss training camp and preseason action, as result. It's telling, however, that veteran Cam Talbot signed in Columbus this week to add to their goalie depth while backup goaltender Elvis Merzlikins recovers from shoulder surgery, rather than come back to Minnesota for a reunion with his former club. Perhaps we shouldn't expect the Wild, who have Stanley Cup aspirations this year, to go long into the season with Calvin Pickard as part of their tandem in net.   

Frederik Andersen (G) – EDM – out indefinitely: Per Rishaug of TSN, the Great Dane could be on the shelf until late October. For fantasy managers, this could be taken as a small blessing in disguise in that the Oilers typically stumble out of the gates anyway, having put together a woeful 12-14-4 record in October over the last three seasons combined. So while no injury should be considered "good," maybe this one allows Freddie to enjoy a longer than usual offseason full of rest and rejuvenation before returning to an Edmonton Oilers team that should be just starting to find their footing.

That's all for this week, thanks for reading! My name is Garrett Finlay and you can follow me on X [@garrett_fi51284](https://x.com/garrett_fi51284) and on Bluesky [@garrettfinlay.bsky.social](https://bsky.app/profile/garrettfinlay.bsky.social) where I am often talking goalies and fantasy hockey. I'll be back here providing injury news and updates every Wednesday, so until then – Happy Hockeying and good luck out there!