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.

Andrei Svechnikov – Fantasy managers will have to wait just a little longer to get Svech back in their lineupsas injuries continue to derail what could have been a career-best season. He has missed the last five games with a new upper-body injury and the hope was that he was able to return to action prior to the All-Star Game, but it hasn't materialized. Coach Brind'Amour mentioned he is "right around the corner", but we will have to check his status leading up to the Hurricanes' next contest. Before the current injury, he had found his game and was in the midst of a heater with 19 points in just 13 games including a hat-trick on December 28. With Svech out, "The Bundt Cake" Michael Bunting, Teuvo Teravainen and Jordan Martinook have all seen an increase in deployment. 

Jonas Brodin – Brodin is inching closer to a return after dealing with a nasty illness that knocked him down to the point that he couldn't skate for the past two weeks and subsequently lost weight. The Wild could sorely use him as they try to push for the wild card spot in the Western Conference. They currently sit seven points out with 47 points. Brodin is a deep-league option at best and could be streamed in if you need blocks.

Mikhail Sergachev – The Tampa Bay Lightning will get a boost on Wednesday, as this beefer with cheese was activated off of LTIR and will join the team on the ice against the Rangers. Sergachev had been sidelined since December 19 with a lower-body injury and prior to that, he had produced 19 points in 33 games while mostly being deployed on the second power-play unit. The big Russian turned heads last season after popping for 64 points in 79 games including 27 PPP. While he hasn't been nearly as effective this campaign, he is still pacing for 47 points with his usual output of peripheral stats. We need to manage expectations with this player as last season looked like the outlier and as long as Victor Hedman is still in town, he will continue to be lower in the pecking order.

Erik Cernak – Cernak was also activated off of the IR and will join the team on Wednesday, giving the Lightning a much-needed boost on defense. He will likely line up with Sergachev on the second pairing and for fantasy purposes, he is a category league streamer at best. He has five assists in 39 games this year to go along with 99 hits and 63 blocks. 

Noel Acciari – The 32-year-old center took a high hit from Jets rearguard Brenden Dillon on Tuesday and was unable to complete the contest.  Consider him day-to-day until we hear more. Dillon is having a phone hearing with the NHL's Department of Player Safety on Wednesday and could miss some time as well. Jets head coach Rick Bowness said Logan Stanley would make his way onto the roster if Dillon gets suspended. 

Tyler Toffoli – Don't hassle the Toff! Toffoli is dealing with an illness and isn’t certain for Thursday's game against the Flames. Look for Ondrej Palat and Erik Haula to continue to receive top-6 deployment and power play time should Toffoli remain out.

Mattias Samuelsson – Samuelsson has been ruled out for the remainder of the season due to an upper-body injury sustained in a recent game against the San Jose Sharks. He has had a procedure to repair the issue and should be good to go for training camp next year. He will finish the season with seven points in 41 games with the club.

Barrett Hayton – All signs appear to be pointing in the right direction for Hayton to make his return from injury as soon as Thursday against the Golden Knights. He recently shed his non-contact jersey in practice and has been taking line rushes with the team. Even prior to the injury, Hayton had not been producing to the level he was last year where he cooked for 18 points in the final 20 games of the campaign. Arizona has a perfect schedule in week 18 with four games all on the off-nights. It is well within the realm of possibilities that Hayton slides back onto the top line with young buck Clayton Keller and Nick Schmaltz as well as the top power-play unit. Nothing is a guarantee as we haven't seen the lines yet, but this is a low-risk add that I'd rather be out in front of instead of missing out on the opportunity. He is currently 4% rostered on Yahoo and has four points in 16 games this year.

Matt Dumba – Dumba is right behind Hayton in his recovery and could get back into game action on Thursday as well. He was dealing with an upper-body injury that landed him on the IR but he has since been activated and if he doesn't get in on Thursday, his next chance will be Saturday against the Predators. He could be added next week for his schedule but his value is really measured in hits and blocks. 

Jack Hughes – For all you fantasy managers who have been waiting patiently for the Devil’s young dynamo to return, you'll likely have to wait just a bit more but there have been some positive signs for Jack Hughes. Coach Lindy Ruff told reporters that Hughes is another step closer after skating in a regular jersey in practice. February 7 is a day off for the Devils so look for an update on the morning of the 8th. There is a chance he could play against the Flames at home. With another lengthy injury this season, one might wonder what Hughes has to do to stay healthy. He might need to change his game a bit moving forward but one thing is for sure: When he is in the lineup, he is one of the best players in the NHL. 

Evgeny Kuznetsov – Kuznetsov has entered the NHL/NHLPA Player's Assistance Program and is out indefinitely. Dylan Strome will be relied on heavily to fill the void left by Kuzy and will get top power play minutes for the foreseeable future. 

Viktor Arvidsson – The Swedish-born winger had a solid year in 2022 and was expected to take on a larger role with the team coming into training camp. Unfortunately, that was derailed due to a back injury suffered while there and he hasn't played a game yet this season. He has been seen back out on the ice however, and appears close to playing which would put him right in line with the initial prognosis of a mid-February return. Arvidsson should be rostered in all formats and he will likely skate alongside Phillip Danault and Trevor Moore once again. His ace-in-the-hole is how effective he is on the power play. He cooked for 25 PPP last year in limited time and will likely be relied on to do the same for the Kings this season where their power play has been just above average. 

Tanner Jeannot – Jeannot is traveling with the team but he won't be an option for their upcoming back-to-back on Wednesday and Thursday. Moreover, he has been moved to LTIR with Sergachev being activated. He is an elite hitter and not much else so he can probably be left on the wire.

That is 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 this link to download the app: https://t.co/eJSrN8Xlzp 

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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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