Vegas Golden Knights head coach Pete DeBoer said injured superstar Jack Eichel could be cleared for contact shortly after the club reconvenes from the All-Star break.
"The doctor was adamant that three months from surgery, there would be absolutely no contact," DeBoer said, according to the Review Journal's David Schoen. "I think coming out of this break, that's going to be on the table."
Eichel underwent artificial disc replacement surgery on his neck Nov. 12, shortly after Vegas acquired him in a blockbuster trade with the Buffalo Sabres.
He's back skating, but being cleared for contact is the key remaining hurdle before a possible return to game action.
"There's been a couple (practices) in the last week where he's maybe the best player on the ice, so I would say he's progressing pretty well," DeBoer said, per Sportsnet.
"We haven't started contact yet, I think that's the next step, and that's a big step. Obviously, everything changes once we get into full contact, but from a sheer practice and skill point of view, he's elite, elite. Every day we're out with him, I think the group gets more excited."
Eichel's addition to the Golden Knights' lineup could be what the franchise has been looking for to put it over the top. The 25-year-old is one of the top centers in the game, and he recorded 355 points over 375 games with Buffalo.
Vegas leads the Pacific Division through 46 games with 57 points. It returns to the ice after All-Star festivities Feb. 8 versus the Edmonton Oilers.
The NHL announced the assignments Thursday for this weekend's All-Star Skills Competition.
The league's top players will convene Friday in Las Vegas to showcase their wide array of talents beginning at 7:30 ET.
Here are the participants in each event.
Fastest Skater
Michael Martin / National Hockey League / Getty
Player
Team
Chris Kreider
Rangers
Adrian Kempe
Kings
Kyle Connor
Jets
Evgeny Kuznetsov
Capitals
Jordan Kyrou
Blues
Dylan Larkin
Red Wings
Cale Makar
Avalanche
Connor McDavid
Oilers
Save Streak
Joe Sargent / National Hockey League / Getty
Player
Team
Jack Campbell
Maple Leafs
Andrei Vasilevskiy
Lightning
Frederik Andersen
Hurricanes
Tristan Jarry
Penguins
Cam Talbot
Wild
Juuse Saros
Predators
Thatcher Demko
Canucks
John Gibson
Ducks
Fountain Face-Off
Icon Sportswire / Icon Sportswire / Getty
This competition is new to the event and features plenty of Sin City flair. Players will travel by boat into the famous Bellagio fountains and shoot pucks at five targets, attempting to hit them all in the least amount of time.
Player
Team
Jonathan Huberdeau
Panthers
Claude Giroux
Flyers
Jordan Eberle
Kraken
Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson
USA
Roman Josi
Predators
Nick Suzuki
Canadiens
Zach Werenski
Blue Jackets
Mark Stone
Golden Knights
Lamoureux-Davidson is a former U.S. Olympian.
Hardest Shot
Icon Sportswire / Icon Sportswire / Getty
Player
Team
Adam Pelech
Islanders
Timo Meier
Sharks
Victor Hedman
Lightning
Tom Wilson
Capitals
Breakaway Challenge
Icon Sportswire / Icon Sportswire / Getty
Player
Team
Kirill Kaprizov
Wild
Trevor Zegras
Ducks
Jack Hughes
Devils
Alex DeBrincat
Blackhawks
Alex Pietrangelo
Golden Knights
Manon Rheaume and Wyatt Russell will serve as celebrity goalies for the event.
21 in '22
Mark Blinch / National Hockey League / Getty
Another new event, this will be a blackjack-style game where players shoot pucks at giant playing cards on Las Vegas Boulevard.
Washington Capitals superstar forward Alex Ovechkin is out for Wednesday's clash versus the Edmonton Oilers and will miss All-Star Weekend after testing positive for COVID-19, the team announced.
Ovechkin was named captain of the Metropolitan Division All-Star squad. A replacement hasn't yet been selected.
Central Division captain Nathan MacKinnon is also unavailable for this year's festivities due to injury.
Ovechkin is in the midst of an MVP-caliber season. The 36-year-old is fifth in the league with 58 points and third with 29 goals. He's been to seven All-Star Games in his career and was suspended one game for skipping the event in 2020.
We have one newcomer and a shakeup within the top three in our fourth edition of the 2021-22 Calder Trophy Power Rankings.
