It is never easy to foresee the unforeseen. Injuries happen every day in the NHL and here at FantasyAlarm, our goal will be to help you try to stay on top of those maladies. Counting all the latest bumps, bites, and bruises, there were 16 players held out of lineups. Three of those are long term injuries from a previous year. Those players are likely not to return or have retired. That leaves 14 who have been hurt this season. Here are some of the more notable ouches out there and their possible prognosis on this Friday. Periodic updates and returns are provided as well. The latest walking wounded is listed below. With only eight teams to monitor, the articles now are shorter. New York has been deemed healthy for now.
Centers
Calle Jarnkrok missed the first game with what has been deemed an undisclosed injury. This is the time of year where injuries are kept as secretive as humanly possible. Peter Laviolette has gone on the record saying he is hopeful that Jarnkrok can return for Game 2. The center is about 50-50 to return. No one will know until probably morning skate or maybe even warm-ups tonight. There will be some updates on social media as soon as today possibly. Remember, he was a surprise scratch for game one so that may be encouraging.
Paul Stastny did return for Game 5 for St. Louis versus the Minnesota Wild. The MCL sprain turned out to be mild in nature and that allowed thecenter to come back and has been excellent in the two games. He will continue to take on a full load as St. Louis tries to get back into their series tonight against the Nashville Predators.
Wingers
Kevin Fiala is out for the season with a fractured left femur suffered on Wednesday night against St. Louis. He was put into the boards awkwardly and his left leg hit at a violent speed. Femur breaks like this typically need a lot of momentum and forward velocity. He was taken off via stretcher for fear of arterial and ligament tears. The expectation is that Fiala will be out 4-6 months at least. There is some growing concern that the timeline could be 6-9 months plus. Video from si.com shows this in detail and it is as ugly as it looks.
Tom Pyatt was thought to be back for game one but that was not the case. Pyatt’s upper body injury which could be an AC joint ailment, was enough to keep him out but he is close. Keep an eye on him for Saturday afternoon to see if he draws into the lineup for game two against the New York Rangers. With the way Ottawa played in game one, Pyatt may still not draw in.
Defensemen
Sami Vatanen is banged up with an upper body injury believed to be in the shoulder area. The good news is that with the rest from round one, it is possible that Vatanen could be back sometime in round number two. That first game though saw the return of Cam Fowler but not Vatanen. He could be back tonight so keep an eye on reports. Kevin Bieksa is doubtful with an undisclosed injury so if Vatanen draws in, it would be in place of Bieksa basically. The Anaheim defenseman is vital on the power play and does stabilize the defensive core some. They can use all the help given that Edmonton can strike quickly and often at times.
Karl Alzner was thought to return for game one at first for Washington but it turns out he needs a little more time. The upper body injury he suffered from a heavy hit in the Toronto series has not fully healed. He will be monitored often to see if the defenseman can return on Saturday for game two against Pittsburgh. Alzner is a vital cog in the wheel even though Nate Schmidt has filled in admirably for the Capitals.
Goalies
Matt Murray is week to week with a groin injury. He still is not skating and the recommendation is the goalie is out for round two at the minimum. This is the Marc-Andre Fleury show until further notice. So far, Fleury has been outstanding, going 5-1 in the playoffs. Sometimes there are reasons why one does not trade the 1B or backup goalie. If any updates do arise, we will be the first ones on it via social media. Let’s see what happens next week even if it may be more of the same.
Chris Wassel can be heard on Fantasy Hockey X every week and on various places throughout the internet. He can be followed on Fantasy Alarm and Twitter @ChrisWasselDFS. A special thanks this week to nhl.com, Brian Metzer, Pete Jensen, Eric Stephens, Dan Rosen, and Selene Parekh of The Fantasy Doctors for all their information. Thanks to all the beat writers that make this column possible each week. It is more difficult to find injury information of any kind in the playoff sometimes. These writers make that easier.