Fantasy Hockey

McLain (shoulder) is about a week away from a follow-up appointment that will give the Reds a better idea on his timetable, Gordon Wittenmyer of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

If all goes well with his exam, McLain could start working out at the Reds' spring training facility in Arizona. He doesn't have an official return date yet. "It's still way too early to determine a time when he would get back to us, but the goal would still be early August ideally," manager David Bell said.

The Reds expect Stephenson (hand) to return Friday against the Orioles, Gordon Wittenmyer of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Stephenson is hitting .231/.338/.415 with three homers and 10 RBI, but his Statcast metrics (20.4% barrel rate, 93.4 mph average exit velocity) suggest better results could be forthcoming. Moreover, Stephenson has been considerably better than his backup Luke Maile, who is hitting just .163/.250/.256 so far on the season.

Encarnacion-Strand (hand) and teammate Tyler Stephenson are expected to return Friday when the Reds host the Orioles, Gordon Wittenmyer of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

The Reds' bats went quiet on their 2-4 road trip against the Rangers and Padres, hitting .201 as a team while averaging 10 strikeouts per game on the trip. Of course, Encarnacion-Strand has been struggling this year in both aspects, hitting .196 with a troubling 3:31 BB:K ratio in 108 plate appearances. Perhaps with better health and better weather he will come close to displaying the form he showed in 2023, when he hit .270/.328/.477 in 241 plate appearances at the big league level.

Cole (elbow) is expected to throw a bullpen session Saturday, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports.

Cole will throw off a mound for the first time since being placed on the 60-day injured list with nerve irritation and edema in his right elbow in late March. The 33-year-old is reportedly targeting a return in "mid June," according to Heyman. The right-hander is eligible to be activated from the IL on May 27, but it appears as if he will remain sidelined for awhile longer than that. With his pedigree, it comes as no surprise that the Yankees are being cautious with their ace, who produced a 2.63 ERA with a 9.6 K/9 over 209 innings in 33 starts last year.

The Diamondbacks transferred Kelly (shoulder) to the 60-day injured list Thursday.

Kelly was placed on the 15-day IL on April 23 after sustaining a teres major strain in his right shoulder. Due to his transfer to the 60-day IL, Kelly will be on the shelf until at least the first week of July, and his rehab progress over the next few weeks will determine whether the right-hander will need more time beyond that window. Kelly started the season with a 2-0 record, 2.19 ERA and 0.93 WHIP over 24.2 innings through four starts.

Walston was optioned to Triple-A Reno on Thursday.

It was a brief stint for Walston, who was recalled by the Diamondbacks on Wednesday. He threw for 3.2 innings in Wednesday's loss to the Dodgers, allowing two runs on three hits and four walks while striking out five. The move corresponds with Arizona acquiring right-hander Matt Bowman from the Twins on Thursday, while Merrill Kelly (shoulder) was transferred to the 60-day IL.

Lillard tallied 28 points (7-16 FG, 4-12 3Pt, 10-10 FT), four assists and two rebounds over 35 minutes in Thursday's 120-98 loss to Indiana in Game 6 of the first round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs.

Lillard returned in Game 6 after missing the last two games with an Achilles injury, doing all he could to help Milwaukee extend the series by leading all players in Thursday's series-ending contest in scoring and threes made while ending perfect from the free-throw line. Despite dealing with some injury issues during the first-round series against Indiana, Lillard posted 28 or more points in all four of his appearances while adding four or more threes in each of those contests.

Portis ended with 20 points (8-17 FG, 1-1 3Pt, 3-7 FT), 15 rebounds and two assists over 36 minutes in Thursday's 120-98 loss to Indiana in Game 6 of the first round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs.

Portis once again dominated the glass for Milwaukee in a season-ending loss Thursday, leading all players in the contest in rebounds while ending as one of three Bucks with 20 or more points in a double-double outing. Portis stepped up nicely in the absence of Giannis Antetokounmpo (calf) in the first-round series, posting a double-double in five of the six contests while surpassing the 20-point mark in the final two games against Indiana.

Middleton recorded 14 points (6-15 FG, 1-4 3Pt, 1-1 FT), eight rebounds, three assists and two steals over 38 minutes in Thursday's 120-98 loss to Indiana in Game 6 of the first round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs.

Middleton led Milwaukee seemingly on a nightly basis over the course of the first-round series against Indiana, but was held in check in the series-ending contest Thursday while failing to record 15 points for the only time in the series. Middleton, who dealt with some foul trouble in the first half which seemed to impact his performance and aggressiveness, put together a strong opening-round series which included scoring 20 or more points in four of the six contests. In the end, his performances weren't enough to lead the shorthanded Bucks back into the series against the Pacers.

