Kings Activate Anze Kopitar, Place Alex Turcotte On IR
The Kings have made a pair of roster moves heading into today’s matinee against Philadelphia. The team announced that they’ve activated center Anze Kopitar off injured reserve. To make room on the roster, center Alex Turcotte has been placed on IR.
Kopitar’s return will certainly be a welcome one for a Los Angeles team that scuffled in his absence, having lost seven of the 11 games they played while he was sidelined with a lower-body injury. As a result, they’ve slipped to sixth in the Pacific Division and are on the outside looking in at a playoff spot.
In his final NHL season, the 38-year-old has been quieter than usual offensively, being limited to six goals and 15 assists in 37 games. However, Kopitar continues to be elite at the faceoff dot and plays a regular role on both special teams units while holding down a top-six role at five-on-five. With his absence and Phillip Danault’s trade to Montreal last month, the Kings had been pretty thin down the middle in recent weeks.
As for Turcotte, he last played on January 24th due to an upper-body injury. Assuming that they backdate his placement, he’ll have already served the seven days after today, making him eligible to be activated at any time. That said, he has already been ruled out for Sunday’s road trip finale in Carolina and will likely be reevaluated after that time.
Turcotte has played in 49 games with the Kings this season and had been pressed into third-line action recently in Kopitar’s absence. He has three goals and nine assists on the campaign along with a solid 55.7% success rate on draws while averaging just under 11 minutes per night.
Flyers Recall Aleksei Kolosov, Assign Lane Pederson To AHL
With Samuel Ersson exiting Thursday’s game due to a lower-body injury, the Flyers needed some goaltending insurance for their game today against Los Angeles. As expected, that insurance is Aleksei Kolosov as the team announced (Twitter link) that he has been recalled from AHL Lehigh Valley. To make room on the roster, center Lane Pederson was sent down to the Phantoms.
Kolosov was sent down back on Wednesday when Daniel Vladar returned from injury. He suited up last night against Springfield, making him recall-eligible once again. The 24-year-old is now in his fourth stint with Philadelphia but it hasn’t resulted in much playing time. He has just four appearances with the Flyers this season, two of which came in relief and has struggled in that small sample size, allowing eight goals on just 47 shots.
The fact that Ersson wasn’t placed on injured reserve suggests that the team doesn’t believe his injury is likely to keep him out for long. Accordingly, this NHL stint for Kolosov could ultimately be short-lived.
As for Pederson, he got his first recall of the season a little under two weeks ago and had played fairly regularly since then, getting into five of six games. It was his first action at the top level since 2023 with Columbus. The 28-year-old was held off the scoresheet in those outings while averaging just under nine minutes per night. Pederson has played in 37 games with Lehigh Valley this season, picking up 13 goals and 15 assists.
Red Wings Reassign Justin Holl
1/31/26: Detroit has now reassigned Holl as well.
1/30/26: Detroit announced Friday morning that Dries has been reassigned back to AHL Grand Rapids. His stay on the NHL roster has therefore ended less than 24 hours after it began.
Dries did not dress for Detroit’s shootout loss to the Washington Capitals last night, instead serving as a healthy scratch. With the Griffins taking on the Chicago Wolves tonight, Dries’ reassignment allows Grand Rapids to have access to a key veteran for their final game this month.
The 31-year-old, who has played in over 100 NHL games, has not dressed for an NHL contest since 2022-23, and is still waiting on the chance to make his Red Wings debut.
1/29/26: The Red Wings announced they’ve recalled defenseman Justin Holl and center Sheldon Dries from AHL Grand Rapids. Defenseman Simon Edvinsson was placed on injured reserve retroactive to Jan. 21 in the corresponding move. Detroit had an open roster spot entering today, so only one spot needed to be opened.
