Fantasy hockey injury update: January 18

An update on NHL injuries that are relevant to fantasy hockey for the week of January 18. 

Injuries are a daily part of life in the NHL. From routine bumps and bruises to major setbacks, coaches have to constantly deal with players being unavailable for games. The tricky thing with hockey injuries is the fact that most teams release little or no information when an injury does in fact occur.

Currently, there is a long list of NHL players dealing with injuries, some of which carry heavy fantasy implications. Below you’ll find the latest list of injuries around the league that will have the biggest impact on fantasy hockey lineups in the coming week.

Kris Letang- Pittsburgh Penguins (D): Letang suffered an injury to his wrist on Friday when he took a slash. He was able to return after it happened but then failed to practice with the team on Saturday. He was a game-time decision on Sunday and ended up not playing. There’s no word on the extent of the injury or when he might be ready to return from this latest injury. As of now he’ll be a game-time decision for Monday’s contest.

Braden Holtby- Washington Capitals (G): Holtby left Sunday’s game against the Rangers in the second period and didn’t come back out of the locker room for the third period. The word is that he was suffering from dehydration. If that’s all it was, then don’t expect him to miss any starts. Of course, hockey teams have been known to downplay injuries, so just be sure to check Holtby’s status before Washington’s first game of the week on Tuesday.

James van Riemsdyk- Toronto Maple Leafs (W): The Toronto Maple Leafs were enjoying a productive season out of James van Riemsdyk but he will now be out of action for an extended period of time thanks to a broken bone in his foot. He’s been out since January 9 and the expected timetable was set at six-to-eight weeks. There haven’t been any other updates, so for now, don’t expect to see JVR back in back until at least March.

David Savard- Columbus Blue Jackets (D): Columbus continues to deal with a rash of injuries, the most-recent being to defenseman David Savard, who left the game on Wednesday with an upper-body injury. There are no specifics on the injury or when he’ll return, though the word out of Columbus is that it will take a while for him to recover.

Aaron Ekblad- Florida Panthers (D): Florida’s young blueliner took a big hit during a game on January 10 and has not returned to action. The unconfirmed report is that he’s dealing with a concussion. According to the team, he did practice the past weekend and it was thought that he could possibly suit up for the Game on Sunday, but he remained out. A return to game action does seem likely this week.

John Carlson-Washington Capitals (D): Carlson remained out of the lineup the entire past week despite positive news on his return that came out of Washington the week before. He didn’t travel with the team to Buffalo on Saturday and also didn’t suit up for the home game Sunday. The word is that he’s been skating on his own but there is no official word on when he’ll return from his lower-body injury.

Mike Cammalleri- New Jersey Devils (W): Cammalleri still has not played in a game since December 30 after suffering an upper-body injury. It was expected that he would return this past week, but that didn’t happen. Now the word is that he will definitely make his return this week when the Devils play on Tuesday.

Drew Stafford- Winnipeg Jets (W): Stafford was hurt in a game on Thursday but he was able to return and finish. However, he was held out of Friday’s contest and there is no word on his status or even what the injury is. Winnipeg’s next game is Monday, so check his status prior to puck drop.

Jake Allen- St. Louis Blues (G): An update on Allen’s injury came out this past week and it wasn’t good news for the Blues. He’s dealing with a knee injury and has been placed on injured reserve. There’s no exact word on a return other than the fact that he’s officially listed as week-to-week.

Jannik Hansen- Vancouver Canucks (W): Hansen is still dealing with an upper-body injury and has missed five games because of it. The good news is that he started skating again this past week and was close to paying on Sunday. It seems the winger could make his return to action in a game this week.

David Krejci- Boston Bruins (C): Krejci was placed on injured reserve on December 28 and was initially considered week-to-week. He has yet to return and didn’t travel with the Bruins on their most recent road trip. However, there could be some good news for Krejci and the Bruins, as it was reported this past weekend that he could be upgraded to day-to-day, meaning that a return could be getting closer for Krejci.

Jiri Hudler- Calgary Flames (W): Hudler returned from his groin injury this past Wednesday and quickly made his presence known with a two-assist effort. Unfortunately, he tweaked the groin again and had to sit out of Saturday’s game. No other information is known at this time.

Jay Bouwmeester- St. Louis Blues (D): Bouwmeester hasn’t played since getting injured in a game on January 8. He’s listed as week-to-week with an upper-body injury and isn’t expected to return to action anytime soon.

Curtis McElhinney- Columbus Blue Jackets (G): McElhinney is still on injured reserve with an ankle injury that he sustained during a game on January 2. There have been no updates and for now he remains out for the unforeseeable future.

Connor McDavid- Edmonton Oilers (C): There hasn’t been an update on McDavid since last week. He won’t return from his broken clavicle until sometime after All-Star Weekend, but it’s not clear exactly when that will be. For now, his earliest return won’t be until February, but check back later for a clearler timetable.

Nick Foligno- Columbu Blue Jackets (W): Foligno is still dealing with an upper-body injury that he suffered during a game on January 9. There has been no update on his status and he remains on injured reserve.

Sergei Bobrovsky- Columbus Blue Jackets (G): Bobrovsky has been taken off of injured reserve and should be good to go this week. He didn’t play over the weekend but since he is no longer on IR a return this week seems more than likely.

Mike Smith- Arizona Coyotes (G): The outlook for Smith hasn’t changed, as he’s still scheduled to be out until at least mid-February after undergoing core muscle surgery on December 15. However, he started skating in pads this past week for a short amount of time, but is still at least a month away from being ready to hit the ice for game action. While Smith has been out Louis Domingue has been a pleasant surprise for the Coyotes and would likely still remain the starter for the time being.

Ondrej Pavelec- Winnipeg Jets (G): Pavelec has started skating and could be ready to make his return to the Jets by the end of January. However, Connor Hellebuyck has played well in his absence and won’t necessarily yield the starting job to Pavelec, at least not right away.

Carey Price- Montreal Canadiens (G): Price is still on injured reserve but started to do some light skating this past week. He’s been out since November 25 with a leg injury and will be out at least until the All-Star break. He’s already been out longer than the six-week diagnosis that was given back in November. That initial timetable put Price’s return sometime in mid-January.