NHL Player News

Johnson (illness) won't play Sunday versus the Jets, Heather Engel of NHL.com reports.

Johnson will miss his third straight contest. In 50 appearances this season, he has provided three goals, 40 shots on net, 68 blocked shots and 93 hits. Johnson's next opportunity to play will come Wednesday versus Toronto.

Dillon (illness) will return to the lineup Sunday against Buffalo, per Mitchell Clinton of the Jets' official site.

Dillon sat out Saturday's 5-3 win over Carolina. His return could bump Logan Stanley to the press box as a healthy scratch. Dillon has accounted for seven goals, 16 points, 79 PIM, 73 blocked shots and 166 hits in 55 contests this campaign.

Seeler notched an assist during Saturday's 4-2 win over Ottawa.

Seeler is up to 12 points in 62 contests this season. His offense has picked up of late, with him having five points in his past 10 games. While he shouldn't be expected to continue at that pace, Seeler can help with peripheral categories -- he has 76 PIM, 110 hits and 181 blocks.

Dunn logged a power-play assist and two shots on goal in Saturday's 2-1 loss to the Oilers.

Dunn has five points over his last six games, with both of his assists in that span coming on the power play. The 27-year-old defenseman is up to 44 points (16 on the power play), 116 shots on net, 58 blocked shots, 56 PIM and a plus-4 rating through 56 outings. He remains on the top pairing and first power-play unit.

Kulak scored a goal and went plus-2 in Saturday's 2-1 win over the Kraken.

This was Kulak's first game-winner since the 2018-19 campaign. The defenseman snapped a four-game point drought with his third-period tally. He was moderately productive with four assists over 12 games in February, but his spot on the third pairing isn't one that tends to lead to much offense. Kulak has 10 points, 63 shots on net, 52 blocked shots, 47 hits and a plus-6 rating over 58 appearances.

Sandin (undisclosed) is expected to play Sunday versus the Coyotes, according to Bailey Johnson of The Washington Post.

Sandin appears to be good to go after missing Saturday's practice and being considered a game-time decision. He has picked up 13 of his 19 points this season over his past 20 appearances. Sandin also has 66 shots on goal, 83 blocked shots and 56 hits across 51 contests this campaign.

McDonagh picked up two assists while adding a team-high four blocked shots in Saturday's 5-1 win over the Avalanche.

The veteran blueliner is having his best stretch of the campaign as the Predators push for a playoff spot. Over the last eight games, McDonagh has a goal and eight points along with 17 blocked shots and a plus-9 rating. With 101 blocks through 55 games, the 34-year-old has reached triple digits in that category for the 11th time in his 14 NHL seasons.

Montour scored the game-winning goal and added two power-play assists in Saturday's 4-0 win over the Red Wings.

The 29-year-old blueliner is suddenly one of the hottest players in the NHL. Montour has five multi-point performances in the last seven games, and over that stretch he's erupted for four goals and 13 points, with about half of that production (one goal and six helpers) coming on the power play. Offseason shoulder surgery delayed his start to the season and it took him a while to get back up to speed, but Montour has regained the form that saw him rack up a career-high 16 goals and 73 points in 2022-23.

Merrill found the back of the net in Saturday's 3-1 loss to the Blues.

Merrill beat Jordan Binnington from the high slot with what appeared to be a sleepy wrist shot. The veteran defenseman will strike every so often, but Merrill should be left on the waiver wire as he's averaging just 12:54 of ice time with three goals and four assists through 44 games.

Xhekaj had an assist, four shots on net, three blocks, five hits and a five-minute major penalty in Saturday's 4-3 shootout loss to Tampa Bay.

Xhekaj picked up the secondary helper on a Josh Anderson tally that gave Montreal a 3-2 lead early in the third period. It was the second straight game with an assist for Xhekaj. He leads Montreal with 65 PIM in just 30 games.