NHL Player News

Hakanpaa (lower body) won't play Monday in Game 1 versus the Golden Knights, according to Stars radio analyst Bruce LeVine.

Hakanpaa also missed the final 13 contests of the regular season. He concluded the 2023-24 campaign with two goals, 12 points, 123 blocked shots and 196 hits in 64 appearances.

Forbort (undisclosed) will not be in action versus Toronto on Monday but will travel with the team for Games 3 and 4, Conor Ryan of The Boston Globe reports.

Forbort was just brought back up from a conditioning stint in the minors, so it shouldn't come as a surprise to see him being slowly reintegrated into the team. Even once fully up to speed, the veteran defenseman is far from a lock for the lineup, though Andrew Peeke is the most likely candidate to be scratched in favor of Forbort, who will need to be activated from long-term injured reserve to officially be eligible to play.

Forsling registered an assist in Sunday's 3-2 win over the Lightning in Game 1.

Forsling is currently stuck in a 17-game goal drought but has chipped in eight helpers over that stretch, including three in his last four appearances. While the blueliner was dropped from the power play in favor of Aaron Ekblad, Forsling should still see top-four minutes, which gives him decent offensive upside.

Forbort (undisclosed) was called up from his conditioning stint with AHL Providence on Monday, Mark Divver of the New England Hockey Journal reports.

Forbort saw action in a pair of AHL contests while with Providence, his first time suiting up in the minors since 2019-20. With the 32-year-old blueliner back on the NHL roster, he could get into a playoff game for the Bruins, though it seems unlikely coach Jim Montgomery will want to change anything up ahead of the Game 2 considering the Bruins won 5-1 in the first contest.

Crozier was recalled from AHL Syracuse on Monday.

Crozier's promotion could be an indication that there is an injury somewhere on the Bolts' blue line following Sunday's Game 1 clash with the Panthers. For his part, the Calgary native logged 13 games at the NHL level this season in which he registered two assists, 13 shots and 16 hits while averaging 12:56 of ice time. Even if there is a spot open in the lineup ahead of Game 2 on Tuesday, it would likely be Calvin de Haan who suits up instead of Crozier.

Josi posted an assist in Sunday's 4-2 loss to the Canucks in Game 1.

Josi has earned 10 points over his last nine outings. The defenseman set up Jason Zucker's first-period tally in Sunday's contest. Josi had another excellent regular season with 23 goals and 85 points over 82 appearances, and he added 268 shots on net, 151 blocked shots and a plus-12 rating. He'll fill a workhorse role as the Predators' top defenseman during the playoffs.

Zadorov logged an assist, three shots on goal and five hits in Saturday's 4-2 win over the Predators in Game 1.

Zadorov has three helpers over nine outings in April, and he's added 26 hits and 25 PIM. The 29-year-old should have no trouble staying in the lineup, but his offense is likely to be limited given his bottom-four role. Zadorov had 20 points, 90 shots on net, 175 hits, 68 blocked shots and 125 PIM over 75 appearances between the Canucks and the Flames in the regular season.

Hronek notched an assist, added two PIM and went plus-2 in Sunday's 4-2 win over the Predators in Game 1.

Hronek ended the regular season on a four-game slump before resting for the finale. The 26-year-old defenseman had a career-high 48 points over 81 appearances, but just 19 of those points came over his last 45 outings as his offense faded a bit in the second half. He's still been a solid partner for captain Quinn Hughes on the top pairing, so Hronek's ice time should be steady in the playoffs.

Hughes scored a goal on three shots and went plus-2 in Sunday's 4-2 win over the Predators in Game 1.

Hughes posted five goals and 17 assists over the final 20 games of the regular season, and he didn't slow down to begin the playoffs. The defenseman's third-period tally tied the game at 2-2, and Dakota Joshua scored 12 seconds later to put the Canucks ahead for good. Hughes took his game to new heights with 17 tallies, 92 points, 199 shots on net and a plus-38 rating over 82 regular-season contests. As captain, he'll be looking to lead from the blue line with the Canucks having home-ice advantage for the first two rounds.

Manson notched an assist, six shots on goal, two hits and a minus-3 rating in Sunday's 7-6 loss to the Jets in Game 1.

Manson has a goal and two assists over his last three contests. The 32-year-old defenseman is likely to play a significant top-four role as a defensive presence, at least until Samuel Girard (concussion) is cleared to rejoin the lineup. Manson produced 25 points, his most since 2017-18, with 123 shots on net, 211 hits, 109 blocked shots and 87 PIM over 76 regular-season outings.