The Panthers will have some reinforcements up front for their first game after the All-Star break. Team reporter Jameson Olive relays that wingers Patric Hornqvist and Maxim Mamin plus center Noel Acciari should all be ready to suit up on Wednesday against Carolina. Hornqvist has been out for close to a month with an upper-body injury while Mamin has missed close to three weeks with an undisclosed injury. As for Acciari, he hasn’t played with Florida all season due to a pectoral injury suffered back in the preseason that required surgery although he did get in a couple of games on a conditioning stint last week. The Panthers only have one open roster spot at the moment so they will need to make a couple of moves to activate the trio of forwards off IR.
Elsewhere around the Atlantic:
- The Red Wings should have defenseman Troy Stecher back in their lineup on Saturday against Philadelphia, notes MLive’s Ansar Khan. The veteran has missed more than three months due to a wrist injury, a disappointing outcome in a year where he’s going to hit unrestricted free agency this summer. His return will help offset the absences of Filip Hronek (COVID protocol) and Nick Leddy (upper-body injury) and if he’s able to play well over the next month, he could be an interesting trade candidate for Detroit heading into the trade deadline.
- Sabres center Casey Mittelstadt has been cleared for contact as he works his way towards coming from his latest upper-body injury, reports Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News. Head coach Don Granato indicated that the 23-year-old can now be classified as being out day-to-day but that they will err on the side of caution since he has hardly played this season; Mittelstadt has played just seven times due to multiple injuries.