NHL Injury Roundup: Latest on Canadiens' Kreider, Panthers' Marchand and Barkov, And More

The injury bug has continued to make its way around the NHL. Catch up on the latest updates involving injury news around the league.The 2026-27 NHL season has nearly reached the quarter mark and the injury bug has made its way around most of the league's 32 teams. Whether it's short or long-term, it can be difficult to keep track of all the players who will be in and out of your favorite team's lineup on any given night.Let's take a look at some of the most noteworthy injury updates that were revealed over the past few days:Chris Kreider, Montreal CanadiensAfter sustaining an apparent leg injury in the Canadiens' 5-2 win over the Boston Bruins on Nov. 12, the team announced on Saturday that the veteran forward is set to miss six-to-eight weeks.Related storiesThe 35-year-old has played 19 games for the Canadiens this season and has posted three goals and nine points.Jonathan Huberdeau, Calgary Flames The last game Huberdeau played was on Feb. 4, but the 33-year-old is nearing a return as he's close to fully recovering from hip resurfacing surgery he underwent in March. According to Pat Steinberg of QR Calgary 770 AM, Huberdeau will not travel with the Flames as they embark on a three-game road trip, but he has been skating in a regular sweater at practice.Jordan Staal, Carolina Hurricanes The reigning Conn Smythe winner is making his return on Saturday. Staal played just six games to start the season before being sidelined with a partially torn calf muscle, an injury he sustained during pre-game warmups against the Philadelphia Flyers on Oct. 11.The Hurricanes have been no worse for wear without the 38-year-old captain, putting together a 15-3-2 record as the top team in the Eastern Conference.Miro Heiskanen, Dallas Stars Heiskanen exited in the second period of the Stars' matchup against the Washington Capitals on Nov. 4 and has missed the the team's past three games with an upper-body injury.The 27-year-old has been ruled out for the Stars' clash against the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday and his timeline to return remains unclear. Heiskanen has registered three goals and 11 points in 15 games to start the season.Brad Marchand And Aleksander Barkov, Florida Panthers Panthers head coach Paul Maurice announced on Nov. 10 that he expects both Marchand and Barkov to return to action in approximately two weeks. Barkov suffered a knee injury on Oct. 1 during the team's second game of the season against the San Jose Sharks. The captain missed the entirety of the 2025-26 season with a knee injury, but this time around he avoided surgery to his other knee.Marchand was sidelined just two games later on Oct. 6 against the Los Angeles Kings with a lower-body injury of his own. The 38-year-old missed the entire pre-season and first two games of the year while recovering from surgery in the summer to repair a sports hernia.Mathew Barzal, New York Islanders Barzal was seen skating with a non-contact jersey with the Islanders over the past week and The Hockey News' Stefan Rosner reported on Nov. 14 that the 29-year-old was finally a regular participant with no contact limitations ahead of the team's matchup against the Kings on Thursday.Barzal missed the start of the season with knee inflammation that aggravated a previous condition, but has been upgraded to day-to-day.Dylan Guenther, Utah Mammoth The Mammoth placed Guenther on injured reserve on Nov. 11 as a result of an upper-body injury and he is expected to miss two-to-four weeks. The 23-year-old has posted six goals and 12 points in 18 games to start the season.For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free.