NHL Player News

MacKinnon (undisclosed) will return to the lineup for Game 1 versus Los Angeles on Sunday, Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette reports.

MacKinnon sat out the season finale Thursday, ending the regular season with 53 goals, 74 assists, 350 shots on goal and a plus-57 rating over 80 contests. He practiced between Artturi Lehkonen and Martin Necas on the top line Saturday and will see first-unit power-play time as well.

McLeod (rest) was at practice Saturday and will return to action for Game 1 versus Boston on Sunday, per Rachel Lenzi of The Buffalo News.

McLeod missed his first game of the campaign against Dallas on Wednesday. He ended the 2025-26 regular season with 14 goals and 54 points in 81 regular-season appearances. Heading into the playoffs, he will center the second line. McLeod also should see time on the power play and penalty kill.

Thompson (rest) will return to the lineup for Game 1 versus Boston on Sunday, Rachel Lenzi of The Buffalo News reports.

Thompson was given the night off against Dallas on Wednesday, as the Sabres had already clinched first place in the Atlantic Division. Thompson had 40 goals and 41 assists in 81 games during the 2025-26 regular season, the third time he has hit the 40-goal mark in the last four campaigns.

Connors scored a goal and added two assists in AHL Ontario's 4-1 win over San Diego on Friday.

Connors crossed the 40-point mark for the season with this effort. He's at 15 goals, 41 points and a plus-18 rating over 65 outings this season as an AHL rookie. He also made two regular-season appearances in the NHL, but it could be a while before he's a regular for the Kings.

Alexandrov scored twice and added an assist in AHL Ontario's 4-1 win over San Diego on Friday.

Alexandrov has four goals and four assists over his last five outings. For the season, he's produced 16 goals, 40 assists, 144 shots and a minus-20 rating over 66 appearances between Ontario and Springfield. Ontario is the top team in the AHL's Pacific Division, so Alexandrov may be in line for a lengthy playoff run with the team.

Nielsen scored twice in AHL Colorado's 5-2 loss to Calgary on Friday.

Nielsen has four goals and three assists over his last five games. For the year, he's at a career-best 28 goals and 49 points over 66 appearances. Nielsen will look to keep rolling in the AHL postseason, and he's under contract with the Avalanche for 2026-27.

Mueller was reassigned to AHL Abbotsford on Friday.

Mueller had a goal in six outings with Vancouver in 2025-26. The Canucks failed to make the playoffs and have completed their regular-season schedule, but the AHL still has some more action before the Calder Cup Playoffs begin. Mueller has 16 goals and 35 points in 59 appearances with Abbotsford this campaign. Like Vancouver, Abbotsford will not be participating in the postseason this year.

Karlsson (lower body) isn't expected to participate in the 2026 postseason unless Vegas manages a long playoff run, general manager Kelly McCrimmon said Friday, per Danny Webster of the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Karlsson hasn't been explicitly ruled out for the first round, but based on that outlook, it sounds like he shouldn't be expected to play in the opening series. Vegas is set to begin its playoff run against Utah with Game 1 scheduled for Sunday. Karlsson had four goals and seven points in 14 regular-season outings in 2025-26.

McCann underwent a procedure Thursday for his lower-body injury, per Mike Benton of the Kraken Audio Network.

McCann missed the final three games of the regular season due to the injury, and he completed 2025-26 with 20 goals and 40 points in 52 outings. The 29-year-old expects to be available for the start of the 2026-27 campaign.

Hyman logged an assist and three hits in Thursday's 6-1 win over the Canucks.

Hyman missed the previous five games, but he was able to return from an undisclosed injury prior to the playoffs. The winger saw 18:11 of ice time, so he looks good to go in his usual top-six role. He was productive in limited time this regular season with 31 goals, 52 points, 159 shots on net and 56 hits over 58 outings.