The veteran Holl had to wait quite some time for his first recall of the season after landing on waivers in October, but it finally came past the halfway point on the calendar. Holl, who turns 34 tomorrow, is in the final season of a three-year, $10.2MM contract that he signed in free agency in 2023 that virtually carried negative value from the start. He served as the Wings’ extra defender for most of the first year of the deal and then cleared waivers to begin 2024-25, although he still remained up on the NHL roster for nearly all of last season.
This year, though, Holl has seen extended time in the AHL, his first minor-league action since the 2017-18 campaign. The 6’4″, 205-lb righty has leveraged his nearly 400 games of NHL experience into being one of the top shutdown defenders in the league, posting 10 points and a +17 rating in 31 games. With his help, Grand Rapids is off to a historic 32-5-3 start through 40 games.
Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press reports there’s a flu bug going around the room before tonight’s game against the Capitals. The Wings were already carrying an extra defenseman in Erik Gustafsson, and since they’re already down a lefty with Edvinsson out, it would likely be Gustafsson who draws in if a Detroit defender needs to sit. In case it’s two names heading out of the lineup, though, Holl would see his first NHL action in over nine months.
How Holl plays in whatever limited NHL opportunities he gets down the stretch will be crucial in his positioning for a one-way contract in free agency this summer. He once reliably logged over 20 minutes a game for the Maple Leafs with decent under-the-hood numbers before signing in Detroit. His role with a new team next season won’t climb past the No. 6/7 deployment he’s seen while on Detroit’s roster, but a strong showing in a small sample could go a long way toward convincing a team he can still be a reliable extra option.
Detroit didn’t have an extra forward on hand, so Dries will come in if anyone is sick. The 31-year-old Michigan native is also an experienced plug-in option with over 100 games of NHL experience, although he hasn’t made a big-league showing since skating in a career-high 63 games with the Canucks in 2022-23. He’s now in his second season in the Wings organization with Grand Rapids, where he’s posted 14 goals and 28 points in 32 games.
Edvinsson’s IR placement is only a formality. He’s already been ruled out through the Olympic break with his lower-body injury and there’s no certainty he’ll be ready to return once games get going again in late February.
Big Hype Prospects: Hurlbert, Cullen, Ruck, Hemming
Welcome to PHR’s Big Hype Prospects series. Like the MLB Trade Rumors series of the same name, we’re taking a look at the performances of top prospects from across the hockey world. We’ll look at drafted prospects who are rising, others who are struggling, and prospects for the upcoming draft who are notable.
Five Big Hype Prospects
J.P. Hurlbert, C/RW, Kamloops Blazers (WHL)
47 GP, 31 G – 42 A – 73 TP, 33 PIM, +15
The 2026 class has its own version of a game-breaking forward dominating CHL scoring on the back of impressive skill. This year, it’s Texas-born J.P. Hurlbert, who landed with the WHL’s Kamloops Blazers after buying out of his contract with the U.S. National Team Development Program. That decision has proven incredibly fruitful in the season since, with Hurlbert now tied for the scoring lead among all CHL leagues. He has looked explosive all season long, with a next-level ability to operate the puck at full speed. That lets Hurlbert blaze by and through opponents en route to the net. His drives are capped off with strong finishing and playmaking abilities, focused on getting the puck into the low-slot. Hurlbert doesn’t shine as a physical player, but is rumored to be climbing NHL boards thanks to just how jaw-dropping his do-it-all offense can be. The NHL is currently watching Benjamin Kindel – a skill winger who faced an uphill battle physically – carve out his spot in the Penguins top-nine before his 20th birthday. Hurlbert will hope to be the next in line and could earn a top 20, or even top 15, selection.
