2019 Fantasy Hockey Injury Report: February 5

Published: Feb 05, 2019
Welcome to the Fantasy Hockey Injury Report. Once a week, we’ll take a look at some injuries around the league that may affect your fantasy hockey team. Injuries will always happen and you can’t predict when, but it’s important to be ready for the aftermath and to have a plan ready. Let’s take a look and some players who are on the shelf for the upcoming week and beyond.
Alexander Edler - Vancouver Canucks - Defence
Injury: head, day-to-day.
Canucks’ defenceman Alexander Edler had to be stretchered off the ice after falling face first onto the ice in yesterday's game and his status for the next couple of games is unknown. The team has not given an update on his status, but he was taken to a local hospital for precautionary reasons. There’s a good chance that Edler suffered a concussion, and that will most likely keep him out of the lineup for multiple weeks. We should get more information as the week moves forward, but fantasy owners may want to start looking for a replacement on the waiver wire.
Jeff Carter - Los Angeles Kings - Center
Injury: lower-body, day-to-day.
Kings’ forward Jeff Carter left last night’s game due to a lower-body injury and his status for Tuesday’s game against the Devils is still up in the air. Just like the rest of the team, the 34-year-old isn’t having a great season. His 25 points in 51 games puts him on pace to finish with less than 40-points, something Carter hasn’t done since 2012-13 (He had 22 points last season, but only played 27 games due to injury). It’s no secret that Carter isn’t getting any younger and his offensive abilities aren’t what they used to be. For fantasy owners, it may be time to let go of Carter and look for someone else to replace him, even if his lower-body injury isn’t serious.
Brayden Point - Tampa Bay Lightning - Center
Injury: lower-body, day-to-day.
Centerman Brayden Point is dealing with a lower-body injury and his status for Tuesday’s game against the Golden Knights is still undetermined. He was held out of Saturday’s game for precautionary reasons, but Derek Lalande did say that “had Saturday been a playoff game, Point would have been available”. That’s good news for fantasy owners. We should get an update on the kid’s status for tonight’s game at practice, but as of right now, it’s safe to expect that Point will play.
Paul Byron - Montreal Canadiens - Winger
Injury: forearm, day-to-day.
Montreal Canadiens forward Paul Byron suffered a forearm/shoulder injury on Sunday and his status for Tuesday’s game against the Ducks is questionable. Byron was visibly upset leaving Sunday’s game after falling awkwardly on his arm, and since then, the team has not updated his status. There’s a good chance that the veteran speedster isn’t ready to go tonight, or for the remainder of the week. The 29-year-old isn’t a huge fantasy loss, but he’s fantasy relevant thanks to his speed and his ability to score short-handed goals. We should get an update on his status before tonight’s game.
Evgeni Malkin - Pittsburgh Penguins - Center
Injury: upper-body, day-to-day.
Penguins’ forward Evgeni Malkin has missed the last two games with an upper-body injury and his status for Tuesday’s game is still not known. The Russian superstar suffered the mysterious injury prior to the all-star break and it seems that the injury was serious enough that he was not 100% ready to go this past weekend. The team hasn’t placed the veteran forward on IR, so there’s a good chance that Malkin is getting close to a return. For fantasy owners, it’s probably best to wait this one out before looking to add a player off the waiver wire.
Erik Karlsson - San Jose Sharks - Defence
Injury: lower-body, day-to-day.
It looks like defenceman Erik Karlsson is in danger of missing multiple games due to a lower-body injury. The 28-year-old was a non participant in Saturday’s game against the Coyotes and there is talk that he will miss more than one game. The team hasn’t given an update on their superstar defenceman, but we should know more about his status for tonight’s game after morning skate. For fantasy owners, this isn’t good news. After a slow start, Karlsson has found his all-star form and has been nothing short of great for his new team. Let’s hope he returns to the lineup sooner rather than later.
Sami Vatanen - New Jersey Devils - DefenceInjury: concussion, out indefinitely.
Looks like Sami Vatanen is going to be out of the lineup for awhile. The Devils’ defenceman was placed on IR last week with a concussion and the team has no timetable as to when we can expect him to return to the lineup. At this point, fantasy owners may want to drop him and look for a replacement. Concussions are hard to handle and timeframes are usually quite vague. Even if he does return in a couple of weeks, that may be too late for fantasy hockey teams looking to make a playoff push. If you can stash him on IR, great, but if you don’t have that luxury, just cut him loose.
Player News
Christian Yelich is leading off for the first time this season on Monday against the Padres.
Yelich has been moved up to the top of Milwaukee’s batting order with Jackson Chourio hitting fifth and Sal Frelick moved down to the fifth spot. The 33-year-old has been on a roll lately, batting .296 (8-for-27) with one homer and four RBI over his last seven games.
Brendan Donovan was scratched from the lineup for Monday’s series opener against the Giants.
No word yet on the reason for the move. It’ll be José Fermín taking over at second base with Lars Nootbaar moving up to the leadoff spot in his absence.
Bruce Zimmermann will start on Tuesday against the Padres.
Zimmermann was called up over the weekend to pitch in long relief for Milwaukee, but he’s going to take the ball on Tuesday in place of an injured Brandon Woodruff (lat) to kick off a bullpen game. It’ll likely be a one-and-done outing for the 30-year-old southpaw as part of Milwaukee’s rotation. He’s not a recommended fantasy option, especially in a road tilt against the playoff-bound Padres.
Seahawks RB Zach Charbonnet (foot) was listed as a full participant on the team’s estimated practice report Monday.
The Seahawks did not hold a practice Monday as they prepare to face the Cardinals on a short week, but the team’s listing of Charbonnet as a full participant is nonetheless striking after he missed Week 3 with a foot injury. Kenneth Walker managed just 53 percent of the team’s offensive snaps in the Week 3 win, the size of which can likely be explained by the extremely positive game script the Seahawks found themselves in against the Saints. It will be interesting to see how the snap and opportunity rates shake out should Charbonnet return to the lineup on Thursday Night Football.
Masyn Winn (knee) is scheduled to undergo arthroscopic surgery on Thursday, according to Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol.
Winn was shut down for the rest of the season back on September 13 with a torn meniscus in his right knee that he played through for the majority of the year. The 23-year-old shortstop wrapped up his second big-league season with a .253/.310/.363 triple-slash line with 72 runs scored, nine home runs, 51 RBI and nine stolen bases in 537 plate appearances over 129 games. He’s expected to be fully recovered in time for spring training.
Angels activated RHP Ryan Zeferjahn from the 15-day injured list.
Zeferjahn returns to Los Angeles’ relief mix prior to Tuesday’s series opener against the Royals following a two-week absence with right knee tendinitis. The 27-year-old middle reliever has posted a pedestrian 4.77 ERA and 72/33 K/BB ratio across 54 2/3 innings over 59 appearances this season.