5. Matthew Boldy, Wild
Bruce Kluckhohn / National Hockey League / Getty
Previous rank: N/A
GP
P
ATOI
XGF%
9
9
16:29
62.05%
Boldy's sample size is significantly smaller than the rest of our candidates, but he's made a notable impact to start his NHL career. The 12th overall pick from 2019 has already worked his way into Minnesota's top six and doesn't look out of place, posting nine points - the second-highest total of any rookie since our last installment - and sterling analytics to boot.
The Wild have lacked dynamic offensive playmakers for much of their existence, but Boldy's emergence within the attack alongside the likes of Kirill Kaprizov and Mats Zuccarello makes Minnesota a major threat.
4. Moritz Seider, Red Wings
Icon Sportswire / Icon Sportswire / Getty
Previous rank: 3rd
GP
P
ATOI
XGF%
46
29
22:39
48.87%
Seider's slight drop in our rankings isn't an indictment on his play; it's just a matter of being the odd man out against a highly competitive top three separated by razor-thin margins. Detroit's No. 1 defenseman of the future is still humming along, logging over 23 minutes per night and leading all freshmen in assists. He's been consistent the entire campaign, and he's likely to work his way back up this list before the season ends.
3. Lucas Raymond, Red Wings
Icon Sportswire / Icon Sportswire / Getty
Previous rank: 2nd
GP
P
ATOI
XGF%
46
35
18:05
49.04%
Raymond's overall contributions have him firmly in a finalist position, but the Red Wings sniper has gone cold with only two goals in 22 games since Dec. 1. He's added 12 assists in that span, but Raymond appears to have hit a wall after looking like a lock to win the award through the first two months of the season.
He still leads all rookies in scoring and is neck-and-neck with our top candidate in almost every offensive category, but he hasn't done enough lately to maintain a top-two spot.
2. Anton Lundell, Panthers
Eliot J. Schechter / National Hockey League / Getty
Previous rank: 4th
GP
P
ATOI
XGF%
42
32
16:25
53.15%
Lundell is the league's hottest rookie, racking up 17 points over the past month - including a five-point outburst against the Blue Jackets - despite being slotted behind a bevy of Panthers superstars. His play of late is creating enough buzz to garner national attention for Calder voters after a quiet start, and he looks the part of a future two-way superstar.
Florida has scored 67.77% of its goals when Lundell has been on the ice at five-on-five, and the Panthers have also tasked the rookie with key faceoffs and penalty kill minutes. His poor numbers on the kill blemish his overall impact, but it speaks volumes that the 20-year-old has earned enough trust from his coach to be in those critical situations.
1. Trevor Zegras, Ducks
Icon Sportswire / Icon Sportswire / Getty
Previous rank: 1st
GP
P
ATOI
XGF%
42
32
17:26
53.33%
If the Calder Trophy were a popularity contest or viral highlight showdown, Zegras would have it sewn up. The absurdly skilled Ducks rookie continues to dazzle night in and night out, and he's established himself as a household name midway through his first full season.
Michigan goals aside, Zegras is tied for the rookie lead in points per game and has strong individual metrics, helping Anaheim hang tough in the Western Conference playoff picture. It's his trophy to lose at this point.
Price is still rehabbing a knee injury that's kept him out of action since last summer's Stanley Cup Final. He addressed the media for the first time this season on Sunday.
"It's definitely an objective for me this season," Price said on returning to the Canadiens, per Sportsnet's Eric Engels.
On top of his injury, Price voluntarily entered the NHL's player assistance program in October. He exited after one month.
"It was very difficult," Price said. "I was in a position where I definitely needed to reach out and it was a trying time for sure. ... It was one that needed to be made, and ultimately it was successful. Very thankful for the help that I got."
The Canadiens sit dead last in the NHL standings and overhauled their front office this season. Price would be an attractive trade chip for contending teams in need of help in goal if he's healthy enough to play, but the former MVP says he's committed to Montreal.
"Me and my family are very happy here," he said. "We're settled in. This is our home. There's a reason I signed the contract I did here with a no-movement clause. As of right now, I have no plans to be anywhere else."
Price is under contract at $10.5 million per season until 2026. He waived his no-movement clause prior to the Seattle Kraken expansion draft but wasn't chosen.
