Welcome to the NHL Buzz. The 2022-23 regular season is underway for all 32 teams and NHL.com has you covered with all the latest news.
Washington Capitals
Forward TJ Oshie (upper body) and defenseman Dmitry Orlov (lower body) are optimistic about being ready to play in the Capitals regular-season opener against the Boston Bruins on Wednesday after practicing Sunday. Each did not play in Washington’s preseason finale against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday after being injured against the Detroit Red Wings on Wednesday.
“That night, it was a little scary,” said Oshie, who was injured when he was checked into the boards by Red Wings forward Joe Veleno. “We didn’t know how it was going to feel in the morning and woke up in the morning and it felt a lot better than we expected. I still got to go through all the steps with (athletic trainer Jason Serbus), so I I’m not going to insert myself anywhere, but I felt really good today.”
Orlov said he tweaked something against the Red Wings and felt stiff the next day, so the Capitals held him out of practice for two days.
“Right now, I feel good,” Orlov said. “It feels normal almost and I’ve got a couple more days to feel more ready and get prepared for the first big game of the season.” — Tom Gullitti
Boston Bruins
Forwards Nick Foligno and Chris Wagner and defensemen Mike Reilly were placed on waivers Sunday.
Foligno had 13 points (two goals, 11 assists) in 64 regular-season games and one assist in seven Stanley Cup Playoff games with the Bruins last season. A 15-year NHL veteran, he has 499 points (205 goals, 295 points) in 1,021 regular-season games and 24 points (nine goals, 15 assists) in 62 postseason games with the Ottawa Senators, Columbus Blue Jackets, and Toronto Maple Leafs. and Bruins. A former captain of the Blue Jackets, he signed a two-year, $7.6 million contract (average annual value $3.8 million) with Boston on July 28, 2021.
Reilly had 17 points (four goals, 13 assists) in 70 regular-season games and played in five playoff games with the Bruins last season. Acquired from the Ottawa Senators on April 11, 2021, he signed a three-year contract with Boston on July 27, 2021.
Wagner played in one regular-season game and three playoff games with Boston last season and had five points (two goals, three assists) in 41 games with Providence of the American Hockey League. The 31-year-old has played 359 NHL games with Anaheim Ducks, Colorado Avalanche, New York Islanders and Bruins and can be an unrestricted free agent at the end of this season.
Philadelphia Flyers
Sean Couturier will not play in the season opener against the New Jersey Devils on Thursday.
The center has been considered week to week because of an upper-body injury sustained before training camp started.
“I haven’t talked to the trainers, I’m not exactly sure where they’re at with that,” coach John Tortorella said Sunday. “It’s certainly not going to be opening night. What it comes down to in days or weeks, I’m not sure.”
Couturier skated on his own for about 40 minutes. He’s been skating since the end of last week, but said Sunday was the first time he was allowed to shoot pucks and handle sticks.
“Just getting better and better every day,” he said. “Back on the ice so that’s a step in the right direction. … We’re going gradually, every day doing a little more and see how it responds every day and how it goes.
“Really day to day. They’re kind of evaluating me every day, see how I go, see how I progress. The goal is really to be 100 percent when I come back and not have to deal with anything all year.”
Couturier didn’t play last season after Dec. 18, and had season-ending back surgery on Feb. 11. He said he had been fully cleared for training camp the first week of September. — Adam Kimelman
Toronto Maple Leafs
John Tavares, who sustained an oblique injury in a 4-1 preseason win against the Ottawa Senators on Sept. 24, took part in practice on Saturday with the Maple Leafs non-game group.
The injury was expected to keep the center out for a minimum of three weeks, meaning he could miss the regular-season opener against the Montreal Canadiens on Wednesday.
“I would love to be ready to go for Wednesday, but you have to look at the big picture, four games in six nights and we have an 82-game grind,” Tavares said. “Continue to hit my checkpoints day by day, get the feedback and we’ll assess each day where I’m at.”
Jake Muzzin and Pierre Engvall each made his preseason debut against the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday. Muzzin played 17:31 and Engvall 14:49 in the 5-1 win. Neither had a point.
Muzzin, a defenseman, has been managing back discomfort during training camp. He returned to full practice on Sept. 29 after missing the first week of training camp. He is expected to skate on a pairing with Justin Holl.
Engvall, a forward, has been recovering from a foot injury sustained in the offseason. He expected to play left wing on a line with center Alexander Kerfoot and right wing Calle Jarnkrok. — Dave McCarthy
St. Louis Blues
Vladimir Tarasenko was in the lineup for the Blues’ preseason finale against the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday. He had an assist and played 14:23.
The forward did not play in a 7-0 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday after missing time with an illness earlier in the week.
Forward Ivan Barbashev, who had been dealing with a lower-body injury, was also in the lineup and scored two goals. Forward Logan Brown, who has an upper-body injury, did not play. — Lou Korac
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