Ducks Activate Petr Mrazek, Reassign Ville Husso
The Ducks announced they’ve activated goaltender Petr Mrázek from injured reserve. Fellow netminder Ville Husso was returned to AHL San Diego in the corresponding move.
Anaheim now has its season-opening goalie tandem intact after injuries affected both Mrázek and Lukáš Dostál over the past few weeks. Mrázek landed on IR not too long after Dostál did, sustaining a lower-body injury during the third period of a loss to the Blackhawks on Nov. 30.
After a nine-game absence, he’ll be available to back up Dostál for tomorrow’s game against the Stars. Before his injury, it was shaping up to be a forgettable season for the veteran netminder. In seven starts, he’d put up a 3-3-0 record with a .876 SV% and 3.69 GAA, on track for career lows in both.
Acquired from the Red Wings in the John Gibson deal, there was an argument to be made that the high-priced Mrázek should end up on waivers when he was due to return rather than return Husso to the minors. The 30-year-old is an experienced third-string option and, while his numbers weren’t all that much better than Mrázek’s, he represents an upgrade with a 5-3-1 record, .884 SV%, and 3.25 GAA in nine appearances. He’s posted a -0.3 GSAx compared to Mrázek’s -1.2, per MoneyPuck.
Nonetheless, it’s Husso going back down to completely negate the risk of losing goalie depth on waivers. Anaheim signed him to a two-year, $4.4MM contract extension in June despite fully intending on using him as their No. 3, presumably with the primary objective of deterring waiver claims. Their $1.05MM cap penalty this season for burying him in the minors is inconsequential for a team with now over $20MM in accumulated cap space.
Before being summoned in Dostál’s absence, Husso had a .908 SV%, 2.49 GAA, three shutouts, and a 6-4-3 record in 13 games for San Diego.
Lightning Activate Ryan McDonagh From Injured Reserve
4:12 p.m.: While not a necessity to activate McDonagh, the Bolts still took his return as motivation to reassign defenseman Steven Santini to Syracuse, per a team announcement. The 30-year-old was recalled Monday in the wake of Lilleberg’s injury and skated 12 minutes against the Panthers that evening, posting zeroes across the board. Santini has now appeared in eight games for the Bolts this season between call-ups, recording one assist and a respectable 50.4% share of shot attempts at even strength.
1:05 p.m.: Two-time Stanley Cup champion Ryan McDonagh has been activated from injured reserve and will be in the Lightning’s lineup on Thursday evening versus the Kings, Erik Erlendsson of Lightning Insider reports. Tampa had an open roster spot after reassigning Scott Sabourin to AHL Syracuse earlier in the week.
McDonagh, who has missed the past 18 games due to an undisclosed injury, had his no-contact designation removed during Monday’s practice as part of his ramp-up toward a return. Since he’s been a full participant for a few days, he shouldn’t have a meaningful minutes restriction as he slots back into the lineup.
The 36-year-old defenseman has been limited to 15 games this season. The activation ends the ever-durable rearguard’s most extended absence of his 16-year NHL career. After finishing 14th in Norris Trophy voting last season with a league-high +43 rating, he’s continued to play at a top-pairing level in 2025-26 while technically still serving behind Victor Hedman as the second-pairing lefty on Tampa’s depth chart. Averaging north of 20 minutes per game for the 15th straight year, he recorded six points and a +1 rating while serving as the Bolts’ top penalty killer.
He’s the second household name returning to Tampa’s lineup for tonight’s game. Starting netminder Andrei Vasilevskiy was activated from IR earlier in the week after a seven-game absence.
McDonagh’s insertion into the lineup is crucial at a time when the Bolts still have three regular defenders – Hedman, Erik Černák, and Emil Martinsen Lilleberg – on IR. The pileup of injuries had finally seemed to have caught up with the Lightning, who are 2-5-1 in December and have slipped to third in the Atlantic Division, although they’re still first by points percentage (.591).
Sabres Activate Michael Kesselring From Injured Reserve
The Sabres have activated defenseman Michael Kesselring from injured reserve as expected, per Heather Engel of NHL.com. They had an open roster spot after assigning Isak Rosen to AHL Rochester on Tuesday, so no corresponding transaction is required.
Kesselring’s second long-term absence of the season ends after 14 games due to a lower-body injury. The Sabres still might not get to see what a fully healthy defense corps can do tonight against the Flyers, though. Head coach Lindy Ruff said this morning that Conor Timmins will be a game-time decision with an undisclosed injury (via Matthew Fairburn of The Athletic).
