Lawson Crouse – Hasn’t been practicing and remains day-to-day with soreness. Fortunately, he didn’t suffer any significant head injury after crashing into the end boards head-first during Saturday’s game against the Kings. 

Patrice Bergeron – Won’t be in the lineup on Wednesday against the Senators, meaning he will have missed four of the team’s last six games with a lower-body injury. He sat out for two games as a result of this same issue (which is believed to be groin-related) before returning for two games (tallying five points) and will now have missed two in a row. Coach Bruce Cassidy doesn’t know exactly when Bergeron will be back, but the team wants to ensure that Bergeron’s presence in the lineup doesn’t put him at risk to reaggravate this ailment. The medical staff will continue to monitor the situation on a daily basis, but there’s still a possibility that Bergeron will opt to have surgery and sacrifice a few weeks of the regular season to be at full speed during the playoffs. Even if he chooses a less intensive treatment option, don’t be surprised if the 34-year-old forward sits out a few games every now and then as the team attempts to manage his workload. David Krejci stepped into his role on the top line between David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand in Tuesday’s 8-1 win over the Canadiens. 

Rasmus Dahlin – Suffered a concussion after taking an elbow to the head from Eric Cernak of the Tampa Bay Lightning. It’s important to note that Dahlin was bleeding after the contact was made, so there’s some speculation that his nose might have been broken on the play. It’s extremely difficult to place a timeline on an injury of this nature, so I’ll just wait until the team releases more information. I will mention that the 19-year-old defenseman has 16 points in 24 games this season and his presence on Buffalo’s blueline will be greatly missed. The Sabres have a number of talented defensemen on the roster and I expect they’ll all see increased roles in Dahlin’s absence. 

Marcus Johansson – Should be back in the lineup on Wednesday night when the Flames visit Buffalo. Johansson brings a much-needed element of depth scoring to the Sabres 

Dylan Strome – The 22-year-old forward missed Tuesday’s game against the Stars as he was in concussion protocol. He told the team he wasn’t feeling well on Tuesday afternoon and the medical staff thought it was necessary to keep him out of the lineup. They’ll continue to monitor his status in the coming days and see how he progresses. As I write this, there’s no timetable for his return. 

Erik Johnson – Is officially day-to-day after crashing into the boards shoulder-first following a dangerous hit from Alexander Kerfoot. As I write this, his status for Wednesday’s game against the Oilers is ‘questionable’. 

Mikko Rantanen – After being sidelined for over a month, we can finally start discussing Rantanen’s return as he participated in a full practice with his teammates on Tuesday. While he won’t be in the lineup on Wednesday against the Oilers, he hopes to get back in at some point this weekend which includes a home-and-home series with the Blackhawks on Friday and Saturday. The Avalanche managed to stay afloat in Rantanen’s absence, but we can’t understate how important he is to the roster – he had 12 points in 9 games prior to the injury. 

Gabriel Landeskog – It’s extremely encouraging to hear that he was skating on Tuesday prior to the team’s practice because last we heard, he was wearing a walking boot. I don’t think Colorado’s captain will be returning to the lineup any time soon, but this is certainly a step in the right direction. Once he starts practicing with his teammates and participating in contact drills, we can start projecting a date for his return. 

Mike Green – Won’t be in the lineup on Wednesday against the Leafs, but hopes to get back in for Friday’s clash with the Flyers. The Red Wings have embraced their role as cellar dwellers with a league-worst record of 7-16-3. Filip Hronek remains the most valuable fantasy hockey defenseman on Detroit’s blueline as he has an impressive 13 points in 24 games this season. 

Anthony Mantha – Detroit’s leading scorer will be out for a couple of weeks with a lower-body injury. The team reported that “they will have more updates on the timeframe as he recovers”, which leads me to believe that two-week timeline is just a starting point and he’ll probably miss more than just a couple of weeks. He had an excellent start to the season with 23 points in 25 games. Robby Fabbri will step into Mantha’s role on the top line with Dylan Larkin and Tyler Bertuzzi. 

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – Won’t be in the lineup when the Oilers face the Avalanche on Wednesday night due to a hand injury. Nugent-Hopkins is currently consulting doctors and the team should release a timetable for his recovery in the next few days. He’s on pace for just 52 points this year which would be a significant step backward from the 69 he put up last year. 

MacKenzie Weegar – Was a full participant in Tuesday’s practice. He travelled with the team to Washington but won’t be in the lineup on Wednesday night when the Panthers take on the Capitals. It does sound like he’s close to returning, so he could be back for Florida’s next game on Saturday against the Predators. 

Devan Dubnyk – Is currently dealing with a family situation and is expected to return to practice on Thursday. 

Viktor Arvidsson – Will miss four to six weeks of action with a lower-body injury after he was cross-checked unnecessarily while already down on the ice. Arvidsson has had a relatively slow start to the season with just 15 points in 22 games and this prolonged absence should lower his fantasy hockey value even more. It’s important to note that Arvidsson is seeing less ice-time this year compared to last year (17:13 vs. 19:09), but he is seeing more time on the power play (3:26 vs 2:55) and has already matched his power-play point total from last year (4) in 36 fewer games. 

Vladislav Namestnikov – Has been skating since suffering a tailbone injury during last Wednesday’s win over the Canadiens. He was originally expected to miss a week of action, so he should be back in the lineup very soon – possibly Friday against the Wild? 

Craig Anderson – Tweaked something and will be held out of the lineup on Tuesday for precautionary reasons. Anders Nilsson has actually been outplaying Anderson this season, with a 2.63 GAA and .928 SV% through 12 games, compared to Anderson’s 2.96 GAA and .904 SV% in 14 contests. 

Nolan Patrick – Skated before Monday’s practise but it’s not the first time he’s skated since being diagnosed with a migraine disorder. There haven’t been any significant updates on his status in recent weeks. 

Justin Schultz – Will be out longer-term with a lower-body injury. 

Tomas Hertl – As I write this, his status for Wednesday’s game against the Jets hasn’t yet been determined. He said last Tuesday that he thought he twisted his ankle but didn’t feel like it was a huge deal. He has since missed three games but was listed as a game-time decision on Saturday and has been skating – so it doesn’t sound like the injury is too serious. The Sharks have defeated the Golden Knights, Islanders and Kings in Hertl’s absence. 

Sammy Blais – Will be out for at least ten weeks as he recovers from wrist surgery. 

Steven Stamkos – Won’t be in the lineup on Wednesday when the Lightning host the Blues, but has been progressing well and hopes to return at some point this weekend.  Tampa plays against Washington on Friday and Carolina on Saturday. 

Mitch Marner – Remains week-to-week as he rehabs from a high-ankle sprain but has finally gotten back on the ice. 

Marc-Andre Fleury – Isn’t with the team as he’s dealing with a family illness, he probably won’t be available for Wednesday’s game against Nashville. 

Nicklas Backstrom – Has been skating but won’t be in the lineup on Wednesday against the Panthers. Officially, he remains day-to-day with an upper-body injury. 

Bryan Little – Is still more than a few weeks away from a return as he’s still letting his eardrum heal and will probably enter concussion protocol after that. This means Blake Wheeler might stay at center for the next little while.