OK Daily: Pacioretty Undergoes Surgery, Tuch Scores in Debut, COVID Updates

The Golden Knights, despite a laundry list of injuries, are rolling right now and sit atop the NHL’s Western Conference and Pacific Division Standings. They will take on the Anaheim Ducks Friday afternoon for the last game of the calendar year. Then they will then face off against the Winnipeg Jets, Nashville Predators, and New York Rangers all of which yours truly will be in attendance for.

Both Alex Pietrangelo and Evgenii Dadonov exited COVID-19 protocols on Thursday and rejoined the team in practices. It is also looking more and more likely with each passing day that Nolan Patrick will play sooner rather than later. However Robin Lehner and Mark Stone remain out for the Golden Knights. Alec Martinez and Jack Eichel are still on LTIR.

Vegas: The Golden Knights also got some unfortunate news on Thursday. Max Pacioretty underwent successful wrist surgery on Thursday. His timetable for a return is unknown but the team expects him to be out “indefinitely” going forward.

One player that could be inching closer to a return is Jack Eichel, who the Golden Knights traded for back in November. The Vegas Golden Knights will have to make some room for Eichel and his $10 million cap hit. But just how will general manager Kelly McCrimmon pull this off?

Buffalo: Two of the other pieces that were involved in that aforementioned Jack Eichel trade were Peyton Krebs and Alex Tuch. Both made their debut with the Buffalo Sabres last night and Tuch scored his first point as a member of his hometown team.

Toronto: As COVID-19 only continues to get worse, several Canadian teams have reduced the number of fans in attendance. The Toronto Maple Leafs are not expected to have fans for the next three weeks.

NHL News, Trade Rumors, and National Hockey Now

Pittsburgh: Three-time Stanley Cup Champion and superstar centerman Evgeni Malkin had quite the response for Pittsburgh Hockey Now’s Dan Kingerski when asked about his contract status. “I’m a pretty rich guy,” Malkin said. But what will the 35-year old’s next contract look like?

Malkin and Letang’s new contracts feature in Kingerski’s 5 Penguin Predictions for 2022.

Boston: The Bruins currently find themselves out of a playoff spot behind the Detroit Red Wings in the Atlantic Division. Joe Haggerty breaks down five roster fixes for the Boston Bruins moving forward.

Florida: Panthers defenseman MacKenzie Weegar scored his first goal in 30 games as the Panthers beat the New York Rangers. He also was caught on camera repeating “It’s so bad, it’s so bad, it’s so bad.”

everything these days pic.twitter.com/ZzgWNLryfL

— Dimitri Filipovic (@DimFilipovic) December 30, 2021

Philadelphia: Philly Hockey Now is back! Full coverage and an announcement will be made by the National Hockey Now family on January 10th Stay tuned!

Washington: The Capitals have activated Nicklas Backstrom, Evgeny Kuznetsov, and T.J. Oshie from COVID-19 protocols and Tom Wilson from injured reserve.

Detroit: The Red Wings have a lot of young and talented players like Lucas Raymond, Moritz Seider, and Dylan Larkin. But one player that tends to fly under the radar is Robby Fabbri, a versatile veteran forward for the Red Wings.

Vancouver: The Canucks have won seven-straight games under Bruce “There is is” Boudreau and are now back in the hunt for a playoff spot in the Pacific Division Standings.