NHL Player News

Aho was recalled from AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on Friday, according to Seth Rorabaugh of Tribune-Review Sports.

Aho was loaned to the Baby Pens earlier in the day and was quickly called back up by Pittsburgh. The Penguins have six healthy blueliners at this time as Ryan Shea will miss Saturday's tilt against New Jersey, and Aho will likely be their seventh rearguard. Aho has yet to play in the NHL this season and had seven assists in 17 games at the AHL level before his recall.

Aho was reassigned to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on Friday, Seth Rorabaugh of Tribune-Review Sports reports.

With Ryan Shea (upper body) not expected back any time soon, Aho could be called back up prior to Saturday's matchup against the Devils -- though Jack St. Ivany or Owen Pickering could also be options for a promotion to the NHL roster. Even if the Pens bring Aho back up, he is unlikely to break into the lineup ahead of Ryan Graves or Conor Timmins.

Capobianco was recalled from AHL Texas on Friday.

Capobianco was called up as Lian Bichsel is day-to-day with an illness. Capobianco has played one game this season at the NHL level, picking up a pair of minors and going minus-2 in 11:23 of action Jan. 31 versus Vancouver. Capobianco had five goals, 30 assists and 50 PIM across 49 AHL games before his recall. He is likely the seventh defenseman Friday when the Stars face the Jets in Winnipeg.

Moser notched an assist and two PIM in Thursday's 4-3 shootout loss to the Flyers.

Moser had been held off the scoresheet in nine straight games entering Thursday. He ended the drought with the secondary helper on Cam Atkinson's third-period tally. The 25-year-old Moser plays in a top-four role, though his ice time has been a little limited lately -- he's exceeded 20 minutes in just three of 10 contests since he returned from a lower-body injury. He's at just 11 points, 37 shots on net, 49 blocked shots, 28 hits and a plus-12 rating across 37 outings this season.

Cernak notched an assist and two blocked shots in Thursday's 4-3 shootout loss to the Flyers.

Cernak set up a Zemgus Girgensons tally in the second period. The helper was Cernak's second over seven contests this month, following a February in which he had three goals and three assists over eight outings. The 27-year-old isn't going to turn into a big scoring threat from the blue line overnight, but he appears to be tapping into his offense a bit more in the second half of the campaign. He's matched his career high of 18 points as well as setting a new personal best with 15 assists through 59 outings. Cernak also has 53 shots on net, 129 hits, 87 blocked shots and a plus-24 rating this season.

McDonagh notched an assist, two blocked shots and two PIM in Thursday's 4-3 shootout loss to the Flyers.

Darren Raddysh was a healthy scratch Thursday, allowing McDonagh to retain a power-play role. McDonagh delivered in that spot -- he helped out on Gage Goncalves' first-period tally. This was McDonagh's second helper over four contests. The 35-year-old blueliner has 21 points, a plus-32 rating, 62 shots on net and 128 blocked shots across 65 appearances this season.

Gavrikov logged an assist, two PIM and a plus-2 rating in Thursday's 3-0 win over the Capitals.

Gavrikov is enjoying a late surge on offense with four points and a plus-8 rating over his last five contests. The 29-year-old blueliner is up to 24 points in 64 appearances, one more than the 23 he recorded over 77 regular-season games in 2023-24. Gavrikov has added 85 shots on net, 119 blocked shots, 38 hits, 18 PIM and a plus-14 rating this season while seeing steady time in a top-four role.

Doughty provided a power-play assist and added two PIM in Thursday's 3-0 win over the Capitals.

Doughty has a goal and two helpers over his last four contests. The 35-year-old defenseman assisted on a Kevin Fiala tally as the Kings solidified their lead early in the final frame. Doughty now has eight points, 24 shots on net, 14 PIM, 14 hits and 30 blocked shots over 16 outings in 2024-25.

McIlrath was scratched for the 32nd game in a row in Thursday's 3-0 loss to the Kings.

The Capitals recently gave Alexander Alexeyev a conditioning stint in the minors -- both he and McIlrath have spent the vast majority of the campaign in the press box. McIlrath would need to consent to any potential conditioning stint, but he's also a veteran blueliner who can be ready to play on a moment's notice if an injury occurs. The 32-year-old shouldn't be expected to play unless there's an injury on the blue line or if the Capitals start resting players in the final weeks in preparation for the playoffs, though that's unlikely to happen until they clinch at least the top seed in the Eastern Conference.

Kaiser logged an assist, two blocked shots and a plus-2 rating in Thursday's 4-2 loss to the Sharks.

Kaiser has two goals and an assist over seven contests since he rejoined the NHL roster following a month-plus with AHL Rockford. The 22-year-old defenseman is currently handling a top-four role, though minutes are distributed pretty evenly on a blue line that features four younger players. Kaiser is up to six points, 52 shots on net, 42 hits, 74 blocked shots and a plus-1 rating over 42 appearances this season.