NHL Player News

Sergachev scored a power-play goal, notched two assists and added two PIM in Wednesday's 5-1 win over the Flames.

One of Sergachev's helpers also came on the power play. He's scored in consecutive games and has five points over his last three outings. The defenseman is up to nine points (three on the power play), 22 shots on net, 20 blocked shots and a minus-1 rating over 11 contests this season. Sergachev continues to see heavy minutes in all situations as Utah's No. 1 blueliner.

Cernak (upper body) was injured in the second period of Wednesday's game versus the Avalanche, Ryan Boulding of NHL.com reports.

Cernak was hit high by Matthew Stienburg and wasn't able to return to the game. Head coach Jon Cooper didn't have an update on Cernak's status after the contest. The Lightning are in the middle of a road trip with the next game coming Friday in Minnesota. Nick Perbix would draw into the lineup if Cernak can't play.

Benning was traded from the Sharks to the Maple Leafs on Wednesday, along with a 2025 third-round pick and a 2026 fourth-round pick, in exchange for Timothy Liljegren.

Benning went minus-5 with nine hits, 10 blocked shots and seven shots on goal over seven games with the Sharks prior to the trade. The 30-year-old defenseman may struggle to get into the lineup for the Maple Leafs, but he has a $1.25 million cap hit compared to Liljegren's $3 million AAV, so this saves Toronto some money. Benning doesn't offer much scoring upside, but he brings a physical element.

Liljegren was traded from the Maple Leafs to the Sharks on Wednesday, in exchange for a 2025 third-round pick, a 2026 sixth-round pick and Matt Benning.

Liljegren has fallen out of favor with the Maple Leafs, but he should get a larger opportunity to play with the Sharks. The 25-year-old is also under contract for one more year. Liljegren will likely get bottom-four minutes once he makes his Sharks debut, but the lack of proven talent on his new team's blue line gives him a better chance to earn a bigger role.

Martinez (groin) won't return during the Blackhawks' current road trip, Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times reports Wednesday.

Martinez has been traveling with the Blackhawks during their current five-game road trip, but he's been ruled out for the final three matchups, which will take place Thursday in San Jose, Saturday in Los Angeles and Sunday in Anaheim. His earliest chance to return to action will be Nov. 6 against Detroit, and even if he isn't available against the Red Wings, it wouldn't be surprising to see him back in action sometime in early-to-mid-November.

Letang logged an assist, six shots on goal, two hits and a minus-2 rating in Tuesday's 5-3 loss to the Wild.

Letang snapped a six-game point drought, which came after he registered a point in three straight contests early on. The 37-year-old's defense has been lacking this year as well -- he has a minus-8 rating and just eight blocked shots over 11 appearances. Letang has added four points, 27 shots on net, 20 hits and eight PIM. He's still on the top power-play unit, but with the Penguins struggling in their own zone, there's less upside in Letang's game than there has been in previous years.

Mailloux was demoted to AHL Laval on Wednesday.

Mailloux has been solidly productive to open the season for the Habs, registering three points, seven shots and seven blocks in five contests, so it's somewhat surprising to see the youngster heading back down. However, both Kaiden Guhle (upper body) and Justin Barron (upper body) are traveling with the team ahead of Thursday's tilt versus Washington, indicating one or both could be ready to return. For his part, if Mailloux continues to produce offensively in the minors, he could force Montreal to add him back to the NHL roster.

Broberg logged a power-play assist, two hits and two PIM in Tuesday's 8-1 loss to the Senators.

The helper was Broberg's first power-play point of the campaign. He saw 2:56 with the man advantage in Tuesday's game, but he's regularly played second fiddle to Justin Faulk for power-play time. It hasn't hindered Broberg yet -- through 10 games, he's already matched his career high with eight points while adding nine shots on net, 10 hits, 10 blocked shots, six PIM and a plus-5 rating in a top-four role.

Kesselring (illness) will be in the lineup to face Calgary on Wednesday, Cole Bagley of KSL Sports reports.

Kesselring was a doubt after missing practice Tuesday but appears to be good to go. With the 24-year-old blueliner playing, and the team acquiring Olli Maatta from Detroit, one of Vladislav Kolyachonok or Maveric Lamoureux figures to be relegated to the press box as a healthy scratch.

Alexeyev was absent from Wednesday's practice session due to a personal matter, Bailey Johnson of The Washington Post reports.

The 24-year-old would likely be in line to play Thursday against Montreal if Jakob Chychrun (upper body), who is considered day-to-day, is unable to suit up. However, it's not yet clear whether Alexeyev will be back with the team in time for Thursday's home game. Head coach Spencer Carbery also said Wednesday that Matt Roy (lower body) is "getting real close" to returning, but it's not yet clear who would enter the lineup if both Chychrun and Alexeyev are unavailable.