Wyatt Cullen, LW/C, U.S. National Team Development Program (USA U18)
18 GP, 3 G – 12 A – 15 TP, 6 PIM, -4
The middle child of 21-year NHL veteran Matt Cullen is next up for the NHL Draft. Wyatt Cullen is pulling together a breakout season after sitting out parts of October and December due to an undisclosed injury. He has quickly made up for lost time, though, including pulling together a standout performance at this year’s CHL/NTDP Prospects Challenge. Cullen scored three points in three games in the cross-league matchup, a feat only matched by fellow 2026 prospect Mathis Preston and top 2027 prospect Sammy Nelson. That strong scoring has carried over to Cullen’s USHL action with the NTDP. He has four points in five USHL games – a mark that underscores just how central to the NTDP offense Cullen has been. He has been one of only a few NTDP forwards to truly flash this year, showing off an impressive ability to beat opponents head-on and find space through the neutral zone. Cullen is cool, calm,a nd collected with the onfidence needed to make plays tight around the net. He has brought a much-needed wave of skilled offense to the NTDP and ranks second on the club in points-per-game (0.81). With his mix of poise, size, and skill, Cullen could have a chance to beat out his dad’s draft selection – 35th overall in 1996.
Liam and Markus Ruck, RW and C, Medicine Hat Tigers (WHL)
Liam: 47 GP, 28 G – 38 A – 66 TP, 26 PIM, +24
Markus: 47 GP, 12 G – 53 A – 65 TP, 18 PIM, +21
The highest-scoring offense in the CHL is led in scoring by a pair of identical twins – Liam Ruck and Markus Ruck. The duo play an immensely complementary game, with Liam’s sniper shot and drive to the net boosted by Markus’ nifty passing and sharp, two-way vision. They served as the foundation of Medicine Hat’s offense to start the season, then found another gear when Calgary Flames prospect Andrew Basha returned from injury and lined up between the twins. That line has proven nearly unstoppable since Basha’s return, in total combining for 19 goals over just the last 11 games. Medicine Hat has rooted their offense in the top line, which – while boosted by Basha – still leans heavily on the individual skill, and next-level chemistry, between the Ruck brothers. The two are a phenomenon. With their heap of offense, many fans are wondering just how high they could go in the draft – or if they’ll get drafted to the same club and get to build on two great years at Medicine Hat.
Oscar Hemming, LW/RW, Boston College (Hockey East, NCAA)
7 GP, 0 G – 4 A – 4 TP, 8 PIM, -1
One of many top Finns in the 2026 draft class didn’t get his start until the midway point of the year. Oscar Hemming went through a true saga as he attempted to move from the pro pipeline in Finland to North American juniors. His IIHF eligibilty was even pulled into question, ultimately forcing Hemming to forgo plans for an OHL move in favor of joining the NCAA’s Boston College. He became college hockey’s youngest player when he joined the league. Despite facing the challenge of age and international move, Hemming hasn’t looked one bit out of place in his first taste of the NCAA’s toughest conference. Part of that is thanks to the winger’s 6-foot-4, 200-pound frame, which makes him hard to miss anytime he’s on the ice.
More than that, Hemming has continued flaunting the strong stickhandling and heads-up playmaking that wowed scouts at the 2025 Hlinka Gretzky Cup. He is an intuitive playmaker who attacks the slot with confidence and aggression. With his build, Hemming is hard to knock off hte puck or force out of the slot. He has taken on many of the traits that made his older brother, Dallas Stars prospect Emil Hemming, worthy of a first-round selection. For Oscar, the chance to hone those talents as a young player in a tough league could be enough to push him high up draft boards. With a pro frame to boot, Hemming could be a surprise addition to the top 15, or maybe the top 10, come draft day.
Evening Notes: Sherwood, Marchand, Fabbro
The San Jose Sharks likely won’t have to wait much longer for their recent trade acquisition to make his debut with the club. According to Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now, winger Kiefer Sherwood looked good in practice today and could enter the team’s lineup tomorrow.
Despite acquiring him from the Vancouver Canucks more than 10 days ago, Sherwood has yet to appear for the Sharks as he works his way back from an undisclosed injury. The 30-year-old winger last appeared on January 10th and has 17 goals and 23 points across 44 games this season.
