- Aside from Edmonton, Friedman also reported a development regarding the goalie situation of another Western team: the Chicago Blackhawks. Veteran goalie Laurent Brossoit is set to return from a year-and-a-half injury absence, but finds himself outside of Chicago’s goaltending plans. Friedman reported that the Blackhawks have given other teams permission to speak with Brossoit, likely with the hopes that opening the lines of communication will make it easier to complete a trade involving Brossoit. The fact that Brossoit makes $3.3MM against the cap complicates things, but the 32-year-old’s most recent NHL performances (.927 save percentage as a backup in both Winnipeg and Vegas) should help him garner some real interest from other teams.
Blackhawks Rumors
Evening Notes: Teravainen, Foegele, Greig
The Chicago Blackhawks could be without a top winger in Sunday’s matchup against the Anaheim Ducks. Teuvo Teravainen is questionable due to an undisclosed injury per Scott Powers of The Athletic. Teravainen was not present for the team’s Saturday morning practice.
It is unclear when Teravainen sustained his injury. In any case, he would leave a major lineup hole behind him after playing in more than 20 minutes of ice time in three of his last five games. He has recorded three points and a minus-three in that span, bringing his year-long totals up to 16 points and a plus-four in 24 games. Teravainen has been a core piece of a young Chicago lineup. Should he have to sit, the Blackhawks would be forced to turn towards Landon Slaggert, who has played scant minutes and managed no scoring in his last four appearances. Slaggert has one goal and 12 penalty minutes in 10 games this season.
Other notes from around the league:
- Los Angeles Kings winger Warren Foegele is continuing to progress from a day-to-day, upper-body injury. Head coach Jim Hiller said that Foegele is feeling better but won’t play in Saturday night’s matchup against the Vancouver Canucks, per Kings’ managing editor Zach Dooley. Foegele has four goals, a plus-two-, and eight penalty minutes in 18 games this season. He has served a third-line role, after posting a career-year with the Kings last season. In what was his first year with the club, Foegele managed 24 goals and 46 points in 82 games, both career-highs. He will continue to carry a day-to-day designation and look to find a path back to production when the Kings take on the Washington Capitals on Tuesday.
- Ottawa Senators forward Ridly Greig could make his return from injury in Sunday’s matchup against the Dallas Stars, head coach Travis Green told Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Citizen. Greig missed his fifth-straight game on Friday. He is working back from a day-to-day, undisclosed injury sustained on November 15th. The 23-year-old center has eight points, 20 penalty minutes, and 25 hits in 19 games this season. He seems to be approaching a true breakout, and could continue that hunt as soon as Sunday.
Brossoit Ahead Of Schedule In Recovery From Latest Surgery, Nearing Conditioning Stint
- Laurent Brossoit’s tenure with the Blackhawks hasn’t gone as planned. Signed to a two-year deal in 2024, he hasn’t played a second of hockey since then thanks to multiple injuries. That should be changing soon, however. The netminder told Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times that he’s actually ahead of schedule in his recovery from his most recent hip surgery which has him likely nearing a conditioning stint with AHL Rockford in the near future. Once cleared to do so, he can spend up to two weeks in the minors before needing to be added to Chicago’s roster or placed on waivers.
Injury Notes: Lindholm, McAvoy, Pageau, Dickinson
The Boston Bruins shared updates on two key players ahead of tonight’s game in San Jose: Elias Lindholm has been activated, while Charlie McAvoy was placed on injured reserve in a corresponding move.
Lindholm suffered a lower-body injury in late October, after a knee-on-knee collision with Jordan Greenway and has been absent since. His first season in Boston left some to be desired considering the $7.75MM cap hit, scoring 47 points, but Lindholm was off to a better start in 2025-26 overall, posting nine points in 13 games. Now, the veteran will be a welcome addition back to the lineup given the club’s current hot streak, as they march forward without McAvoy for the time being.
As was noted yesterday, McAvoy underwent facial surgery after catching a puck to the face in a scary incident against Montreal on November 15th. His placement on IR is no surprise, and all things considered, it is not a terrible outcome in what could have been much worse. Boston will sorely miss their top defenseman, but the hope is that he will be back in time for the Olympics next February, if not sooner, depending on recovery.