The 25-year-old Kesselring has been limited to nine appearances through his first season in Buffalo. Acquired along with Josh Doan from the Mammoth for JJ Peterka last summer, he began the season on IR with an undisclosed issue. He made his season debut on Oct. 28 but exited the lineup again less than a month later.
When dressed, he hasn’t been much of a factor in his small sample. Initially expected to be a top-four piece and comprise the second pairing with either Bowen Byram or Owen Power on his left flank, he went without a point and had a -3 rating while averaging a conservative 15:37 of ice time per game. He was most often paired with Byram, a duo that controlled a team-worst 36.4% of expected goals at 5-on-5.
As such, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Ruff go for a new look and pair Kesselring with Power instead for a stretch. He’s unlikely to break up the team’s top pair of lefties Rasmus Dahlin and Mattias Samuelsson, the latter of whom has finally emerged as a premier shutdown threat after a rocky first few seasons on the anticipatory seven-year extension he signed back in 2022.
A strong performance the rest of the way is also imperative for Kesselring’s financial situation. He’s a pending restricted free agent with arbitration rights coming off a deal carrying a $1.4MM cap hit. Entering the season, he could have nearly quadrupled that figure after back-to-back 20-point campaigns with Utah and Arizona while posting some of the best 5-on-5 possession metrics on the team. His injury troubles have undoubtedly lowered his stock, but there’s still time to get it back.
Devils Activate Brett Pesce, Place Arseny Gritsyuk On Injured Reserve
After missing the past 24 games with an upper-body injury, the Devils announced they’ve activated top-pair defenseman Brett Pesce from injured reserve, indicating he’ll be in the lineup tonight against the Golden Knights. The team placed winger Arseny Gritsyuk on IR retroactive to Dec. 11 in the corresponding move.
The Devils had been anxiously awaiting Pesce’s clearance for weeks, but the injection of a right-shot defender into the lineup became all the more important after Simon Nemec sustained an undisclosed injury during practice last Friday that will have him out for at least a couple of weeks. They’ve been dealing with the season-long absence of righty Johnathan Kovacevic as well, making Pesce’s standing on the team all the more important.
Pesce had three assists and a +3 rating in nine games to begin the year. That coincided with an 8-1-0 start to the year, making New Jersey look like a legitimate contender to end up atop the Metropolitan Division. Since then, the Devils have gone 10-13-1 with their possession numbers dipping in the process.
There are a variety of factors that go into a slump, but being forced into breaking up what had been one of the best defense pairs in the league through the early going is high on that list. Pesce and Luke Hughes had served as the Devils’ most dominant unit on the blue line, controlling 60.2% of expected goals. Without Pesce, Hughes has been underwater in every possession metric. His point production has dipped as well, down to 0.55 per game after peaking with 0.62 per game as a second-year player last season.
The Devils’ press release indicated Pesce will be paired with Hughes again tonight, ideally giving them a true top-pair level of play that Dougie Hamilton and Jonas Siegenthaler haven’t been able to provide in the interim.
A healthier defense is paramount to help overcome the loss of a fifth forward to the injured or non-roster list in Gritsyuk. The Russian rookie, who’s eighth on the team in scoring with seven goals and 16 points in 31 games, has already missed the last two games with an upper-body injury.
He joins Jack Hughes, Evgenii Dadonov, and Zack MacEwen on IR, while Timo Meier carries a non-roster designation while on personal leave. Since he’s already missed six days, Gritsyuk will be eligible to return on Dec. 19 against the Mammoth, but that’s not feasible since he didn’t travel with the team on their raod trip. It’ll be Sunday at home against the Sabres to mark Gritsyuk’s first opportunity to get back into the lineup.
Sharks Activate Michael Misa, Loan Him To World Juniors
The reigning No. 2 overall pick is officially on his way to the 2026 World Juniors. The Sharks announced they’ve activated center Michael Misa from injured reserve and subsequently loaned him to Team Canada for the event, which begins next week.
With only Misa’s name included in today’s announcement, it seems set in stone that defenseman Sam Dickinson is staying on San Jose’s roster and won’t be loaned out to Canada for the tournament. Dickinson, 19, had two assists in five games for the Canadians last year at the event and had another year of eligibility left, but he’ll be sticking around on San Jose’s roster for the next several weeks despite sitting as a healthy scratch in last night’s win over the Flames.
Misa’s limited playing time this season made him a logical candidate to be allowed to go to the event, much like the case of Calgary star defense prospect Zayne Parekh. The 18-year-old broke camp with the Sharks but was in and out of the lineup, never playing more than three games in a row, until he sustained a lower-body injury in early November.