Furthermore, his lack of availability thus far may be the main reason why the Sharks are hesitant to commit to an extension with their new forward. Sherwood is a known commodity at this point, being an uber-physical winger capable of being a quality secondary scorer. Still, San Jose will ultimately want to see that he can mesh well with the team during gameplay before signing him to a new contract.
Additional notes from this evening:
- David Dwork of The Hockey News reported that there’s some concern from the Florida Panthers that Brad Marchand‘s recent injury against the St. Louis Blues could cost him a few games. He finished the game with a -1 rating over 11:19 of action. Most of the concern is from the fact that Marchand missed several weeks earlier this month with an undisclosed injury.
- Unfortunately for the Columbus Blue Jackets, it’s unlikely that defenseman Dante Fabbro will rejoin the lineup for the Olympic break. According to regional writer Jeff Svoboda, Fabbro had a setback in the lower-body injury that’s kept him out of the team’s lineup since January 17th, and he’s expected to resume skating by early next week. The eight-year blueliner has scored four goals and seven points in 48 games for Columbus this season, averaging 16:07 of ice time per game.
West Notes: Levshunov, Foligno, Boeser
According to Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times, the Chicago Blackhawks have healthy-scratched defenseman Artyom Levshunov tonight. Pope added that the Blackhawks have put Levshunov into an internal program to fix some “foundational” parts of his game, and he likely wouldn’t play until the league resumes after the Olympics.
Scott Powers of The Athletic added some specifics, reporting that the Blackhawks wanted Levshunov to focus on his play with the puck, defensive fundamentals, and shooting technique. Rather than move Levshunov to the AHL, as they did with fellow prospect Kevin Korchinski, Chicago hopes that their current skills coaches can correct some of Levshunov’s flaws.
Levshunov is having a significantly better season than last year, but he still hasn’t met the Blackhawks’ expectations after being selected with the second overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft. He is the team leader in scoring among defensemen, with two goals and 21 points in 52 games. His even-strength Corsi For percentage stands at 47.4%, and he has an on-ice save percentage of 88.3%, along with a -27 rating.
Other notes from the Western Conference:
- Staying in Chicago, the team is without their captain tonight against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Before tonight’s lone NHL contest, Charlie Roumeliotis of WGN Radio reported that Nick Foligno is considered day-to-day with an undisclosed injury. The 38-year-old veteran has played in 17 games for the Blackhawks since returning from a longer-term injury in late December, scoring two goals and four points.
- Moving further west, there is a possibility that Brock Boeser will return to the Vancouver Canucks’ lineup during their upcoming roadtrip. According to Jeff Paterson of Canucks Army, Boeser will join the Canucks when they travel to Utah and Las Vegas. Still, it’s far likelier that Vancouver will hold Boeser out through the Olympic break as he recovers from an upper-body injury that warranted a suspension to Pittsburgh Penguins’ forward Bryan Rust.
Predators Open To Trading Michael Bunting, Michael McCarron
Despite remaining in the conversation for the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference, the Nashville Predators are still expected to sell off a few pieces leading up to the trade deadline. In the most recent rendition of 32 Thoughts, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman shared that the Predators are assessing the market for forwards Michael Bunting and Michael McCarron.
If Nashville ultimately trades Bunting, it’ll be the third consecutive year he’s been moved at the trade deadline. He was included in the 2024 trade that sent Jake Guentzel to the Carolina Hurricanes and the 2025 deal that sent Thomas Novak to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Relatively recently, some pundits have equated Bunting’s perceived trade value to Kiefer Sherwood. Sherwood was recently traded from the Vancouver Canucks to the San Jose Sharks for a pair of second-round picks and a low-level prospect, without an extension in place. It’s not a direct comparison due to Bunting’s lower physicality compared to Sherwood. Still, they have fairly similar scoring contributions despite Bunting averaging nearly three minutes fewer per night.
