The Montreal Canadiens removed forward Josh Anderson from Saturday's loss to the Calgary Flames due to flu-like symptoms, head coach Claude Julien said postgame.
"They chose to send him home," Julien said. "Obviously, we don't want that spreading, but he's tested negative for (COVID-19 and) he'll be tested again (Sunday). But with everything that's going on right now, it was cautionary measures by our medical staff."
Anderson played seven shifts in the first period of his team's 2-0 loss, but he logged only one in the second frame and one more in the third. The Canadiens then announced he wouldn't return.
The 26-year-old has collected four goals and an assist in his first eight games with Montreal. The club signed him to a seven-year, $38.5-million contract in October after acquiring him in a trade sending forward Max Domi to the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Montreal Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin denied reports that defenseman Victor Mete has requested a trade despite the player's agent saying the opposite.
"Not true and not trading him," Bergevin wrote in a text message to TSN's Pierre LeBrun.
It was reported Saturday that Mete wants out of Montreal. His agent, Darren Ferris, said the request stems from a lack of playing time.
"There isn't opportunity to get in the lineup," Ferris said, according to LeBrun. "It's best for both the player and the team."
Mete has been a healthy scratch in each of the Canadiens' eight games this season, failing to crack a stout Montreal blue line after the additions of veteran Joel Edmundson and dynamic rookie Alexander Romanov.
The Habs' reconstructed defense corps has paid dividends to this point, as the club is 5-1-2 on the year.
Mete, 22, appeared in 51 games for Montreal last season, registering 11 points while averaging 16 minutes per night. He carries a $735,000 cap hit and will be a restricted free agent at the end of the campaign.
Bennett's agent confirmed as much to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman.
"There was a rumor going around (Saturday) morning that Bennett might want a change of scenery, and I did call his agent, Darren Ferris, who said, 'Yes, that's true, he would like it to be considered,'" Friedman reported on the latest edition of "Saturday Headlines."
The Flames have not commented on the situation, according to Friedman.
"One thing I've gleaned in just calling around is that they're not in any hurry to do it," he added.
Bennett is in his sixth full season with the Flames, who drafted him fourth overall in 2014.
The 24-year-old has failed to live up to the lofty expectations that accompany his draft position. He entered Saturday's game against the Montreal Canadiens with no goals and one assist in six contests.
Bennett posted a career-high 18 markers and 18 helpers as a rookie in 2015-16, but he hasn't matched that output since then. He did produce five points in as many games during the 2018-19 playoffs, though, adding five goals and three assists in 10 postseason contests in 2020.
Konecny is tied as the team's leading scorer with five goals and is second in points with eight through eight games. However, he's taken just one shot on goal and collected only one point - an assist - over his last three contests.
Vigneault acknowledged Konecny is one of the club's best three forwards and is doing some good things, but the bench boss cited both the team's lackluster five-on-five play as well as the 24-year-old forward's struggles in those situations. Vigneault said he spoke to Konecny about it Saturday morning.
"I've been talking to the players about it for some time, areas we need to be better at, areas that we have been good at in the past," the head coach said. "TK is the one tonight who is not going to play. His five-on-five game needs to be better in the areas that he's aware of."
Vigneault added he's asked the club to play better at five-on-five "basically after every game."
Konecny led the Flyers with 24 goals and 61 points in 2019-20.
Sam Morin, a former defenseman who the Flyers converted to forward before the start of the season, will make his 2021 debut with Konecny out.
Ovechkin, Orlov, center Evgeny Kuznetsov, and goaltender Ilya Samsonov had been in quarantine since Jan. 20 after violating COVID-19 protocols. Kuznetsov and Samsonov remain in quarantine.
The Caps went 3-0-1 without four of their most important players.
With pivot Lars Eller likely to miss his second straight game due to a lower-body injury, winger T.J. Oshie is expected to shift to the middle and play between Ovechkin and Richard Panik on Saturday - assuming Ovechkin suits up.
Defenseman Vince Dunn seems to have fallen out of favor with the St. Louis Blues. In his fourth NHL season, he hasn't made the strides St. Louis expected. He still struggles defensively and was already a healthy scratch this year.
However, the 2015 second-round pick remains an intriguing player and could benefit from a fresh start. He's an excellent skater with a heavy shot and good vision. Over the last three seasons he ranks 20th among qualified defenseman in goals per 60 minutes and 51st in points per 60 minutes. He's posted strong possession numbers over the last three years, too, albeit in soft matchups with lots of offensive zone starts.
Dunn still has upside, but it will require the right fit in order to unlock some of his potential. The Blues have always had a strong blue line, which has made it difficult for him to carve out a significant role. He needs to go to a team thin on the back end - not only so he can receive enough playing time, but so they're able to protect him in this offseason's Seattle expansion draft.
With the Blues reportedly dangling him in trade talks, we picked five teams that should take a flier on the 24-year-old.
Ottawa would be able to give Dunn around 18-20 minutes per night (he was only averaging 16:32 in St. Louis) and time with the second power-play unit. The team is in clear rebuilding mode, so even if there are some hiccups this season, it's worth it if he can develop into a legitimate top-four defenseman.
Dunn is a left-shot defenseman, so he could fill in on the team's blue line without taking ice time away from someone who is a clear part of the team's future.
New York Rangers
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The Rangers are much further along in their rebuild than the Kings, but their blue line is also uneven. Jacob Trouba, Adam Fox, and Tony DeAngelo form a solid right side, but the left side has some holes. Former first-rounder K'Andre Miller has impressed in his rookie campaign, and 22-year-old Ryan Lindgren has some potential. But Jack Johnson and Brendan Smith likely don't have futures with the club.
Both Fox and Miller are exempt from the expansion draft, so if Dunn flourished in the Big Apple, the Rangers could still protect him, Trouba, and either DeAngelo or Lindgren.
Winnipeg Jets
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The Jets seem like the least likely team on this list to acquire Dunn. It would create an issue for the expansion draft, leaving the team to decide between protecting Dunn or Dylan DeMelo (assuming Josh Morrissey and Neal Pionk are protected).
Additionally, for a team trying to compete this year, Canada's 14-day quarantine rule for crossing the border is a hassle, and they're already going through it with Pierre-Luc Dubois. This isn't as big of an issue for the Senators since they're rebuilding.
However, the Jets do have holes on their blue line, so nothing can be entirely ruled out. Dunn would provide an immediate upgrade over Nathan Beaulieu, Derek Forbort, and Sami Niku.
Fiala was ejected from Minnesota's 5-3 win over Los Angeles in the second period after plowing Roy into the boards from behind.
The NHL's explanation said Fiala was "entirely in control of how this play develops," adding "from the time the puck is dumped in, he sees nothing but Roy's numbers."
The league also added "the onus is on Fiala to create a new angle of approach" to either deliver a clean hit, avoid making it, or reduce the amount of contact and minimize the danger.
Officials gave Fiala a five-minute boarding major and a game misconduct.
Roy didn't return to the game, but Kings head coach Todd McLellan said afterward he expected the blue-liner to be able to travel with the club.
