NHL Player News

Theodore produced two assists, including one on the power play, in Thursday's 3-2 overtime win over the Jets.

Theodore came up clutch with his third straight multi-point effort. He assisted on Victor Olofsson's power-play tally late in the third period and then fed Ivan Barbashev for the game-winner 3:47 into overtime. Theodore is up to 24 points (10 on the power play), 55 shots on net, 36 blocked shots and a plus-2 rating over 28 outings this season. He's Vegas' top blueliner for offense, so Theodore should be rostered in all formats and active in the vast majority of them.

Smith was scratched for the seventh straight game when he sat out Thursday's 4-1 loss to the Predators.

Matt Dumba (upper body) was unavailable Thursday, but the Stars recalled and played Lian Bichsel rather than have Smith join the lineup. That's not a ringing endorsement on Smith's play so far. The 35-year-old has three helpers, eight shots on net, 11 PIM, 18 hits, 11 blocked shots and a minus-2 rating over 12 outings, though he hasn't earned a point since Nov. 14. He hasn't played since going minus-4 in a game versus the Blackhawks on Nov. 27.

Gravel posted an assist and went plus-3 in Thursday's 4-1 win over the Stars.

Gravel had not earned a point in the NHL since 2022-23, when he had one assist over 23 games. He didn't play in the NHL in 2023-24, spending nearly the whole campaign with AHL Milwaukee. The Predators are dealing with a number of injuries on the blue line, so Gravel was called up to provide reinforcements, but he'll likely head back to the AHL once one of Roman Josi (lower body), Jeremy Lauzon (lower body) or Alexandre Carrier (upper body) is cleared to play again.

Wilsby notched an assist, two shots on goal and a plus-4 rating in Thursday's 4-1 win over the Stars.

Wilsby nearly also had his first career goal, but it was wiped out on a review. The 24-year-old will have to settle for his first assist and an excellent defensive performance instead. He's posted a plus-5 rating, 10 shots on net, five hits and five blocked shots over eight outings while picking up bottom-four minutes in the absences of Jeremy Lauzon (lower body) and Alexandre Carrier (upper body).

Bouchard (lower body) will be a game-time decision for Saturday's tilt against Vegas, per Ryan Rishaug of TSN on Friday.

Bouchard exited Thursday's 7-1 win over Minnesota late in the third period. He has six goals and 22 points across 29 appearances in 2024-25. If he can't play Saturday, then Alec Regula, who was claimed off waivers from Boston on Wednesday, will presumably make his Oilers debut.

Suter recorded an assist and three hits in Thursday's 4-3 loss to the Sharks.

Suter was under 20 minutes of ice time (18:43) for the first time since Oct. 15. Justin Faulk and Philip Broberg have missed time and Nick Leddy (lower body) is still out -- all of those injuries on defense have helped Suter maintain a top-four role. He's now at seven points, 28 shots on net, 21 hits, 40 blocked shots and a minus-4 rating through 30 appearances. The 39-year-old has minimal scoring upside since he's not on the power play.

Liljegren registered an assist, two shots on goal and three blocked shots in Thursday's 4-3 win over the Blues.

Liljegren broke a four-game slump, which came on the heels of a four-game point streak for the defenseman. The 25-year-old set up Macklin Celebrini's first tally in Thursday's contest. Liljegren is up to six points, 40 shots on net, 28 hits, 30 blocked shots, 12 PIM and a minus-2 rating over 21 appearances between the Sharks and the Maple Leafs in 2024-25. With San Jose, he has been able to hold onto a top-four role and power-play time.

Vlasic recorded two assists and two shots on goal in Thursday's 5-4 loss to the Islanders.

Vlasic has two goals and four assists over his last seven outings. The defenseman was in on the Blackhawks' first and last goals in the contest, including Connor Bedard's power-play marker in the first period. Vlasic is up to 14 points (eight on the power play), 45 shots on net, 64 blocked shots and a minus-10 rating over 29 appearances. He's two points shy of matching his production from 76 games in 2023-24.

Pulock recorded an assist, two blocked shots and a plus-2 rating in Thursday's 5-4 win over the Blackhawks.

Pulock has five helpers over his last 16 contests. In that same span, he has 27 hits and 37 blocked shots -- he continues to make more of an impact physically than with offense. Pulock is at 10 helpers, 43 shots on net, 48 hits, 70 blocks and a plus-4 rating over 31 outings in a top-four role.

Cholowski scored a goal on two shots, blocked two shots and added two PIM in Thursday's 5-4 win over the Blackhawks.

Cholowski has four points over his last six outings, and he continues to log time on the second power-play unit. The 26-year-old defenseman has helped the Islanders weather the storm with injuries on the blue line. He's at eight points -- his most in a season since 2019-20 -- with 19 shots on net, 19 blocked shots and a plus-7 rating over 21 appearances. Once Adam Pelech (jaw) is ready to return, the last spot on defense will likely come down to Cholowski or rookie Isaiah George.