Despite his 12-goal, 29-point campaign this season, there shouldn’t be any expectations for Bunting to contribute on a team’s top line, particularly a postseason-bound one. He is likely to enter the secondary market for contenders interested in players like Evander Kane.
Meanwhile, McCarron is much more of a physical presence that contending teams could use in their bottom-six. Throughout the last three years, McCarron has scored 20 goals and 46 points in 196 games with a 53.6% faceoff percentage, adding 439 hits.
Despite the value he could provide, he shouldn’t be too expensive to acquire. McCarron is a 30-year-old pending unrestricted free agent who’s only earning a salary of $900K. Any contending team looking to strengthen its fourth line ahead of the playoffs may consider a player like McCarron.
Latest On Artemi Panarin
A trade market is neatly coming together after the New York Rangers announced their plan to hold star winger Artemi Panarin out of the lineup until the Olympic break. Nearly every team in the league is weighing their chances to land the former 100-point scorer, though some are getting caught up on the contingency that any trade must come with a contract extension. The market, and the hangups, were outlined by Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman and Kyle Bukauskas in the latest 32 Thoughts podcast episode.
Most notably, it appears many of the league’s frequent buyers will be priced out by Panarin’s extension. That is the case for each of Colorado, Dallas, Minnesota, Vegas, and Florida – though the player does have interest in joining the back-to-back Stanley Cup-winning Panthers. Panarin’s priority seems to be an extension rather than a championship, which should mean a new buyer in what’s sure to be one of the biggest trades in recent history.
While cap space is a barrier for many, building a proper trade package has proven an issue for the Los Angeles Kings. The Kings have leaned into stocking their cupboard of draft picks with recent moves and wield 10 picks in the 2026 NHL Draft as a result. But those pieces won’t be enough to build value next to a shallow Kings prospect pool. Meanwhile, player interest appears to be the issue for the Seattle Kraken, who are hoping to move Shane Wright for a top-six star per Friedman.
Through the fog, the Washington Capitals are emerging as early favorites. The Capitals are reportedly open to a contract extension and believed to be aggressively pursuing a deal that will work. Washington is projected to have $35.73MM in cap space this summer, per PuckPedia. That is more than enough to award Panarin with a salary at, or above, $10MM-per-season while still having the room to re-sign restricted free agent Connor McMichael.
More than that, the Capitals have the future capital to build an enticing return. Their prospect pool is led by NHL rookie Ryan Leonard, who played on a line with Rangers top prospect Gabriel Perreault for four years straight in junior hockey. Washington also has flashy scorer Andrew Cristall, productive big-men Ilya Protas and Eriks Mateiko, and first-round picks Lynden Lakovic and Terik Parascak in their prospect pool. While it’s likely that multiple of those players are on Washington’s list of untouchables, the chance to make a Cup heave with Panarin could be enough to force their hand.
Friedman and Bukauskas also spoke about Panarin headed to the San Jose Sharks, adding that the player is interested in a move to the up-and-comers. San Jose making a major, veteran addition would be a major surprise. The Sharks have ranked in the bottom-three of the Western Conference in each of the last six seasons – but now find themselves in playoff contention on the back of young stars like Macklin Celebrini and Will Smith. Adding Panarin could be their chance to catch lightning in a bottle, and give the 34-year-old winger a chance at a fwe more yeras of meaningful hockey.
Panarin has continued to demand respect into this season. He leads the Rangers in scoring with 19 goals and 57 points in 52 games, even despite the team ranking in the bottom-six of goals scored. Panarin reacahed 37 goals and 89 points in 80 games last season. It was his encore performance after he vindicated back-to-back 90-point seasons with a career-best 49 goals and 120 points in the 2023-24 season. He has averaged 35 goals and 100 points per 82 games played since turning 30 in 2021. With no signs of slowing down, it appears he’ll be worth the groundbreaking trade package he seems certain to land before the Trade Deadline. This move will push New York firmly into a rebuild, and could push a new name into the group of Stanley Cup contenders.