McConnell tallied 20 points (7-9 FG, 2-2 3Pt, 4-4 FT), nine assists, four steals and two rebounds over 23 minutes in Thursday's 120-98 win over Milwaukee in Game 6 of the first round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs.

McConnell was outstanding off the Pacers bench in a series-clinching victory, ending second on the team in scoring and assists while leading all players in steals and coming up one dime shy of a double-double to provide a much-needed spark on the second unit. McConnell put forth his best performance of the postseason thus far, scoring more than 10 points for the first time while handing out his highest assist total of the first round. Indiana will look for McConnell to continue to provide a spark off the bench in the second round, which proved to be key for the Pacers to close out the series against Milwaukee.

Toppin posted 21 points (8-15 FG, 3-10 3Pt, 2-2 FT), eight rebounds, two assists and one block over 24 minutes in Thursday's 120-98 win over Milwaukee in Game 6 of the first round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs.

Toppin gave Indiana a much-needed lift off the bench, leading all Pacers in scoring while connecting on a team-high-tying trio of threes and ending two rebounds shy of a double-double in just under 25 minutes on the second unit. Toppin has been stellar off the bench this postseason but posted his best outing of the playoffs thus far in the series-clinching victory. Toppin concluded the first-round series by surpassing the double-digit scoring mark in four straight outings.

Haliburton finished with 17 points (7-16 FG, 2-10 3Pt, 1-1 FT), 10 assists and six rebounds over 32 minutes in Thursday's 120-98 win over Milwaukee in Game 6 of the first round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs.

Haliburton once again provided an offensive lift for Indiana in a series-clinching victory, leading all players in Thursday's contest in assists while adding a half-dozen rebounds in a double-double performance. Haliburton recorded a double-double in three of the six games in the first round against Milwaukee, finishing with at least 15 points in four straight outings to round out the series. Haliburton, his production and his health will be key to keep an eye on as Indiana advances to the second round and hopes to continue its run in the postseason.

Knight was recalled from AHL Charlotte on Thursday, George Richards of Florida Hockey Now reports.

Knight has spent the entire 2023-24 campaign in the minors with the Checkers, logging action in 45 regular-season contests in which he posted a 25-14-5 record and .905 save percentage. Even with his promotion, Knight shouldn't be expected to get into any games, primarily serving as an emergency option behind Sergei Bobrovsky and Anthony Stolarz.

Johnston earned a pair of assists in a 3-2 win over the Golden Knights in Game 5 on Wednesday.

Johnston has been fantastic in the postseason, racking up three goals and three assists, including two power-play points, in five playoff contests. The 20-year-old center avoided the sophomore slump during the regular season, setting new personal bests in goals (32), assists (33) and shots (216).

Nugent-Hopkins earned a pair of assists in a Game 5 4-3 victory over the Kings on Wednesday.

Nugent-Hopkins has managed just two shots over his last four games, failing to find the back of the net along the way, but has chipped in five helpers over that stretch. In fact, looking back to the regular season, the veteran center has scored only one goal in his previous 10 appearances.

Roy notched a pair of helpers in a 4-3 defeat to Edmonton in Game 5 on Wednesday.

Roy was able to bring a six-game pointless streak to a close with his two helpers but it wasn't enough to stave off elimination for Los Angeles. Unless the Kings can come to an agreement soon, the blueliner is set to be an unrestricted free agent July 1. Roy should have plenty of offers if he goes to the open market after reaching the 20-point mark for the third consecutive campaign.

Gavriokov picked up an assist in a 4-3 loss to Edmonton in Game 5 on Wednesday.

Gavrikov ended the 2023-24 campaign stuck in a 17-game goal drought during which he put just 19 shots on net. During that stretch, the Russia blueliner did chip in five assists, including two in postseason action. Despite the slow end to the year, Gavrikov still managed to get back over the 20-point threshold after missing that mark last season.

Englund recorded an assist in Game 5's 4-3 defeat to Edmonton on Wednesday.

Englund registered his first points since March 15 versus the Blackhawks, a stretch of 20 games without writing his name on the scoresheet. In 82 games this year, the 28-year-old blueliner managed one goal and nine helpers, reaching the 10-point threshold for the first time in his NHL career. Fantasy players probably shouldn't;t be expecting much more out of Englund heading into the 2024-25 campaign.