Welcome to the NHL Buzz. Each day during the regular season, NHL.com has you covered with all the latest news.
Vancouver Canucks
Quinn Hughes is a game-time decision for the Canucks when they begin a five-game road trip at the Montreal Canadiens on Monday (7:30 p.m. ET; RDS, Prime).
Hughes, Vancouver’s top defenseman and captain, and Elias Pettersson, its No. 1 center, practiced Sunday for the first time in almost two weeks. They have missed four games since each last played Dec. 23 against the San Jose Sharks.
“Game-time on Quinn; I don’t think ‘Petey’s’ going to play tonight,” Canucks coach Rick Tocchet said after an optional morning skate at Bell Centre.
Hughes, who skated with the top power-play unit Sunday, leads Vancouver and is third among NHL defensemen with 42 points (eight goals, 34 assists) in 34 games. He was labeled as questionable going into the game Dec. 23. He played 24:45 and had two assists in a 4-3 win, but the Canucks have gone 1-2-1 in the four games he has missed.
“Nice to be back, obviously hate missing time,” Hughes said after practice Sunday. “The way we went about it and handled it, lucky with the medical group we have and support system we have here, I think everything we did is how we wanted it to play out. Now, I’m in a spot where I am on the up and up.”
Pettersson, who is tied with Jake DeBrusk for third on the Canucks with 28 points (10 goals, 18 assists) in 34 games, scored twice in the second period Dec. 23 but only played one shift in the third and hasn’t played and didn’t practice until Sunday.
Dakota Joshua was placed on injured reserve Monday retroactive to Jan. 3. The forward went to the dressing room in the second period of a 3-0 loss to the Nashville Predators on Friday after Canucks forward Teddy Blueger hit Predators defenseman Roman Josi into his legs, but he returned for the third and finished the game.
Thatcher Demko took part in the morning skate, and Tocchet didn’t not rule out the goalie potentially dressing as the backup for Kevin Lankinen. Demko sustained back spasms during a 4-3 shootout win at the Seattle Kraken on Thursday, leaving in the second after getting spun around in a collision with teammate Noah Juulsen.
“He actually felt half-decent yesterday, so hopefully he has a good session today,” Tocchet said. “So, I can’t really make a decision until I talk to him today.” — Sean Farrell
Florida Panthers
Aaron Ekblad was on the ice after the morning skate Monday and is unlikely to play against the Colorado Avalanche (9 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS, ALT, TVAS).
Florida coach Paul Maurice said Sunday the defenseman would be a “morning-skate decision” and would not disclose Ekblad’s injury after he did not practice.
“General body,” Maurice said. “Let’s start a new one: General body, malaise.”
Maurice did say whatever Ekblad is dealing with “just cropped up” during a 3-2 shootout win against the Penguins on Friday. Ekblad was held out for the end of the third period and did not appear in overtime.
Niko Mikkola participated in the morning skate but is also unlikely to play; the defenseman has missed the past four games with an upper-body injury.
The Panthers recalled defenseman Tobias Bjornfot from Charlotte of the American Hockey League on Sunday. — George Richards