Photo courtesy of Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images.
Devils’ Jack Hughes Out, Olympic Status Believed To Be Unaffected
The New Jersey Devils will once again move forward without a star forward. Jack Hughes is back on the shelf after leaving Thursday’s win over the Nashville Predators early. Devils head coach Sheldon Keefe said that the team has no update on Hughes’ injury, other than to mention that he will undergo further testing, per team reporter Amanda Stein. Hughes is not expected to travel with the team to Saturday’s game in Ottawa. The Devils return for a two-game homestand at the start of next week, before the NHL enters its three-week break for the 2026 Winter Olympics.
Despite the poor timing, Hughes’ availability for the Olympics is not believed to be in doubt, per Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic. Hughes will undoubtedly be a focal piece of the Team USA roster, if healthy. The 24 year old captained the U.S. National Team Development Program prior to his first-overall selection in 2019, but hasn’t had many chances to appear with USA since then, due to injury and playoff appearances. Hughes recorded one assist in four games at the 2025 4-Nations Face-Off – his first appearance with the country’s men’s team since making the NHL.
Hughes has remained an electric piece of New Jersey’s offense when he’s on the ice. He has scored 36 points in 36 games this season, making him the only Devil still scoring at a point-per-game pace. Hughes has met that scoring mark in each of the last five seasons. He scored 56 points in 49 games of the 2021-22 season, then set a franchise record with 99 points in 78 games of the 2022-23 campaign. Those performances served as his breakout years – but routine injury has kept the star forward from becoming the first Devil to break the century scoring mark.
Hughes has averaged 39 goals and 96 points per 82 games played over the last five seasons. He has also averaged 25 missed games per season in that span. Injury has been a reoccuring challenge for the dynamo scorer, whether short-term or long-term, or brought on by freak accident. Hughes falling out of the lineup once again will force another shakeup of New Jersey’s offense.
The Devils elevated Timo Meier to play next to Dawson Mercer and Jesper Bratt following Hughes’ exit on Thursday; while demoting Evgenii Dadonov to a line with Connor Brown and Paul Cotter. Those lines should stick through Saturday’s game against Ottawa, while Nico Hischier and Arseny Gritsyuk are flanked by Lenni Hameenaho or Maxim Tsyplakov. The Devils will certainly hope these adjustments are only temporary, and that Hughes’ further testing confirms what is believed to be a short-term injury.
Sharks Place Vincent Iorio On Waivers
The San Jose Sharks have placed defenseman Vincent Iorio on waivers per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. If he clears, Iorio will become eligible for assignment to the AHL, after spending the last six games as a healthy scratch. San Jose claimed Iorio off of waivers from the Washington Capitals in the second week of the NHL season. The Sharks wielded one of the top claim spots in the league at the time and will now face the risk of allowing the rest of the league a chance at claiming the young, two-way defender.
Iorio has had an up-and-down year since joining the Sharks’ depth chart. He has appeared in 21 NHL games – more than the nine games he combined for over the last two seasons – but only has three points and a minus-four to show for it. He’s failed to find a true groove near the bottom of a beat-up blue-line, but showed his prowess on a brief AHL conditioning stint earlier this season. Iorio was loaned to the minors for six games in November, after recovering from an injury that held him out of the first week of the month. He scored in five of those games, ultimately totaling seven assists and a plus-seven on the assignment.
Those numbers haven’t translated to the top flight yet, though Iorio did have a string of strong appearances at the turn of the new year. An assignment to the minors will allow the 23 year old to get back into a productive groove. It will also give the Sharks a bit more freedom to ice bruising veteran Vincent Desharnais, who has played in five of the six games that Iorio has been scratched. Desharnais has three points and 38 penalty minutes in 25 games this season.