The regular-season schedule resumed on Feb. 25. Check out the latest on Sidney Crosby, Connor McDavid, Mikko Rantanen, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.
TRIBLIVE.COM: It remains to be seen if Sidney Crosby will be in the Pittsburgh Penguins’ lineup when they resume their post-Olympic schedule on Thursday against the New Jersey Devils.
Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby (NHL Images).
Crosby remains hobbled by a right-leg injury that he suffered playing for Canada in the Olympic Men’s hockey tournament. He was sidelined from the final two games of the tournament, which the United States won with a 2-1 victory over Canada in the gold-medal game.
The Penguins recalled winger Avery Hayes from their AHL affiliate in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. During Monday’s practice, Hayes skated at left wing alongside right winger Rickard Rakell, who was filling in for Crosby at center. Head coach Dan Muse said this was largely a contingency plan in case the Penguins’ captain can’t play.
Muse offered no update on Crosby’s status. The long-time Penguins superstar was still trekking back from Italy with several of his Team Canada teammates on Monday.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Crosby was considered day-to-day during those final days of the Olympic tournament. He was close to playing in the gold-medal game, but took himself out of the lineup because he felt he wasn’t sufficiently recovered to help his team.
EDMONTON JOURNAL: Oilers captain Connor McDavid isn’t expected to rejoin his teammates right away when they resume their regular-season schedule.
The Oilers return to action on Wednesday against the Ducks in Anaheim, followed by a game against the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday.
Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch felt that playing 23-24 minutes in back-to-back games after travelling back from Europe wouldn’t put McDavid in the right position to help the team.
McDavid was named the most valuable player of the Olympic Men’s hockey tournament, setting a single-tournament record with 13 points. He also took over the captaincy of Team Canada with Sidney Crosby sidelined for its final two games.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Knoblauch didn’t say if McDavid would miss the first game of the back-to-back series or both. We’ll learn more about his status by Wednesday.
THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS: Star winger Mikko Rantanen was placed on injured reserve due to a lower-body injury suffered playing for Finland in the Olympics. That opens up a roster spot to activate defenseman Lian Bichsel (lower-body) from IR. Bichsel had been sidelined since Nov. 30.
Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger won’t play in Wednesday’s game against the Seattle Kraken due to travel logistics. Forward Radek Faksa’s status remains uncertain after he was injured playing for Czechia in the Olympics.
DAILY FACEOFF: Stars center Roope Hintz is a game-day decision as he recovers from an illness.
TSN: Darren Dreger reports Winnipeg Jets defenseman Josh Morrissey will reportedly miss “a good chunk of time” with an upper-body injury suffered playing for Canada in the Olympics.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Critics of NHLers skating in the Olympics will point to these injuries and travel delays as reasons why the players shouldn’t participate in these tournaments.
However, the players want to take part in the Olympics, and most NHL fans want to see them in international best-on-best tournaments. This will not prevent their participation in the 2030 Olympics or the 2028 World Cup of Hockey.
THE HOCKEY NEWS: Philip Broberg’s performance for Sweden in the 2026 Winter Olympics demonstrated why he’s the St. Louis Blues’ top defenseman.
Skating alongside veteran blueliner Erik Karlsson. The 24-year-old Broberg played big minutes for Sweden in key matches. He played on the second pairing, but wound up seeing more playing time as the tournament went on, including 24:57 of ice time in their 2-1 loss to the United States.
Broberg finished the tournament with a plus/minus of plus-2 and wasn’t on the ice for any 5-on-5 goals against.
THE MERCURY NEWS: Veteran defenseman Nick Leddy was recalled from the San Jose Sharks’ AHL affiliate, but it remains to be seen when he’ll see NHL action.
Leddy, 34, was claimed off waivers by the Sharks from the Blues last July. He began the season among their top-four defenseman, but was sidelined for several weeks by an upper-body injury, and struggled to regain his place in the lineup. Leddy was placed on waivers on Jan. 18 but went unclaimed.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Leddy’s been the subject of some trade speculation. He could end up being moved by the March 6 trade deadline.
DAILY FACEOFF: The Las Vegas Motor Speedway would like to host an outdoor NHL game. The Speedway’s vice president of sales, Aaron Crowley, said the track hosts a large number of events each year, including music festivals and large corporate events.