Elsewhere across the league:
- After already losing Alexander Romanov long-term, the hits keep coming as the Islanders shared that forward Jean-Gabriel Pageau is week-to-week with an upper body injury. The news comes as a surprise as the veteran center played through yesterday’s game with no visible ailment. Pageau is a highly dependable all-around third line center, and a pending free agent at 33, it had been speculated that he could be a trade candidate at some point. However, given the Islanders impressive start it seems any such talks are off for the time being. Now, as they’ll move forward without a top defenseman and a key center, New York faces a huge test to close out 2025. 20-year-old Calum Ritchie will have an opportunity to step up, and his performance without Pageau may dictate the team’s direction later in the season.
- The Chicago Blackhawks announced Jason Dickinson has been activated off injured reserve. The veteran forward has missed all of November with an apparent upper-body injury. Dickinson had three points in eight games before going down, his Blackhawks tenure proving to be a nice example of a cap dump win. The Ontario native came to Chicago in 2022 along with a second round pick sweetener, and immediately has been a key presence in their lineup. His career high 22 goals in 2023-24 earned an extension at $4.25MM which comes in on the high end considering current production, but Dickinson remains a leader for the group with his reliable two-way game.
Latest On Kevin Korchinski
The Chicago Blackhawks have gotten quality contributions from several young defensemen this season, but the name they haven’t heard from at the NHL level thus far in 2025-26 has been that of Kevin Korchinski. The 2022 No. 7 overall pick played in just 16 NHL games last season and has spent all of this year so far with the AHL’s Rockford Ice Hogs. While Korchinski has played well in Rockford, and has 10 assists in 15 games so far this season, his path back to the NHL in the short term, without an unforeseen injury to an NHL blueliner, looks increasingly cloudy. The Athletic’s Scott Powers wrote on Thursday that while Korchinski is “still a major part of the Blackhawks’ plans,” the emergence of Matt Grzelcyk as a quality NHL option has made it so the path for Korchinski to steal an NHL role has narrowed.
The Blackhawks’ unexpectedly strong start to 2025-26 has also complicated Korchinski’s path to an NHL call-up, according to Powers. While Chicago surrendered nine goals in a loss to the Buffalo Sabres last night, their form in that game is not indicative of how they’ve played for most of the year. Chicago has a 10-7-3 record, with a 5-3-2 record in their last ten games. They’ve positioned themselves firmly in the race for a playoff spot in this early portion of the season. While the team’s focus is still very much towards a future window of real Stanley Cup contention, an NHL team with a chance to make the playoffs is going to do everything in its power to try to reach the postseason, even teams that self-assume the tag (or are assigned the tag by the media) of a “rebuilding team.” Therefore, as s a result of Chicago’s increased focus on short-term results thanks to their success so far this year, Korchinski’s odds of quickly returning to the NHL appear to have decreased.
- Former Blackhawks blueliner Wyatt Kalynuk was traded in the KHL yesterday, according to an official release from the league. The 28-year-old was a solid three-year NCAA player with the University of Wisconsin who left school early to begin his pro career in Chicago, getting into 21 NHL games in his rookie professional season in 2020-21. At that point, Kalynuk looked like a potential future NHL player, but his game didn’t take any expected steps forward. He got into only five NHL games in 2021-22, and ultimately left the Blackhawks organization to sign with the Vancouver Canucks. In stints with Vancouver and later the New York Rangers and St. Louis Blues, Kalynuk was unable to find a way back to an NHL roster, and after going two full seasons without an NHL game, he decided to leave the North American pro game and sign in the Finnish Liiga. His strong play in his first year in Finland (33 points in 59 games) earned Kalynuk a deal in the KHL with Ak-Bars Kazan, but he was traded to Ufa Salavat Yulayev after just two games. Now, he’s been traded a second time in 2025-26, this time landing with Gerard Gallant’s Shanghai Dragons. Gallant was the coach of the Rangers in 2022-23 when Kalynuk was in the organization, playing in 15 regular-season games, and nine playoff games for the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack.
Burakovsky Listed As Day-To-Day
Blackhawks winger Andre Burakovsky suffered an undisclosed injury last night against Seattle and was quickly ruled out for tonight’s game against Buffalo as well. However, it doesn’t sound like he’ll be out for too much longer. Head coach Jeff Blashill indicated to CHGO Sports pregame (Twitter link) that the veteran is listed as day-to-day. Acquired from the Kraken over the offseason, the 30-year-old has rebounded quite well with his new team. He has seven goals and eight assists in 18 appearances so far, his best point-per-game mark since 2020-21 when he was with Colorado. Landon Slaggert returned to the lineup tonight to take Burakovsky’s spot in the lineup.