The 34-year-old has spent his entire career with the Habs after they selected him fifth overall in 2005. He's one of the most decorated goaltenders of his generation, with Hart and Vezina Trophies on his resume along with a .917 save percentage across 707 career contests.
Josi and Kuznetsov will join the Central and Metropolitan All-Star teams, respectively, to replace the injured Nathan MacKinnon and Adam Fox.
In addition, Dallas Stars veteran Joe Pavelski - who was already named to the Central Division squad - has been promoted to captain with MacKinnon sidelined.
Josi ranks third among all defensemen this season with 43 points in 43 games. This will be his fourth All-Star appearance.
Kuznetsov has bounced back in a big way from a disappointing 2020-21 campaign, collecting 43 points and earning his second All-Star nomination.
With a goal, three shots, four hits, and nearly 18 minutes to his name, it's safe to say Evander Kane had a significant impact in his Edmonton Oilers debut on Saturday night.
"It's nice to contribute on a new team coming in, you want to show what you can do," Kane said postgame. "Obviously, it was great to get the boys on the board early and everybody kind of took off after that."
Kane suited up alongside captain Connor McDavid on the top line and opened the scoring with a deflection goal 11:21 into the opening period against the Montreal Canadiens.
Saturday's game marked Kane's first since May 2021. He said he was relieved to be able to focus on hockey again after being the subject of multiple NHL investigations over recent months.
"When you get on the ice, you kind of put everything else to bed. Hopefully, that continues," Kane said. "It was great to be back out there."
Kane was suspended 21 games in October for violating the NHL/NHLPA's COVID-19 protocol after he allegedly used a fake vaccine card. His deal with the San Jose Sharks was then terminated for breach of contract.
Before he signed with Edmonton, Kane was investigated for allegedly crossing the U.S.-Canada border eight days after testing positive for COVID-19. The league determined there was insufficient evidence.
Despite a strong showing Saturday, Kane says he still has to work out some kinks on the ice.
"Obviously, there was some rust, timing issues, getting the legs going. All to be expected," he said. "It was a good first game, there's really not much more to say than that."
The win was Edmonton's fourth in a row. The Oilers return to action Monday versus the Ottawa Senators.
Savard played Thursday against the Anaheim Ducks but was ruled out before Saturday's 7-2 loss to the Edmonton Oilers.
The 31-year-old signed a four-year, $14 million contract with the Canadiens last offseason after winning the Stanley Cup with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Savard's collected nine points in 42 games while averaging over 20 minutes per night in his first campaign with Montreal.
The Vancouver Police Department charged former Canucks forward Jake Virtanen with one count of sexual assault Thursday following an investigation.
Virtanen is not currently in custody.
He was named in a lawsuit last May after a woman, now 23, came forward regarding an incident that allegedly occurred in 2017. The lawsuit states Virtanen took the woman to a Vancouver hotel and assaulted her despite her pleas for him to stop.
Virtanen denied the allegations in June.
The Canucks placed Virtanen on leave after the allegations surfaced. He was then bought out and joined Spartak Moscow of the KHL for the 2021-22 season.
The Coyotes would use the 5,000-seat rink for all home games while they await approval and construction of a proposed permanent arena in Tempe. The franchise is reportedly negotiating a three-year deal with the Sun Devils featuring an option for a fourth season.
Due to NCAA rules, the Coyotes would not be allowed to use ASU's hockey areas, meaning they'd have to build their own. That could cost between $15 million and $20 million, one source told Morgan.
Asked whether the Coyotes would receive league approval to play in a venue with so few seats, NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said, "(It) depends on the totality of circumstances, but I wouldn't rule it out."
"As we have said many times, we are completely committed to building our future in Arizona. As part of that process, we are excited to be exploring some great temporary arena options here before we move in to a new permanent home in the Valley."
In August, the city of Glendale said that it will terminate the Coyotes' lease agreement for Gila River Arena, where the franchise has played since 2003-04, at the end of this season. In December, Glendale threatened to lock the team out of the arena unless the franchise paid outstanding state and city tax balances.
The Coyotes filed their bid for a new facility in September, but the evaluation process is ongoing. ASU's new arena is set to be completed in the fall.
Both NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and the franchise itself have publicly shut down relocation rumors amid the arena drama this season.
