The Capitals will be welcoming back a pair of centers tonight against Buffalo. Sammi Silber of The District Standard relays (Twitter link) that both Pierre-Luc Dubois and Justin Sourdif will return to the lineup.
Dubois has missed the last five games due to illness, slowing what had been a good start to his season with four points in as many games. Sourdif was also sidelined with an illness, though he has only missed the last two contests.
Fresh off an eight-year extension signed before training camp, he has one goal through seven outings this season. Dubois is currently on injured reserve for Washington but the team has an open roster spot, so no moves will be needed to add him back to the roster.
More from the Metropolitan: Still with the Capitals, tonight is a big game for winger Alex Ovechkin. No, it’s not for any particular record or major benchmark; it’s just his tenth game of the season.
However, that will trigger a $4.75MM performance bonus that he’ll now be able to receive. With Washington operating only narrowly under the Upper Limit per PuckPedia, the bulk of that bonus money is likely to be applied against next year’s salary cap.
Penguins forward Evgeni Malkin will not suit up tonight against Nashville due to illness, notes team play-by-play announcer Josh Getzoff (Twitter link). The 40-year-old is off to a strong start to his season, tallying six goals (tied for the team lead) and three assists in 11 games, ranking him second in team scoring overall.
His spot will be filled by Avery Hayes, who was recalled earlier today. Originally hoped to be returning soon, there is no timeline for Islanders center Mathew Barzal to suit up, relays Newsday’s Andrew Gross.
The 29-year-old has been sidelined since the start of training camp due to inflammation in his left knee. The good news is that the inflammation is down and he has been skating lightly on his own while GM Mathieu Darche indicated there hasn’t been a setback.
Still, it was expected that Barzal would be back by now but he is clearly not close to returning yet. That’s a big blow for their attack, giving that he led the Isles in scoring last season with 72 points in 81 games.