NHL Player News

Roy (lower body) is questionable for Thursday's clash with Detroit, Bailey Johnson of The Washington Post reports.

Roy is currently mired in a six-game pointless streak and hasn't found the back of the net in 34 straight outings. With Rasmus Sandin (lower body) also in question, the duo of Declan Chisholm and Dylan McIlrath may have to continue holding down the third pairing.

Ekholm (undisclosed) will be a game-time call versus San Jose on Thursday, per Jason Gregor of Sports 1440 Edmonton.

Ekholm has not missed a game this season and is coming off the best offensive game in his NHL career, as he potted a hat trick Monday versus Anaheim. Ekholm missed practice Wednesday and while he skated Thursday, the Oilers are still up in the air to put him in the lineup. Ekholm has six goals, 20 assists, 95 shots on goal, 50 hits and 87 blocked shots across 54 games this season.

Gostisbehere (lower body) will return to the lineup Thursday versus Utah, Chip Alexander of The Raleigh News & Observer reports.

Gostisbehere has missed the last five games due to his lower-body injury. The 32-year-old defenseman has six goals and 26 assists, including 10 power-play points, in 35 NHL games this season. Joel Nystrom is expected to come out of the lineup in favor of Gostisbehere.

McDonagh (lower body) was activated from injured reserve Thursday and is slated to return to the lineup versus Winnipeg, Erik Erlendsson of LightningInsider.com reports.

McDonagh has missed the last 15 games, as well as 33 of the last 36 contests, with the same injury. McDonagh has four goals and four assists across 18 appearances this season. Look for Maxim Groshev to come out of the lineup for McDonagh.

St. Ivany (hand) was put on injured reserve Thursday.

St. Ivany was injured Jan. 25 and had surgery two days later. He is expected to miss up to eight weeks. St. Ivany has seven assists, 40 hits and 23 blocked shots over 17 NHL appearances this season. The Penguins recalled Rutger McGroarty from AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in a corresponding move.

Middleton logged an assist and two hits in Wednesday's 5-2 loss to the Senators.

Middleton appeared in his first NHL outing of the season in Wednesday's loss after posting nine points in 39 AHL appearances. The 27-year-old defenseman logged 10:23 of ice time on the third pairing against Ottawa. Middleton was limited to two assists in 41 regular-season outings for the Avalanche in 2024-25, and his stay on the NHL roster could be a short one, as the team has often rotated players in depth roles this year.

Zub notched two assists, two hits and a plus-3 rating in Wednesday's 5-2 win over the Avalanche.

Zub earned his first multi-point effort since Oct. 25 versus the Capitals. The defenseman has earned seven points and a plus-6 rating over 15 outings in January. For the season, Zub has four goals, 15 helpers, 60 shots on net, 75 blocked shots, 52 hits, 34 PIM and a plus-13 rating in 52 appearances. At this pace, he could challenge for his first 30-point campaign.

Coghlan scored twice in AHL Henderson's 2-1 overtime win over Bakersfield on Wednesday.

Coghlan was with the Golden Knights during their recent road trip, which wrapped up Tuesday in Montreal. Vegas is unlikely to carry an extra defenseman for the last week before the Olympic break, as it is at home for four of the next five games, with the lone exception being Sunday's game in Anaheim. Coghlan is likely to spend the bulk of the rest of 2025-26 in the AHL, where he has seven goals and 18 points over 30 appearances.

Brunicke registered three assists in WHL Kamloops' 5-2 win over Red Deer on Wednesday.

Brunicke is up to 10 points in six WHL outings this season. The 19-year-old defenseman doesn't really have much left to prove in the WHL, but the Penguins didn't want to burn off the first year of his entry-level deal after having him on the NHL roster to begin the season. He'll be in contention for a spot with the big club in training camp ahead of the 2026-27 campaign.

Werenski notched two assists and two shots on goal in Wednesday's 5-3 win over the Flyers.

Werenski had a hand in first-period goals by Charlie Coyle and Kirill Marchenko. January has been another excellent stretch for Werenski, who has five goals, 12 assists and 40 shots on net over 13 outings this month. He's up to a total of 57 points, which leads all NHL defensemen, as well as 172 shots on net, 62 blocked shots and a plus-4 rating through 48 appearances.