Blackhawks Place Nick Foligno On IR With Hand Injury
10/17: The Blackhawks have placed Foligno on injured reserve after learning he’ll miss four weeks of action. Chicago has iced 11 forwards and seven defenseman – bringing Louis Crevier into the lineup – in Foligno’s absence. They’ll face one of three options now that their captain is on IR – stick with seven defenders every night; recall a forward like Toninato; or wait for Dickinson, who said he won’t return until he’s back to a full 100% per Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times.
10/16: The Chicago Blackhawks will be without captain Nick Foligno for the next month, head coach Jeff Blashill told Mario Tirabassi of CHGO Sports. Foligno sustained a hand injury after blocking a shot in Saturday night’s game against the Toronto Maple Leafs. He left the game with a few minutes left in the second period and did not return.
On top of the moral weight of losing their captain, Chicago will lose yet another forward in their middle-six with this news. The team is already without Jason Dickinson and Tyler Bertuzzi, who are both carrying day-to-day designations. Now, Foligno will fall out of the lineup as well, leaving a major hole on the wing. Foligno has filled any role Chicago has needed over the course of the season. He had two points, one fight, and a plus-three in his last five games entering Saturday’s matchup. Those marks brought him up to six points, all assists, in 15 games on the year – to go with 16 penalty minutes, 11 blocked shots, and 41 hits.
Chicago has rotated Foligno between the wing and center based on need. With no extra forwards on the roster, the Blackhawks will need to make a call-up to fill Foligno’s shoes. Unfortunately, the team is also without top call-up option Nick Lardis, who is day-to-day with an undisclosed injury per the Rockford IceHogs. Lardis leads all AHL rookies in scoring with 14 points in 15 games. He could quickly receive his first NHL call-up once he’s back to full health. Until then, Chicago will likely turn towards Dominic Toninato, who has nine points in 15 games for Rockford.
Blackhawks’ Laurent Brossoit Resumes Skating
Blackhawks goaltender Laurent Brossoit was on the ice today ahead of practice for the first time in well over a year, Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.
Brossoit has not played since April 28, 2024, when the former Jets netminder entered Winnipeg’s loss in Game 4 of the first round against the Avalanche in relief of Connor Hellebuyck. He hit unrestricted free agency the following offseason and signed a two-year, $6.6MM contract with Chicago, but he’s yet to even practice with the club – until today.
He’s spent the last 12 months mired in injuries. It started with a meniscus surgery in late August 2024 before he reported to his first training camp in Chicago. That was only supposed to keep him out for around two months, but his return kept getting pushed back until he was downgraded to being out indefinitely in November. He had a second procedure on his knee around Thanksgiving that was supposed to put him back in the lineup in mid-January, but after radio silence until the trade deadline, he was shut down for the year. Brossoit underwent a third surgery this past summer – on his hip, not his knee – and general manager Kyle Davidson said at the beginning of camp that he remained out long-term.
That made most believe he’d essentially spend the balance of his two-year deal on injured reserve and never actually appear on Chicago’s roster before reaching free agency again next summer. He’s still likely weeks, if not months, away from a return, considering how much time he’s missed, but the fact that he’s on the ice this early in the campaign gives him a fighting chance at returning to play at some point.
Before signing with the Blackhawks, Brossoit had put up back-to-back career years. A lifelong backup, he’d posted a .927 SV% and 2.00 GAA with three shutouts in a career-high 22 starts for Winnipeg in 2024-25. The year prior, injuries limited Brossoit to 11 regular-season appearances for the Golden Knights, but he was similarly efficient, posting a 7-0-3 record and a .927 SV% with a 2.17 GAA. On a per-60-minute basis, Brossoit ranked sixth in the league in goals saved above expected in 2022-23 and fifth in 2023-24 among goalies with at least 10 games played, according to MoneyPuck.
That had the Hawks high on him as a veteran option to provide insurance for Petr Mrázek, whose workload they wanted to decrease after he started in a career-high 53 games in 2023-24. Since then, Chicago’s crease has undergone a drastic transformation. After Mrázek put together a strong .907 SV% in 2023-24, he dipped to a .890 SV% and 3.46 GAA in 33 appearances for the Hawks last year and was shipped off to the Red Wings at the deadline.
