- Tom Gulitti: Devils defenseman Bryce Salvador on returning from his bruised wrist: “It looks like I’m going to run out of time.”
- Tom Gulitti: Devils Ilya Kovalchuk wants to play again this season, even if they are eliminated. He has had no thought of shutting it down.
- Tom Gulitti of the Bergon Recond: It’s sounding like Kovalchuk could play today.
“I felt the best so far that I felt,” Kovalchuk said. “I feel pretty confident. I took a couple of one-timers and a little bit of contact, so it’s good.”
“I feel much better than even a couple of days ago,” Kovalchuk said. “With that kind of injury, it’s not just ups and downs. It’s always the same and then you make progress. It’s almost four weeks now, so I feel much better definitely, but if I’m going to play or not, you should ask Pete.”
- Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets winger Matt Calvert broke his finger on Thursday against the Kings. There is no timeline yet, but it could be two to four weeks, according to Calvert.
- Jonas Siegel: Maple Leafs Carl Gunnarsson hopes to play tonight against the Senators.
- Sarah McLellan of the Arizona Republic: Coyotes Mike Smith has missed the last two games with a lower-body injury, but he could return today. Smith skated for 45 minutes yesterday.
“That’s a positive sign,” Tippett said about Smith. “So we’ll see where he’s at (Saturday) morning.”
Coyotes winger Lauri Korpikoski, who has been out with an upper-body injury, could return as well.