Although 2023 third overall pick Adam Fantilli is making his NHL debut tonight for the Columbus Blue Jackets, Anaheim Ducks fans may have to wait a little while to see 2023 second overall pick Leo Carlsson suit up. The Sporting Tribune’s Derek Lee relayed word from Ducks head coach Greg Cronin that Carlsson is out day-to-day with a lower-body injury. As a result, he is likely to miss the team’s opening-night contest against the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday.
Lee does note that Carlsson is on the injured non-roster list, meaning he could be activated at any time once healthy. As a result, it may not end up too long of a wait before Carlsson is ready to make his NHL debut. Widely considered one of the best center prospects in the hockey world, Carlsson spent last season with Örebro HK of the SHL, scoring 34 points in 57 combined regular-season and playoff games.
Other notes from the Pacific Division:
- Another Ducks forward currently out with a lower-body injury on a day-to-day timeline is winger Brock McGinn. The 29-year-old veteran forward played in 75 games last season, scoring 12 goals and 19 points. Playing on a $2.75MM AAV cap hit, McGinn has been expected to play a regular role in Cronin’s bottom six, but that will have to wait as he works his way back to full health. Recent waiver claim Ross Johnston may slide into the opening-night lineup as a result of McGinn’s absence.
- The Edmonton Oilers have announced that Dani Rylan Kearney has been hired to the team’s hockey operations department as a regional scout. The former Northeastern Huskies captain is best known as the founder and commissioner of the NWHL, the professional women’s hockey league that became the PHF before ceasing operations this past summer. The Athletic’s Daniel Nugent-Bowman reported that the Oilers had been “interested” in adding Rylan Kearney to the organization “for several months” and now the team has done so officially.