Welcome to another edition of the Fantasy Hockey Injury Report. Every week, we will discuss some key injuries around the league and how they may affect your fantasy hockey team.  It’s never easy to deal with the injury bug, but it doesn’t have to be the demise of your fantasy hockey team. Let’s take a look at who’s dealing with what this week!

 


Taylor Hall - Boston Bruins - Lower-body

Taylor Hall is expected to miss the rest of the regular season due to a lower-body injury. He was placed on LT-IR last week and there is no timetable for his return. The Bruins went out to acquire Tyler Bertuzzi to help fill the void, but in fantasy hockey, Hall being out for the rest of the year means we can go ahead and drop him. He finished the 2022-23 season with 16 goals and 20 assists.


Cam Talbot - Ottawa Senators - Lower-body

Cam Talbot was unable to suit up for Monday’s game against Chicago and is considered day-to-day. The veteran netminder is currently riding a three-game winning streak and is helping Ottawa make a push for one of the two final playoff spots. The injury doesn’t sound too serious, so the hope is he will able to return for Thursday’s game against Seattle. 


Victor Hedman - Tampa Bay Lightning - Undisclosed

Defenseman Victor Hedman left Sunday’s game after falling hard into the boards. He tried to come back and finish the game, but after just one shift, he returned to the bench and didn’t play another shift. He fell hard into the boards favouring his back, so that might be what he’s dealing with, but the team hasn’t confirmed that. For now, the injury doesn’t seem serious, but if he can’t play Wednesday against the Philadelphia Flyers, then we will need to start worrying. 


Ryan O’Reilly - Toronto Maple Leafs - Finger

Ryan O’Reilly has been placed on LT-IR due to a broken finger and it’s unclear if he will be able to return before the end of the season. The veteran centerman was playing pretty well since coming over to his new team, but now, it looks like his regular season is done. The Leafs are pretty much certain to make the playoffs, so there’s no need to rush O’Reilly back. If he’s on your fantasy hockey team, you can go ahead and drop him and look for someone else to help you down the stretch.


John Tavares - Toronto Maple Leafs - Illness

Sticking with the Maple Leafs, head coach Sheldon Keefe said that John Tavares would not be in the lineup for Wednesday’s game against New Jersey due to illness. The flu seems to be hitting the Leafs' locker room, so it would be a good idea to give Tavares some rest. There was also talk that he’s dealing with some minor “bumps and bruises”, so the extra time off comes at a pretty good time. He’s probably going to miss just one game, so look for him to return to the lineup over the weekend.