The NHL has postponed games between the Carolina Hurricanes and the Florida Panthers scheduled for Thursday and Saturday due to COVID-19 concerns, according to The News and Observer's Luke DeCock.

More to come.

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Buffalo Sabres head coach Ralph Krueger believes Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Ivan Provorov should be disciplined for his collision with goaltender Carter Hutton on Tuesday.

"If you look at the way the elbow comes extended, you know what you're doing," Krueger said postgame, according to The Athletic's Charlie O'Connor. "It's the fourth game where a player of ours has had a violent hit to the head and hopefully there will be action for this one."

It appeared Sabres defenseman Brandon Montour pushed Provorov into Hutton.

Provorov wasn't penalized on the play.

Hutton initially stayed in the game but didn't return following the second intermission. Krueger said after the contest that Hutton was still being assessed.

With Linus Ullmark already sidelined, the Sabres turned to third-string netminder Jonas Johansson, who allowed a goal on nine shots in relief.

One of the other plays Krueger is referring to is likely Nic Dowd's headshot on Eric Staal last week. The Washington Capitals forward received a two-minute elbowing minor but no supplemental discipline.

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The Pittsburgh Penguins are eyeing unsigned Winnipeg Jets forward Jack Roslovic.

"Pittsburgh’s been pretty clear in its interest in Jack Roslovic, who is waiting for a trade from Winnipeg," Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman wrote in Tuesday's edition of "31 Thoughts."

However, Friedman cautioned that the Penguins aren't simply looking to make a reactionary move amid a slow start.

"One source indicated the interest shouldn’t be tied to the Penguins’ first two losses," he wrote. "It’s something they’ve looked at for a while."

Roslovic became a restricted free agent when the offseason began Oct. 9. In late December, his agent, Claude Lemieux, said his client wouldn't join the Jets at training camp as he waited for either a trade or a new contract.

The soon-to-be 24-year-old established career-highs with 12 goals and 17 assists in 71 games last season. He's spent all four of his NHL campaigns with the Jets, who drafted him 25th overall in 2015.

Winnipeg currently has no cap space. Pittsburgh has about $1.9 million, according to CapFriendly.

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The Colorado Avalanche traded defenseman Ian Cole to the Minnesota Wild for blue-liner Greg Pateryn, the team announced Tuesday.

Both veteran rearguards are pending unrestricted free agents. Cole carries a cap hit of $4.25 million, while Pateryn's deal holds an annual value of $2.25 million. Colorado is retaining $800,000 of Cole's cap hit, according to CapFriendly.

Cole, 31, is a veteran of 543 NHL games. He won back-to-back Stanley Cups with the Pittsburgh Penguins and is known for his gritty defensive play. His career high in points is just 26 - which he tied last season - but he's also posted strong underlying numbers, accounting for nine goals above replacement in 2019-20, according to Evolving Hockey.

Pateryn is one year younger than Cole, but also far less experienced with 270 NHL games under his belt - and 41 career points. He was worth 3.9 goals above replacement in his last full NHL season in 2018-19. Injuries limited him to just 20 games last season, though.

It's possible the Avalanche made this move to create room in the lineup for rookie Bowen Byram. Colorado was deep on the left side of the blue line with Devon Toews, Ryan Graves, Sam Girard (who had been playing his off side), and Cole. Byram, the No. 4 pick in 2019, now has an easier path to playing time, and the team saves cap space in the process.

Pateryn, a righty, will likely jostle for playing time with Conor Timmins until Erik Johnson returns from injury.

Cole is projected to play on the Wild's third pairing with Carson Soucy. Minnesota already boasted one of the league's best blue lines before adding the experienced depth piece.

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It's been 14 months since the Toronto Maple Leafs fired Mike Babcock, and the former head coach has finally opened up regarding an incident that generated headlines following his dismissal.

Rumors surfaced days after the firing that Babcock made Mitch Marner rank his teammates by work ethic during Marner's rookie season in 2016-17 and later revealed the list to the team. But Babcock said only parts of that story are true.

"Yeah, that's not how that happened, actually," Babcock said, according to The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun.

He continued: "So Mitch was in my office. We were talking about work ethic. I asked him where he ranked on the scale. And that was no problem, that was just a private thing. It was a good meeting, Mitch left. But then I was meeting, I'm pretty sure it was with (Tyler) Bozak, afterward. Bozy was an important part of our team.

"What I ended up doing - and I made a big-time mistake, I knew as soon as I did it - when we were talking about competing and I said, 'Well, look where Mitch ranks it."'

Babcock said he immediately went to find Marner to address the situation.

"Well, as soon as I did that, and he saw the list, I knew that I had made a major mistake," Babcock said, according to LeBrun. "After the meeting with Bozak, I went right into the dressing room. I grabbed Mitch and said, 'Mitch, this is what I did. I screwed you here.'"

He added: "Now, in saying that, though, what I should have done in hindsight, I should have stopped everybody and said, 'This is what I did to Mitch. I screwed him.' Now, he didn't want to make a big deal out of it. But I could have made a lesser deal of it."

Marner said in November 2019 that the incident had been surprising, adding he felt lucky his teammates had supported him and hadn't taken the list to heart.

Babcock coached the Maples Leafs to a 173-133-45 record over parts of five seasons. The club made the playoffs in three straight campaigns under Babcock but failed to win a postseason series.

NBC hired the 57-year-old in a studio role last week.

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Tuesday's clash between the Carolina Hurricanes and Nashville Predators is postponed due to COVID-19 protocol, reports ESPN's Greg Wyshynski.

More to come.

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Ottawa Senators rookie Tim Stutzle is day-to-day with a minor injury, the team announced Tuesday.

The ailment is unspecified, but Stutzle is not participating in practice and is unavailable for Tuesday's clash versus the Winnipeg Jets.

Stutzle appeared in his first two NHL games last week, averaging 13:32 of action per contest and netting his first goal in Saturday's tilt against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Drafted third overall by the Senators in October, the 19-year-old is Ottawa's top prospect.

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