On the Montreal Canadiens …
Amanda Stein: Forward Alex Galchenyuk and defenseman Andrei Markov will rejoin the team in Toronto and practice with them today.
Eric Engels: Alex Galchenyuk was injured on December 4th and the timeline for him to return was six to eight weeks. He’s returning to practice much soon than they had expected.
Montreal Canadiens: Brendan Gallagher returned to Montreal today to be examined by team doctors.
On the Carolina Hurricanes …
Terrell Williams of NHL.com: The Hurricanes have activated defenseman Justin Faulk from the IR and placed forward Elias Lindholm on the IR retroactive to December 30th with an upper-body injury.
On the Boston Bruins …
Boston Bruins: Coach Claude Julien said that David Backes wasn’t quite ready to return last night: “He’s doing really well, but not quite 100 percent.”
Steve Conroy: Forward Matt Beleskey was on the ice before practice yesterday. He’s been out since December 3rd with a knee injury. He was projected to be out for six weeks.
On the Detroit Red Wings …
Ansar Khan: Defenseman Brendan Smith re-aggravated his right knee. They will have to wait for the swelling to go down to determine the extent of the injury. Said it doesn’t feel as bad as it did before.
Ansar Khan: Coach Jeff Blashill said that Niklas Kronwall (lower-body) and Brendan Smith (knee) won’t be playing the rest of their road trip. Both will be further evaluated.
On the Florida Panthers …
George Richards: Colton Sceviour will return to the Panthers lineup on Friday. Paul Thompson will also be in the lineup.
On the New Jersey Devils …
Andrew Gross: Jacob Josefson was on the ice with the team after missing two games due to illness.
Andrew Gross of The Record: Defenseman Andy Greene is day-to-day and is questionable for tonight.
On the Tampa Bay Lightning …
Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times: Ben Bishop took shots yesterday for the second straight day. Bishop is expected to be out until mid-January with his lower-body injury. Bishop plans on returning to practice today and hopes to return during their Californian road trip that runs from January 16th to 19th.
On the Anaheim Ducks …
Eric Stephens: Center Ryan Getzlaf (lower-body) didn’t skate again at practice yesterday, so he’s probably doubtful against the Coyotes.
Curtis Zupke: Coach Randy Carlyle said that Getzlaf could skate today.
On the St. Louis Blues …
Tom Timmermann of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Defenseman Carl Gunnarsson missed last night’s game with a lower-body injury that he suffered on Monday night. He’s day-to-day and will be re-evaluated in a few days.
Defenseman Robert Bortuzzo is close to returning to the lineup.