van Riemsdyk has overcome an early-season shoulder injury and will play Friday in Anaheim. The Ducks sent Brian Gibbons back to Charlotte (AHL) and opened the door for van Riemsdyk to dress as a seventh defenseman. He had three goals and 11 assists (14 points) in 78 games last season.
Gustafsson, 19, was a second-round pick (No.60 overall) in 2018 and will replace Mark Letestu in the lineup on Tuesday. Gustafsson, who had 12 points (2G / 10A) in 36 games with HV71 Jonkoping of the Swedish Hockey League last year, will skate with Gabriel Bourque and Mason Appleton.
Durability has always been a concern for Malkin, who has missed 20 percent of the games over the last six years, and now he is expected to miss a large chunk of 2019-20. With Nick Bjugstad also out “longer-term," the Penguins are going to lean heavily on Jared McCann and Teddy Blueger to stabilize their second and third lines.
Karlsson missed the season opener in Vegas to be with his wife for the birth of their child but will play tonight vs. the Golden Knights. Karlsson will look to build off of a solid first season in San Jose—his 1.8 SH% is bound to bounce-back and a healthy season could result in 60-plus assists.
Karlsson was a late scratch from the Sharks season opener in Vegas. Karlsson had to attend to a personal affair and will be replaced by Tim Heed on the blueline and Kevin Labanc on the first power-play unit.
Crosby has practiced for the last two days and will play in the Penguins season opener. Crosby is set to centre the top line with Jake Guentzel and Patric Hornqvist on his wings. The 32-year-old centre is coming off of his first 100-point season since 2014.
Crosby practiced for the first time since being hit in the foot with a shot during Pittsburgh’s preseason game last Saturday. “I felt good today,” Crosby told reporters, but his status for Thursday’s season opener remains unknown. Expect another update on Thursday.
Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan said that Rust is expected to be out “longer-term” and his move to LTIR means he will miss at least 10 games (24 days). His injury means that Zach Aston-Reese will likely start the season on the Penguins fourth-line.
Robertson was selected with the No.53 overall pick in 2019 after scoring 27 goals with 28 assists (55 points) in 54 games with the Peterborough Petes (OHL).
Silovs was selected in the sixth-round of this summer’s NHL Entry Draft. The 18-year-old has the size of a modern-day netminder, standing at 6-foot-4 and 203 lbs. Silovs had a 3.26 GAA and .914 SV% in Latvia’s top league last season.
Girard posted a career-high with 27 points (4G / 23A) in 82 games last season. Girard will be the man in Colorado to start 2020 following the trade of Tyson Barrie. However, Cale Makar could quickly elevate up the depth chart but Girard will likely play on the top-pair and second power-play to open the season.
Karlsson was set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1st but the Sharks have locked him up through the 2026-27 season. Karlsson’s new $11.5M cap-hit, represents a $5.0M raise and makes him the highest-paid defenseman in the NHL. After a slow-start and an injury plagued season, Karlsson posted his lowest point total (45) since 2012-13, but his point-per-game number (0.849) was right there with his most recent seasons.
Gustafsson was picked in the second-round (No.60 overall) in 2018 and is coming off of his second season in the Swedish Elite League. Gustafsson had two goals and 10 assists (12 points) in 36 games with HV71 and also had three assists in five games while playing with Sweden at the U20 World Juniors.
Bemstrom, 19, was a fourth-round pick (No.117 overall) in 2017 and finished the 2019 season with 35 points (23G / 12A) in 47 games with Djurgardens IF of the Swedish Elite League.
van Riemsdyk suffered a shoulder injury in Game 2 vs. the Islanders and will miss the rest of the year after undergoing surgery. Haydn Fleury has replaced van Riemsdyk on the back-end and Jake Bean has been recalled as a reserve defenseman heading into the Eastern Conference Finals.
van Riemsdyk was hurt early in Game 2 and is out long-term with a shoulder issue. van Riemsdyk will undergo an MRI to determine the severity of the injury but head coach Rod Brind’Amour doesn’t expect to see van Riemsdyk back anytime soon.
Girard suffered an upper-body injury in Game 2 in Calgary and missed the next three games. With Girard returning to the lineup, the Avalanche are expected to go with 11 forwards and seven defenseman but it remains unclear whether Girard or Cale Makar will quarterback the second power-play unit—they alternated in Thursday’s practice.
Girard is dealing with an injury, missed the morning skate and will not play in Game 3 vs. the Flames. Luckily for the Avalanche, they signed top prospect Cale Makar on Sunday and he will replace Girard in the lineup and on the second power-play unit.
Larsson was a sixth-round pick (No.167 overall) in 2016 and finished his first season at the University of Denver, where he went 13-6-3 with a 1.95 GAA, .932 SV% and four shutouts in 22 games.