Now, Chicago’s crease is locked in with two young names. There’s 2019 first-rounder Spencer Knight, acquired from the Panthers last season in the Seth Jones deal, who’s arguably been the best goalie in the league this season with a .924 SV%, 2.42 GAA, and 14.7 goals saved above expected in 13 starts. His backup is 26-year-old Arvid Söderblom, whose emergence as an above-average backup option last year made Mrázek expendable. He hasn’t gotten much playing time this year behind Knight, but in five starts, he’s been more than passable with a 2-2-1 record, .913 SV%, and 2.63 GAA.
That doesn’t leave a clear spot for Brossoit on the NHL roster if he’s to return. With Knight shouldering such a high percentage of the workload, a three-goalie rotation isn’t feasible. He’ll likely land on waivers if he’s cleared to play and assigned to AHL Rockford. Since he’s had so much time away, it’s hard to see a team trading for him – or signing him in free agency next summer – before they see him get into sustained action at the minor-league level.
Blackhawks Recall Landon Slaggert, Jason Dickinson Remains Out
The Chicago Blackhawks have recalled forward Landon Slaggert just over one week after his latest assignment. He will help the Blackhawks address injuries to centerman Jason Dickinson and winger Andre Burakovsky. Dickinson will miss Wednesday night’s game versus the New Jersey Devils, while Burakovsky is a gametime decision with an undisclosed injury, per NHL.com’s Tracey Myers.
The Blackhawks sent Dickinson home early from their recent six-game road-trip after placing him on injured reserve with an upper-body injury. The 30-year-old has not played since leaving Chicago’s October 30th loss to the Winnipeg Jets after just eight minutes of ice time. He returned to Chicago’s practice donning a no-contact jersey on Wednesday morning.
Burakovsky played through Chicago’s road-trip, including scoring two points in Sunday’s win over the Detroit Red Wings. That scoring boosted Burakovsky up to seven points in five games through the month of November. He’s earned a fringe top-line role with that momentum, including playing over 21 minutes of ice time last Monday. He is averaging a career-high 17:28 in ice time, to go along with seven goals and 14 points, in 15 games this season.
The absence of Dickinson and Burakovsky would handicap Chicago on both sides of the puck. Slaggert would face an uphill battle in matching either of their impacts, after posting no scoring and a minus-two through five NHL games this season. He has also scored one point in three AHL games. The youngster showed a good amount of drive and physical play through 33 games last season. Even then, he sits with a mere 10 points through 54 career appearances in the NHL. He should step onto Chicago’s fourth-line, while rookie Ryan Greene earns a boost in place of Dickinson. Should Burakovsky also sit out, the Blackhawks would likely run 11 forwards and seven defensemen – bringing in defender Louis Crevier and tasking rookie winger Oliver Moore with a heftier role.
Injury Notes: Perfetti, Nazar, Lightning
Murat Ates of The Athletic shared that Winnipeg Jets forward Cole Perfetti participated in morning skate alongside Jonathan Toews and Vladislav Namestnikov, fueling speculation that the 23-year-old could make his season debut soon. Sure enough, the Jets officially announced Perfetti will play tonight in Anaheim.
Perfetti suffered a sprained ankle in the preseason after going down awkwardly, which while unfortunate, was feared to be even worse. The Jets are 9-5-0 in his absence, and now welcome back Perfetti, an 82-game player last year, who will aim to move past the setback and build off last year’s 50-point production. As mentioned by Ates, Perfetti took reps on the Jets’ top power play unit, and the youngster could be an immediate factor tonight as Winnipeg looks to end the Ducks’ six-game winning streak.
Elsewhere across the league:
- Blackhawks forward Frank Nazar was a last-minute scratch due to injury today, as reported by Charlie Roumeliotis of WGN Radio. Nazar left Friday’s game after being cross-checked by Joel Farabee, but it appears he will not be sidelined long, given that he took warmups before being deemed unable to go against his hometown Detroit Red Wings. Nazar, 21, is among the club’s top point-getters with 11 in 15 games. Barring any setbacks, he is expected to set career highs across the board in 2025-26, after 56 professional games in the last two seasons.
- Benjamin Pierce, Tampa Bay’s beat writer, shared multiple updates on Lightning players currently banged up. Veteran Ryan McDonagh is still under evaluation after departing last night’s game. Pierce went on to say that Anthony Cirelli is day-to-day, and the team hopes he is all set for the next game. Cirelli’s ailment was first noted yesterday. Thankfully, the Bolts have some time to rest up, as they won’t be in action until Wednesday, hosting the Rangers.