Mrazek blanked the Stars, turning aside all 28 shots he faced in a 1-0 victory.
The 29-year-old missed 31 games after fracturing his thumb during a win over the Stars on Jan. 30. Alex Nedeljkovic performed admirably and James Reimer also shouldered part of the workload in Mrazek's absence.
Mrazek underwent thumb surgery in early February. He stopped 43 of the 45 shots he faced while on a conditioning stint with the AHL's Chicago Wolves on Thursday.
He got off to an excellent start to the 2021 season before suffering the injury in his fourth game of the campaign. Mrazek posted a .955 save percentage and a pair of shutouts in that quartet of contests.
The veteran netminder is in his third season with the Hurricanes. He's a pending unrestricted free agent, as is Reimer.
Dallas Stars head coach Rick Bowness was forced to leave the bench during Sunday's contest against the Carolina Hurricanes due to the league's COVID-19 protocol, the team announced.
He was on the bench for the first two periods but will miss the third period. Assistant coach John Stevens will assume head coaching responsibilities for the remainder of the game.
The Stars experienced a COVID-19 outbreak prior to the beginning of the season when a number of players tested positive during training camp. Goaltender Anton Khudobin was placed on the league's COVID-19 protocol list Saturday.
Bowness is the NHL's oldest active head coach at 66 years old.
The New Jersey Devils kept forward Kyle Palmieri out of the lineup Sunday afternoon against the Washington Capitals for precautionary reasons, the team announced.
The move was made in anticipation of a deal ahead of the April 12 trade deadline, his agency, Bartlett Hockey, confirmed. Palmieri is projected to be one of the top forwards available.
The 30-year-old has one year remaining on his current deal and carries a cap hit of $4.65 million.
Palmieri has spent the past six seasons with New Jersey. Since his arrival in 2015, he leads the club with 140 goals and 266 points over 397 games.
The Brazil variant has reportedly affected some members of the team. Symptoms have apparently included vomiting, cramping, and dehydration. Family members of the players and coaches have contracted the virus, too.
Chatted briefly with a couple people who are dealing with the current Covid situation with the #Canucks - it’s tough, some of these guys can’t get out of bed. “Absolute shock to the body.”
A total of 14 Canucks players appeared on the NHL's COVID-19 protocol list Saturday, doubling from seven Friday. The list is updated daily at 5 p.m. ET. The NHL is reportedly assuming the entire team will test positive.
General manager Jim Benning issued the following statement Sunday afternoon.
COVID-19 continues to be very serious and we encourage everyone to follow the public health orders. We hope to have further information to share in the coming days. Stay safe and healthy. pic.twitter.com/qJqMZyUSFY
Every week, theScore offers a fantasy hockey column detailing a handful of moves you should make. This edition focuses on Week 12. Roster percentages and position eligibility are courtesy of Yahoo.
Add Linus Ullmark
Team: Sabres Position: G Rostered: 19%
Adding a Sabres goalie may not sound appealing, but Ullmark is really good. He's 7-5-3 with a .921 save percentage and a 2.44 goals-against average this season. Ullmark was hurt for the bulk of Buffalo's 18-game losing streak, but he's worth rostering in the majority of fantasy leagues now that he's healthy.
Add Adin Hill
Norm Hall / National Hockey League / Getty
Team: Coyotes Position: G Rostered: 19%
Hill has started every game for the Coyotes since March 23 with Darcy Kuemper and Antti Raanta injured. The 6-foot-6 24-year-old has filled in admirably during that span, going 4-1-0 with a .910 save percentage entering Sunday. Arizona plays four games this coming week, so Hill could start each contest if Kuemper and Raanta remain out.
Drop Canucks players
The Canucks are undergoing a severe battle with COVID-19. Everyone on Vancouver can be dropped in redraft leagues unless you can place players with postponed games on NA or IR+ spots. It's hard to imagine the team will return to action anytime soon.
Add David Krejci
Steve Babineau / National Hockey League / Getty
Team: Bruins Position: C Rostered: 21%
The Bruins are one of two teams with five games this coming week. Krejci has just two goals this season but he's been heating up, recording 10 points in his last seven contests. Boston split up the perfection line for the time being, so Krejci has the benefit of playing on a line with David Pastrnak.
The Flyers are the NHL's other team with five games this coming week. Voracek hasn't been as productive as Krejci lately, but he still has four points in his last three contests and 13 in his last 12 games.
The NHL will discuss the possibility of returning to a bubble for the 2021 postseason, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported on "Saturday Headlines."
The league hosted the 2020 playoffs in separate bubbles in Toronto and Edmonton. Whether or not the same measures will be used depends on how the COVID-19 pandemic evolves, Friedman adds.
Over 33,000 tests were administered during last season's 24-team playoffs, and zero positive results were returned. Teams entered their respective bubbles on July 26, and the Tampa Bay Lightning won the Stanley Cup on Sept. 28.
Nearly every team has had at least one player enter COVID-19 protocol since the 2020-21 season began Jan. 13. The Vancouver Canucks currently have 14 players on the COVID-19 list, and the Brazil variant of the coronavirus has reportedly infected some of those players.
The regular season is scheduled to end May 8, with the postseason beginning May 11, but those dates are subject to change if the league needs to reschedule games.
Head coach John Tortorella didn't offer much when asked about Roslovic's play.
"(Jack's) still a work in progress, yeah," Tortorella told CBJ Radio's Bob McElligott. "And that's where I'll leave it."
However, the Blue Jackets bench boss voiced his displeasure with Roslovic's game in a 3-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday.
"I didn't like Jack's line," Tortorella said postgame, according to Brian Hedger of The Columbus Dispatch. "I didn't like Jack's play. But I'm not going to criticize anybody. I shouldn't. I thought 99% of this hockey club played their (butts) off tonight."
Roslovic ranks third on Columbus with 22 points through 30 games this season but has just two points over his previous six outings.
The Blue Jackets acquired Roslovic and Patrik Laine in a trade that sent Pierre-Luc Dubois to the Winnipeg Jets in January. Despite Laine and Dubois being the headliners of the deal, Roslovic leads all three players in points since the transaction.
Tortorella sat Dubois before he was traded to Winnipeg. Laine has also been benched by Tortorella on multiple occasions this season.
The Brazil variant of the coronavirus has reportedly infected some of the players.
On Thursday, the NHL postponed the Canucks' games through Tuesday after placing two Canucks players and a staff member in the league's COVID-19 protocol.
