NHL Player News

Vlasic notched an assist, three blocked shots and two PIM in Friday's 4-2 win over the Canadiens.

Vlasic ended a seven-game drought when he helped out on a Nick Foligno's insurance tally in the third period. The 23-year-old Vlasic's dip on offense coincides with the return of Seth Jones from a broken foot. Vlasic still plays important minutes for the Blackhawks, but he's seen a reduced power-play role. Overall, he has a career-high 17 points with 64 shots on net, 81 blocked shots and a minus-11 rating over 39 appearances this season.

Forsling scored a goal on three shots in Friday's 3-2 shootout win over the Penguins.

Forsling has gotten on the scoresheet in two of the last three games, logging a goal, an assist and nine shots on net in that span. The 28-year-old defenseman is up to six goals, 15 points, 102 shots on net, 42 blocked shots, 37 hits and a plus-19 rating over 40 appearances. He's on pace for his lowest point total in four years, but he's still a decent fantasy blueliner for his all-around contributions.

Connauton was recalled from AHL Tucson on Saturday, Cole Bagley of KSL Sports reports.

Connauton last played in the NHL during the 2021-22 campaign, scoring once and adding two assists in 39 regular-season games between Florida and Philadelphia. The 34-year-old defenseman has five goals and nine points across 24 AHL games with Tucson this season.

Per Stefen Rosner of NHL.com, George (upper body) is day-to-day and won't be available for Sunday's matchup versus Boston.

George left Thursday's 2-1 loss to Toronto due to concussion protocol after receiving a reverse hit from Max Domi in the second period. Dennis Cholowski will replace George in Sunday's lineup. The 20-year-old George has one goal, four assists and 30 blocked shots in 25 games this season.

Lauzon (lower body) isn't expected to play against Calgary on Saturday, per Nick Kieser of 102.5 ESPN Nashville.

Lauzon will miss his second straight game. He has accounted for one assist, 25 shots on goal, 34 blocked shots, 127 hits and 37 PIM through 28 appearances this season. With Lauzon and Adam Wilsby (upper body) unavailable, Justin Barron and Spencer Stastney will occupy spots on the blue line in Saturday's lineup.

Blankenburg registered an assist, two shots on goal, two hits and a plus-2 rating in Friday's 3-0 win over the Canucks.

Blankenburg has earned four points and a plus-6 rating over his last six contests. The 26-year-old has been up to the challenge in a larger role as injuries pile up on the Predators' blue line -- the team was without Adam Wilsby (upper body) and Jeremy Lauzon (lower body) in Friday's contests. Overall, Blankenburg is at four points, 26 shots on net, 15 hits, 18 blocked shots and a plus-9 rating through 17 appearances this season.

Josi notched an assist, two shots on goal, three blocked shots and a plus-2 rating in Friday's 3-0 win over the Canucks.

Josi has just two assists over six contests since he returned from missing four games due to a lower-body injury. His ice time has been substantial in that span, but the Predators' continued struggles on offense have still impacted his production. Overall, the 34-year-old blueliner has 25 points, 105 shots on net, 62 blocked shots, 34 hits and a minus-22 rating through 35 appearances this season.

LaCombe scored a power-play goal on five shots in Friday's 3-2 loss to the Oilers.

LaCombe scored for the first time since Dec. 14, though he had four helpers over eight games between goals. It appears he's earned his way to a more secure role -- his last scratch was Dec. 11, while Pavel Mintyukov and Olen Zellweger have been the most frequent blueliners to sit out in recent weeks. LaCombe has impressed in a top-four role with seven goals, 15 points (three on the power play), 56 shots on net, 52 blocked shots and a plus-2 rating over 31 contests. He needs just two points to match his total from 71 games last season.

Bouchard produced a power-play assist and two shots on goal in Friday's 3-2 win over the Ducks.

Bouchard has four points, including two power-play helpers, over his last three contests. The 25-year-old defenseman set up a Ryan Nugent-Hopkins tally in the first period. Bouchard has overcome a slow start to the year and is up to 29 points (eight on the power play), 96 shots on net, 61 blocked shots and a plus-8 rating over 38 appearances in a top-pairing role. He'll likely fall short of a point-per-game pace but should offer high-end offense for a blueliner.

Nurse scored a goal on two shots, dished an assist and went plus-2 in Friday's 3-2 win over the Ducks.

Nurse's goal gave the Oilers a 2-0 lead in the second period, but they couldn't maintain it. He also helped out on Leon Draisaitl's goal late in the third, which was the game-winner. The two-point effort ended a seven-game slump for Nurse, who last got on the scoresheet with back-to-back two-assist efforts Dec. 12 and 14. The 29-year-old defenseman now has four goals, 13 helpers, 92 shots on net, 59 hits, 59 blocked shots, 26 PIM and a plus-8 rating over 35 appearances this season.