Before exiting the lineup, Misa made his first seven NHL appearances, scoring one goal and three points with a -1 rating. It’s worth noting he isn’t joining Canada’s training camp cold. The Sharks loaned him to their AHL affiliate on a conditioning stint at the beginning of the month as he neared a return, recording an assist in two games for the San Jose Barracuda before rejoining the Sharks for practice.
Now fully cleared, Misa will get his first and only chance to represent Canada’s national team at the under-20 level. He was a rather shocking snub from last year’s roster amid a 62-goal, 134-point season for the OHL’s Saginaw Spirit that made him the leading scorer across all of the country’s top junior leagues.
The question now becomes whether Misa returns to Saginaw or remains with the Sharks when the WJC wraps up in January. As an under-20 player subject to the NHL-CHL transfer agreement, he’s ineligible for a full-time assignment to the AHL and must be loaned back to his junior team if he’s not on the NHL roster (or injured reserve).
Golden Knights Activate Jeremy Lauzon From Injured Reserve
The Golden Knights will have defenseman Jeremy Lauzon in the lineup against the Devils tonight, reports Danny Webster of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. He’ll need to come off injured reserve, something they have the roster space to do after sending Dylan Coghlan to AHL Henderson earlier in the week.
Lauzon missed 14 games with an undisclosed injury he sustained on Nov. 15 against the Blues. During that time, the Golden Knights haven’t shaken up their lineup at all. The group of Shea Theodore, Brayden McNabb, Noah Hanifin, Ben Hutton, and Kaedan Korczak has played every game since, with the veteran Hutton stepping into Lauzon’s shoes alongside Korczak on the Knights’ third pair.
While that streak will come to an end tonight, it won’t involve Hutton heading back to the press box. Theodore is day-to-day with an upper-body injury and won’t play, head coach Bruce Cassidy told reporters (including Webster).
Lauzon, 28, was acquired from the Predators in last summer’s Nicolas Hague trade. He’s lost some minutes in Vegas, mainly due to restricted penalty kill deployment, but has otherwise been a good fit alongside the up-and-coming Korczak. He’s posted four assists and a +3 rating in 17 games, controlling 52.3% of expected goals with his usual partner.
The 6’3″, 225-lb lefty is one of the league’s most judicious hitters, leading the league with 383 checks two years ago with Nashville. His 3.35 hits per game this season is a significant dip from his last few campaigns – likely due to Vegas possessing the puck more than the Predators did – but still leads his team.
Predators Activate Cole Smith From Injured Reserve
The Predators have reinstated winger Cole Smith from injured reserve, Nick Kieser of Lower Broad Hockey reports. They’ve had a whopping three open roster spots since sending Zachary L’Heureux to the AHL last weekend, so no corresponding transaction is required.
Smith has been tracking toward a return for several days now. Head coach Andrew Brunette labeled him as day-to-day last week as he returned to practice. The 30-year-old has been out of commission since the beginning of November, missing the last 19 games with an upper-body injury. He was given a rather vague three-to-six-week recovery timeline, and although he missed the long end of that by a few days, he’ll be available for tonight’s game against the Hurricanes.
Before his injury, Smith was part of one of the most effective checking lines in the league. His offense wasn’t jumping off the page with three goals in 13 games – he’s only ever hit 20 points in a year once – but his line with Michael McCarron and Ozzy Wiesblatt was one of Nashville’s best at controlling play at 5-on-5. Not only do those three lead the Preds in hits per game, but they controlled 64.3% of expected goals at 5-on-5 to lead the team, per MoneyPuck. Among forward lines league-wide with at least 50 minutes together, only four trios have allowed fewer expected goals against per 60 than the Wiesblatt-McCarron-Smith line’s 1.58 mark.
Nashville won’t be able to reunite that line tonight, though. Wiesblatt is on IR with an upper-body issue and isn’t slated to return until after the Olympic break.
With Smith coming in, veteran Tyson Jost will likely be the one heading to the press box. Reid Schaefer, a first-round pick in 2022, seems to have grabbed hold of a regular spot with three goals in nine games since being summoned from AHL Milwaukee late last month.
Canucks’ Arshdeep Bains Clears Waivers, Assigned To AHL
Dec. 17th: According to a team announcement, Bains has successfully cleared waivers and has been reassigned to AHL Abbotsford.
Dec. 16th: The Canucks have waived forward Arshdeep Bains, according to Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK and The Athletic. He’ll be reassigned to AHL Abbotsford tomorrow if he clears.
