Karlsson had been forced to miss Anaheim's first two games of the season due to a lower-body injury but will make his debut Thursday vs. Dallas. The 18-year-old forward was the second overall pick in the 2023 draft after watching his stock skyrocket throughout the season. He had 10 goals, 15 assists, six PIMs and a -5 plus/minus in 44 games with Orebro HK (SHL) in 2022-23.
Kotchetkov was 1-0-0 with a .912 SV% and a 2.79 GAA with Syracuse (AHL) but has been recalled Wednesday to Carolina. The 24-year-old's promotion comes the night after Frederik Andersen left Carolina's game in the first period due to an injury. Kotchetkov returns to the big leagues, where he has a 15-7-5 record, a .908 SV% and a 2.43 GAA in 27 career NHL games played.
Goligoski left the Wilds' game against Toronto after 16:04 TOI due to a lower-body injury and is expected out 6-10 weeks after being placed on the long-term injured reserve Wednesday. The 38-year-old veteran is in his 17th NHL season and had yet to pick up a point but had one SOG, four PIMs and was a -3 plus/minus through two games so far in 2023-24. Sammy Walker was recalled to Minnesota as a roster replacement for Goligoski.
Walker has yet to pick up a point in two games with Iowa (AHL) and is a -4 plus/minus but has been recalled to Minnesota Wednesday with the news that Alex Goligoski will be heading to the LTIR. Walker returns to the Wild, where he had a goal, an assist, eight SOG and a -1 plus/minus in nine games played in his rookie season in 2022-23.
Labanc had 15 goals, 18 assists, 129 SOG, 36 PIMs and a -17 plus/minus through 72 games in 2022-23 but has yet to see NHL action this season through San Jose's first three games. He will make his season debut Thursday as the Sharks take on Boston and is expected to play on San Jose's second line alongside Thomas Bordeleau and Filip Zadina.
After taking a backseat to Mackenzie Blackwood for the last two games and, despite him saving saving 87 of 94 shots, watching his Sharks go winless (0-1-1), Kahkonen will get the start on Thursday night against the Boston Bruins. In his only game this season, Kahkonen allowed four goals on 32 shots in a 4-1 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights. The Sharks are +236 home underdogs against a Boston Bruins team that has yet to lose a game (2-0-0).
Jets' newcomer Vilardi will miss approximately four to six weeks after suffering an injury yesterday (sprained MCL) in a matchup against the Los Angeles Kings. In three games this season, Vilardi was seeing time on the top line and top powerplay unit, recording one assist and nine shots on goal. The loss is a sizeable one for the Jets, who will likely turn to Mason Appleton and Alex Iafallo for an increase in playing time.
The Jets have been completely inept at keeping the puck out of their net this season and have been outscored 14-10 in only three games (1-2-0). They hope to have their early season defensive struggles solved tonight as Brossoit will suit up against his former team for his first start of the 2023-24 campaign. Last season, as a member of the Vegas Golden Knights, Brossoit played exceptionally, recording a 2.17 GAA and .927 SV% in 11 games (7-0-3). Now on the other side, Brossoit and the Jets find themselves as +101 road underdogs against the Golden Knights.
Thrun has two assists, one SOG, and a -1 plus/minus through two games with San Jose in 2023-24 but finds himself the odd man out on their roster as he was reassigned to the San Jose Barracuda (AHL) Wednesday. The 22-year-old will endure his first taste of AHL action after he made the jump to the NHL straight from Harvard (NCAA) in 2022-23.
Buchnevich has been officially ruled out for the Blues' Thursday night matchup against the Arizona Coyotes. Despite being held without a point or shot in his two games played this season, the talented Russian winger will unquestionably return to the top line and top powerplay unit for the Blues when he is ready to play.
Samuelsson left the Sabres' game Tuesday vs. Tampa after 17:36 TOI due to an upper-body injury and is considered day-to-day according to head coach Don Granato. The 23-year-old defensive cog collected his first assist of the season Tuesday but also is a +2 plus/minus with three SOG through three games this season. If he is forced to miss time it will be a huge loss as the towering defensemen is averaging over 20+ TOI for the second straight season (20:25).
Samsonov will return to the starter's crease on Thursday after watching Joseph Woll allow three goals on 30 shots in a 4-1 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks on Monday. Despite a perfect 2-0-0 record, Samsonov has been shaky in the Maple Leafs crease this season, posting a 4.42 GAA and .839 SV%. Samsonov will look to get his game back on track against a Florida Panthers team that has struggled out of the gate, being outscored 11-8 in their first three games (1-2-0). Last season, Samsonov recorded an excellent 1.44 GAA and .953 SV% in three games against the Panthers (2-0-1) before ultimately losing favour to Woll in the Maple Leafs' 4-1 series loss to them in the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Jarry will get his third start of the season for the Penguins who, after losing their season opener, have convincingly won two games in a row, outscoring their opposition 9-2. In Jarry's two games so far (1-1-0), he has a terrific 1.53 GAA and .944 SV%. Tonight, Jarry and the Penguins (-122 road favourites) face off against the Detroit Red Wings, who are also off to a hot start as well, outscoring opponents 13-8 in their first three games (2-1-0). Though the Red Wings have an improved offence this season, Jarry posted a .950 SV% and 1.01 GAA in his only meeting against them last season.
Friedman will likely make his Vancouver Canucks debut on Thursday after being acquired from the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday with Ty Glover in a trade for Jack Rathbone and Karel Plasek. The 27-year-old Friedman has 65 NHL games under his belt, all with the Penguins, where he amassed 12 points (4G / 8A) along with 102 hits and 59 blocked shots. Akito Hirose was sent to Abbotsford (AHL) to make room for Friedman on the Canucks roster.
Hirose will return to Abbotsford of the AHL after playing two games for the Canucks, recording zero points, four blocks, and three hits. Mark Friedman will replace Hirose on the backend after being acquired yesterday via trade from the Pittsburgh Penguins.
This is promising news for Werenski, who was injured in the Blue Jackets' season-opener after missing 69 games last season. Werenski was held pointless in 13:43 of ice time, but the talented 26-year-old has 79 goals since the 2016-17 season, eighth most amount defencemen despite playing at least 49 games fewer than everyone ranked above him. If Werenski can play, he will likely assume his duties on the Blue Jackets top powerplay unit immediately.
In three games with the Rangers this season, Bonino is averaging 11:07 time-on-ice, the lowest total for the 15-year veteran since the 2010-11 season. He has zero points and eight blocks playing primarily as the fourth-line center. Bonino's status remains uncertain for the Rangers' Thursday night matchup against the Nashville Predators.
Schenn's status has been up in the air after sitting out the last three games but is now been confirmed to miss the next four to six weeks with a lower-body injury. He recorded one block and four hits in 15:11 time-on-ice in his only game this season. Last season, Schenn had a league-leading 318 hits along with 22 points (4G / 18A) in 70 games. Dante Fabbro has, and will likely continue, to fill in on the back end in his absence.
An early-season setback in his return from an ongoing shoulder injury created some pessimism in Norris' likelihood to return to the lineup but after only three missed games, he will make his season debut Wednesday against the Washington Capitals. Norris only played eight games last season, recording three points (1G / 2A), but has 93 points (54G / 39A) in his 133-game career. He is projected to line up at even strength with Dominik Kubalik and Drake Batherson and re-assume his position on the top powerplay unit.
