Fantasy Hockey Injury Report 11/11/21
2 Fs, 5 Ds, 1 G
Good Morning! Today’s fantasy hockey injury report covers eight players. I go through each team’s lines and try to determine how they will look without the injured player, and the fantasy impact of those that get moved up/down in the lineup.
Forwards: Nikolaj Ehlers, Trent Frederic
Defense: Samuel Girard, Alex Carrier, Will Butcher, Josh Brown, Mark Friedman
Goalie: Vitek Vanecek
Boston Bruins: Trent Frederic (C/L) - Not much in terms of news is out there in the ether about Frederic’s injury. But it’s pretty clear looking at his minutes from Tuesday night that he has something going on. Nick Foligno is expected to return to the lineup tonight in his place, going on L3 with DeBrusk/Haula. Foligno has one point through two games this season.
Buffalo Sabres: Will Butcher (D) - It was revealed on Wednesday that Butcher was absent from the game on Monday with an injury he suffered over the weekend. At first glance it seemed like a logical move made by the staff to improve the daily roster. Nevertheless, Christian Wolanin came in for him and played on bottom pair, Mark Pysyk moving up with Rasmus Dahlin. Pysyk has two assists through 12 games this season.
Colorado Avalanche: Samuel Girard (D) - The offensive defenseman was injured in practice on Wednesday, and there was no information given on his status for tonight’s game. This comes as Cale Makar and Valeri Nichushkin are expected to return to the lineup. I anticipate Bowen Byram to move up to the second pair once more alongside Erik Johnson, and then I expect Ryan Murray to go on the bottom with Kurtis MacDermid. Murray has two assists through 10 games. The team is deep on defense and that is proving to be something that they should take advantage of. Trade one of these middling guys for something that can help you upfront.
Nashville Predators: Alex Carrier (D) - In a scary moment on Wednesday, Carrier was struck in the head by a puck. He was able to leave the game on his own but did not return to action. He’s likely in concussion protocol I’d surmise. Ben Harpur is the healthy extra defenseman on the roster, the likely player to slot into the bottom pair alongside Phillippe Myers. Harpur has no points through four games. Dante Fabbro took over PP2 duties from Carrier.
Ottawa Senators: Josh Brown (D) - Another player entered COVID protocol in Ottawa yesterday, Brown being the latest. Personally, I think it’s ridiculous from an NHL standpoint to reschedule their games after they forced the Sharks to play but I digress. Lassi Thomson may be the top call up for the Senators in the AHL at the moment, with two points in 6 AHL games this season. I could also see them lean towards Jacob Bernard-Docker but he has only three points in 11 AHL games this season.
Pittsburgh Penguins: Mark Friedman (D) - Similarly to the situation with Frederic, there really isn’t much out there about Friedman’s injury. He didn’t play much in their last game and he wasn’t in the lineup yesterday in practice. Both Marcus Pettersson and Chad Ruhwedel are expected to return to the lineup after spending time in the COVID protocol. Pettersson is the better of the two with four points through 8 games.
Washington Capitals: Vitek Vanecek (G) - Absent from practice yesterday, Vanecek is dealing with an undisclosed injury. He had been given the bulk of the starts so far this season as he took the job from the “goalie of the future” in Ilya Samsonov. Samsonov will now be tasked with starting tonight, currently holding a .893 save percentage. Zachary Fucale is the backup, a former 1st round pick in his own right who never found his way.
Winnipeg Jets: Nikolaj Ehlers (R/L) - For the second time this week Ehlers has appeared on the injury report. Originally, he suffered an injury in practice but it was minor and he played through it on Tuesday as a result. However yesterday he was absent from practice altogether with an illness. Given how this team has handled injuries this season I would imagine they go with Beaulieu as a 7th defenseman if Ehlers cannot play. Bumping Kristian Vesalainen to L3 with Copp/Harkins makes sense too.