NHL Player News

Johnson was placed on waivers by the Sabres on Friday for the purpose of assignment to AHL Rochester.

Despite making the Sabres' Opening Night roster ahead of the 2025-26 campaign, Johnson appeared in just three games at the NHL level before spending most of the year in the AHL. Assuming he clears waivers, the 25-year-old will head back to Rochester for the start of the regular season after he logged five goals, 14 assists and 40 PIM across 56 regular-season appearances at the AHL level last year.

Gilbert was put on waivers by Buffalo on Friday.

Gilbert had 13 assists and 33 PIM in 37 regular-season AHL outings between Lehigh Valley and Belleville in 2025-26. He also recorded an assist in eight regular-season appearances with Ottawa last campaign. Gilbert shifted to Buffalo's organization by inking a one-year, $850,000 contract over the summer. Despite getting a one-way deal, it seems he probably won't be part of the Sabres' Opening Night roster.

Livingstone was designated for waivers by the Flames on Friday.

Livingstone hasn't featured in an NHL game since 2022-23 when he logged five games with the Predators. As such, fantasy managers probably shouldn't be expecting him to suddenly become an NHL mainstay.

Englund was placed on waivers by the Flames on Friday for the purpose of assignment to AHL Calgary.

Englund joined the Flames on a one-year, two-way contract during the offseason and will begin the regular season with the team's AHL affiliate, assuming he clears waivers. The 30-year-old has a decent amount of experience at the NHL level, but he spent most of last year in the minors, where he recorded three goals, 10 assists and 65 PIM across 52 regular-season appearances with AHL Milwaukee.

Benning was placed on waivers by the Flames on Friday.

Benning logged 18 regular-season games as a rookie last year in which he notched two goals, four assists and 15 shots while averaging 16:54 of ice time. With the 24-year-old blueliner likely headed to the minors, assuming he clears waivers, fantasy managers shouldn't be banking on him offering much in the way of value this year.

Stillman was waived by the Oilers on Friday.

Stillman played in a mere four regular-season games last year, failing to produce any points while chipping in seven hits, four blocks and one shot. At this point, the 28-year-old blueliner is unlikely to see significant enough minutes to be fantasy-relevant.

Brown was placed on waivers by the Oilers on Friday for the purpose of assignment to AHL Bakersfield.

Brown made 10 regular-season appearances with the Oilers during the 2024-25 campaign but spent the entirety of last year with the Condors. Across his 57 regular-season outings with Bakersfield last season, he recorded two goals, 11 assists and 78 PIM. He appears to be on track to spend the majority of the year in the minors once again during the 2026-27 season.

Makar (lower body) will make his first and only preseason appearance Friday against Winnipeg, Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette reports.

Makar entered training camp with a lower-body injury but shed his non-contact jersey this week and has been a full participant in practice. The 27-year-old will sit in Saturday's preseason finale against Utah, but that seems to be related more to managing his workload ahead of the regular season rather than due to his lower-body issue. Makar made 75 regular-season appearances with Colorado last year and recorded 20 goals, 59 assists, 118 blocked shots, 35 hits and 24 PIM while averaging 24:51 of ice time. He was rewarded with the largest contract in NHL history in August and should be available for Wednesday's Opening Night matchup against Los Angeles.

Head coach Jim Montgomery indicated Friday that Tucker (knee) will likely miss the start of the regular season, Lou Korac of NHL.com reports.

Tucker suffered a knee injury during Sunday's practice session and doesn't yet have a clear return timetable, but it appears as though the issue will force him to miss some time early in the regular season. Montgomery didn't elaborate much on Tucker's status Friday, but fantasy managers shouldn't expect the defenseman to be in the lineup for the Blues' Opening Night matchup against Dallas on Oct. 2.

Head coach Lindy Ruff said Friday that Samuelsson (lower body) could return on the early end of his week-to-week timetable.

Samuelsson suffered a lower-body injury during Tuesday's preseason game against the Blue Jackets and was labeled as week-to-week a day later. However, the 26-year-old told Ruff that he doesn't expect to be sidelined for long, so Samuelsson should be in the mix to return early in the regular season. Samuelsson's status for Thursday's Opening Night matchup remains in question, but it's encouraging that both Ruff and Samuelsson are downplaying the severity of the issue.