The news doesn’t come as a major surprise. Bains’ role was bound to reduce after Vancouver recouped forwards Liam Ohgren and Marco Rossi in last week’s shock Quinn Hughes blockbuster, and they’re set to be immediate fixtures in the Canucks’ lineup. He was one of the odd men out when they were inserted into the lineup for Sunday’s game against the Devils, marking his sixth healthy scratch of the season.
With center Elias Pettersson not expected to miss too much more time with his upper-body injury, the Canucks were going to need a roster spot to activate him from injured reserve sooner rather than later. They can do so as soon as today – Bains is eligible for a non-roster designation if his waiver placement comes in conjunction with an IR activation – if he’s ready to play tonight against the Rangers.
Bains’ 26 appearances this season more than doubled his career total. The 24-year-old now has 47 games under his belt for Vancouver over the past three seasons, scoring two goals and four assists for six points. Five of those came this year while he averaged 9:09 of ice time per game in a fourth-line role.
An undrafted free agent signed out of WHL Red Deer back in 2022, he could carry some intrigue on the wire thanks to an excellent AHL track record. In three prior seasons for Abbotsford, he’s put up a 40-96–136 scoring line in 175 games with a +34 rating.
New York Rangers Make Multiple Roster Moves
In dire need of offense, the New York Rangers have recalled a pair of forward prospects to the NHL level. The Rangers announced they’ve recalled Gabriel Perreault and Brennan Othmann to the team, and have reassigned Brett Berard and Jaroslav Chmelar in a corresponding roster move.
Perreault, 20, was the 23rd overall pick of the 2023 NHL Draft from the United States National Team Development Program. He already has eight NHL appearances to his name, but only one assist to show for.
Still, Perreault has dominated at every level he’s played at. Spending his two post-draft seasons with the Boston College Eagles, Perreault scored 35 goals and 108 points in 73 games over his tenure. This season, with the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack, Perreault has scored 10 goals and 17 points in 20 games. Although the production is only good for 12th in the AHL among rookies, Perreault is currently leading the Wolf Pack.
Meanwhile, Othmann, 22, has remained with the organization after being the subject of trade speculation shortly after the 2025-26 season began. Despite being the 16th overall pick of the 2021 NHL Draft, he’s only managed 26 games with the Rangers, tallying two assists. His frustration with the organization likely stemmed from his lack of opportunity in the NHL and his limited usage once he was there, averaging 9:58 of ice time in those 26 contests.
Regardless of the trade rumors, he’s remained relatively productive in the AHL. This season, he has scored four goals and 10 points in 19 games with a -7 rating. Before the current campaign, he had scored 33 goals and 69 points in 94 contests.
Bedard, 23, returns to the Wolf Pack after spending all of his time with the Rangers since American Thanksgiving. The Providence, RI native registered one assist in 11 games before his demotion, averaging 10:59 of ice time.
Lastly, Chmelar returns to Hartford, where he’s scored three goals and 11 points in 19 games this season. The 6’4″, 227 lbs winger is in his second professional season, and has skated in six games with New York this year.
There’s no guarantee that either Perreault or Othmann will provide the fix for New York’s stagnant offense. They have already broken a record this year, becoming the first team to be shut out six times through their first 17 home games.
New York Islanders Reassign Travis Mitchell
According to a team announcement, the New York Islanders have assigned defenseman Travis Mitchell to the AHL’s Bridgeport Islanders. No corresponding roster move was made, so the Islanders will move forward with 22 players on the active roster for the time being.
The transaction was expected for a few reasons. Having played nine games, Mitchell was one contest away from being waiver-eligible. Additionally, if the Islanders want to recall Mitchell despite the prospect of exposing him through waivers, he will be eligible tomorrow, assuming he plays in Bridgeport’s game tonight.
Additionally, there’s some belief that the Islanders could turn to Isaiah George instead. George recently returned to the AHL Islanders after missing a month in concussion protocol. He’s scored one goal and five points in 16 AHL games this season with a +4 rating. He’s relatively accustomed to life in the NHL, too, having suited up in 33 games with New York last season.
Meanwhile, Mitchell’s only NHL minutes came this season. Across his nine games, he’s registered one goal while averaging 11:32 of ice time. He performed well on the defensive side of the puck in his limited usage, managing a 93.6% on-ice save percentage at even strength.
Regardless, the Islanders have some time before they need to make a decision. They don’t play again until Friday, and only have three games in the next 10 days. Even without Mitchell, they have six healthy defensemen on the active roster.