Keep updated on all the injury news and roster updates from around the NHL with daily Ice Chips.
Columbus Blue Jackets
Puck drop in Monday’s game between the Blue Jackets and Senators in Ottawa will be pushed back 30 minutes to 7:30 p.m. ET due to a delay with the Blue Jackets arriving in the nation’s capital.
According to Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch, the Jackets are not scheduled to arrive in Ottawa until 3:38 p.m. ET, which would have left them just over three hours to arrive at Canadian Tire Centre and get ready for puck drop at 7:00 p.m. ET. They were scheduled to depart Columbus at 2:26 p.m. ET.
The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline reported earlier on Monday the delay is mechanical and not weather related. He also reports the NHL Players’ Association is aware of the situation.
Ottawa Senators
Goaltender Hunter Shepard was recalled by the Ottawa Senators on Monday to fill the roster spot temporarily vacated by Linus Ullmark.
The Senators announced Sunday that Ullmark had been granted a leave of absence.
In 11 games this season in the AHL this season, Shepard has a 5-5-1 record with a 3.16 goals-against average and a .905 save percentage.
A two-time Calder Cup champion with the Hershey Bears, Shepard has five games of NHL experience, all coming with the Washington Capitals earlier in his career.
The Senators will lean on Leevi Meriläinen, who starts Monday, without Ullmark. The 23-year-old netminder has a 4-6-0 with an .874 save percentage and a 3.43 GAA in 10 games this season.
Ullmark played in the Senators’ 7-5 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday, where he was pulled after allowing four goals on 14 shots. He has appeared in 28 games in his second season in Ottawa, and owns a 2.95 goals-against average and an .881 save percentage on the season.
“Linus has the full support of our organization during this time,” Senators president of hockey operations and general manager Steve Staios said in a statement. “Out of respect to Linus, we will not be making any further comments.”
Defenceman Nick Jensen will be a healthy scratch Monday against the Columbus Blue Jackets as Tyler Kleven draws in.
Forward Shane Pinto will be a gametime decision, while forward Kurtis MacDermid will draw in, head coach Travis Green said.
Chicago Blackhawks
Forward Connor Bedard was on the ice before Blackhawks practice Monday, according to WGN’s Charlie Roumeliotis.
Bedard has been out since suffering an upper-body injury on Dec. 12 and was originally expected to be out until the new year.
Roumeliotis notes Bedard did not shoot a single puck while he was on the ice.
The 20-year-old from North Vancouver had 19 goals and 25 assists for 44 points in 31 games prior to going down with the injury.
St. Louis Blues
St. Louis Blues forward Pius Suter will be re-evaluated in four weeks after suffering an ankle injury in a game on December 27, general manager Doug Armstrong announced on Monday.
Suter injured his right ankle in the 3-2 victory over the Nashville Predators.
The 29-year-old Suter has appeared in 37 games this season with seven goals and 14 points. He has averaged 16:23 of ice time in his first season in St. Louis.
Suter signed with the Blues on July 3 after spending the past two seasons with the Vancouver Canucks. Playing in his sixth NHL season, Suter has made stops with the Chicago Blackhawks, Detroit Red Wings, Canucks and Blues.
In 401 career NHL games, the native of Zurich, Switzerland has 89 goals and 176 points.
The Blues enter play on Monday ranked fifth in the Central Division and tied for 10th in the Western Conference at 15-16-8.
Utah Mammoth
The Mammoth have placed goaltender Karel Vejmelka on the injured reserve list due to an upper-body ailment.
The move is retroactive to Dec. 23.
In a corresponding move, the Mammoth have recalled goalie Matt Villalta from the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners.
Vejmelka had a 2.70 goals-against average and a .894 save percentage in 29 games prior to going down.
Villalta has yet to appear in an NHL game so far this season and owns a .903 save percentage and 2.94 GAA in 15 AHL games in 2025-26.
Buffalo Sabres
Sabres defenceman Rasmus Dahlin returned to the team in St. Louis ahead of their matchup with the Blues after taking a short absence for a personal matter.
He appears set to draw back into the lineup Monday night.
The defenceman did not play the in the team’s 4-1 victory over the Boston Bruinson Saturday, which was their eighth consecutive victory.
Dahlin ranks third on the team with 28 points despite playing in only 33 games. He took a leave of absence from the team earlier in the season in November to deal with a personal family matter.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Defenceman Erik Karlsson did not practise Monday due to an illness, the team announced.
All other Penguins skaters were on the ice, according to team reporter Michelle Crechiolo.
The three-time Norris Trophy winner played 16 shifts in 15:49 of ice time during Sunday’s 7-3 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks.