NHL Player News

Vaakanainen (lower body) will not be in the lineup versus Detroit on Friday, Mollie Walker of the New York Post reports.

Vaakanainen will miss his second straight game due to his lower-body issue. When healthy, the 26-year-old blueliner has managed just one point in 10 outings, so few fantasy managers figure to be impacted by his continued absence. In the meantime, Matthew Robertson will feature on the third pair with Braden Schneider.

Benoit (illness) practiced Friday, according to Mark Masters of TSN.

Benoit was forced to miss Wednesday's tilt against Utah. The 27-year-old defenseman has two assists, 33 hits and 21 blocked shots across 13 appearances this season. Benoit has surpassed the 200-hit mark in each of his last three seasons and is on track to do so again in 2025-26. He should return to the lineup versus Boston on Saturday, with Dakota Mermis likely to be the odd-man out.

Del Gaizo was reassigned to AHL Laval on Friday.

Del Gaizo hasn't appeared in an NHL game this season, so his return to the minors shouldn't come as a surprise. Considering the 26-year-old blueliner has managed a lone helper in six minor-league tilts with the Rocket, he figures to serve primarily as an emergency depth option for the organization moving forward.

Dobson notched two assists in Thursday's 4-3 overtime loss to the Devils.

The 25-year-old blueliner delivered his second multi-point performance in four games, helping to set up tallies by Kirby Dach in the first period and Jake Evans in the third. Dobson's first season with Montreal has gone swimmingly even though he's no longer on the first power-play unit as he was with the Isles. Through 14 contests, he's produced a goal and 10 points with 29 blocked shots, 25 shots on net and a plus-5 rating.

Peeke picked up two assists in Thursday's 3-2 overtime win over the Senators.

Both helpers came in the second period, as Peeke had a hand in tallies by Morgan Geekie and Sean Kuraly. Peeke has just four points, all assists, through 16 games this season, but he's supplemented his limited offense with 39 blocked shots and 21 hits.

Miller posted an assist and two shots on goal in Thursday's 4-3 win over the Wild.

Any hopes of easing Miller back in after a six-game absence due to a lower-body injury were dashed when Jalen Chatfield (upper body) exited the game after a high hit. The 25-year-old Miller logged 23:13 of ice time and appears no worse for wear, so he should be ready to resume his usual top-four duties as the Hurricanes continue to navigate a brutal stretch of injuries. Miller has supplied five points, 16 shots on net, nine blocked shots, six hits, eight PIM and a plus-1 rating over seven appearances.

Hanifin notched an assist and five shots on goal in Thursday's 6-3 loss to the Lightning.

This was Hanifin's first helper of the year, though he's been limited to three games after missing time due to a lower-body injury. The 28-year-old defenseman has resumed a role in the Golden Knights' top four over the last two contests since coming off of injured reserve. He could see some power-play time on the second unit, which boosts his scoring potential, but he doesn't play a particularly physical game for a blueliner.

Mikkola logged two assists and a plus-3 rating in Thursday's 5-2 win over the Kings.

The helpers were Mikkola's first points of the year. He had a hand in Sam Reinhart's game-winning tally in the second period as well as a Brad Marchand insurance goal in the third. Mikkola has been fairly sound defensively so far, racking up 14 hits, 19 blocked shots, 12 shots on net, 12 PIM and a plus-4 rating over 14 appearances in a top-four role. He had a career-high 22 points in 76 regular-season outings last year, but a repeat effort in 2025-26 is unlikely due to his slow start.

Faber scored a goal in Thursday's 4-3 loss to the Hurricanes.

Faber wired a snapshot from the right circle that put Minnesota up 2-1. He has woken up in a huge way in his last six games. Faber has all eight (two goals, six assists) of his points in his last six games (18 shots). The window to acquire him from a frustrated fantasy manager is likely gone.

Walker scored a goal and added an assist in a 4-3 win over Minnesota on Thursday.

The goal was Walker's second in as many games. He fired a wrist shot from inside the blue line five seconds after a first-period power play had expired. Walker has back-to-back multi-point games for the first time in the NHL after putting up a goal and an assist in a 3-0 win against the Rangers on Monday. It's his eighth season in the league.