NHL Buzz: Josh Brown out 4-6 weeks for Senators with upper-body injury

Welcome to the NHL Buzz. Throughout the 2021-22 season, NHL.com will have you covered with the latest news.

Ottawa Senators

Josh Brown is expected to be out 4-6 weeks for the Senators with an upper-body injury.
The defenseman was injured in a 7-5 loss at the Colorado Avalanche on Monday.
Brown has no points in 13 games this season and is second on the Senators in hits (38) behind Brady Tkachuk (62) and fourth in blocked shots (18).

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New York Islanders

Josh Bailey
was removed from NHL COVID-19 protocol and could return to the lineup against the New York Rangers on Sunday.
The forward will miss his fifth game since he was placed in protocol Nov. 16 prior to a 6-1 loss at the Florida Panthers. He will not play for the Islanders against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday (7:30 p.m. ET; MSG+, ATTSN-PT, TVAS, SNE, SNO, SNW, ESPN+, NHL LIVE).
"He skated with us today, he'll skate tomorrow and we're hoping that if everything goes right, he feels good, we can get him back maybe for the Ranger game," Islanders coach Barry Trotz said.
Bailey has six points (one goal, five assists) in 12 games this season.
New York has six players in protocol: forwards
Anders Lee
, Kieffer Bellows and Ross Johnston, and defensemen Adam Pelech,
Andy Greene
and Zdeno Chara.
"As of right now, just Josh is the only one that's out of protocol," Trotz said. "… We've got a mixed bag in there. Some guys got hit with it hard, some guys really not a lot of symptoms but they can't get the negative test. It's all on an individual basis, really. But hopefully in the next couple of days we'll get a few more out, at least back skating. I don't know if they'll be prepared to skate or not because they've all had different degrees of it. We'll see." -- Brian Compton

Philadelphia Flyers

Derick Brassard is expected to be out 7-10 days because of a lower-body injury, coach Alain Vigneault said Friday.
The forward left a 4-0 loss at the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday and missed his second straight game when the Flyers played the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday. He has 11 points (four goals, seven assists) in 17 games this season.
Forward Connor Bunnaman was recalled from Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League and made his season debut Friday. Forward
Max Willman
was returned to Lehigh Valley. -- Adam Kimelman

Buffalo Sabres

Drake Caggiula and Craig Anderson each are week to week for the Sabres because of an upper-body injury.
Caggiula, a forward, didn't play in a 5-1 loss against the Boston Bruins on Wednesday. He has five points (two goals, three assists) in 18 games.
"He had been trying to play through it and he's an ultra-competitive guy and a physical guy," Sabres coach Don Granato said Friday. "It inhibited the way he needs to play and the way he can play. We have to give him time to heal and get back healthy again. It is a loss for us because he's such a competitor and it's a bummer that he's been having to play through that over the last little bit. It's tough."
Anderson, a goalie, has not played since Nov. 2. He is 4-2-0 with a 2.50 goals-against average and .921 save percentage in six games.
"I don't remember the exact initial report, but yes, because of our initial report, based on where we're at, it is a concern," Granato said. "Obviously, we didn't feel he would be out this long and it has lingered, so there is concern with respect to that, definitely."
The Sabres host the Montreal Canadiens on Friday (7 p.m. ET; MSG-B, RDS, TSN2 ESPN+, NHL LIVE). -- Heather Engel

Los Angeles Kings

Drew Doughty skated in a full-contact jersey Wednesday for the first time since injuring his knee Oct. 22.
The defenseman, who resumed skating in a non-contact jersey last Friday, was injured after taking a knee-to-knee hit from defenseman Jani Hakanpää during a 3-2 overtime loss at the Dallas Stars.
Doughty was expected to be out eight weeks and to need six weeks to resume skating. Last Friday marked four weeks since the injury.
"He had a doctor's appointment yesterday and the doctors cleared him to take it up a notch," Kings coach Todd McLellan said Wednesday. "He's going to be fully involved in the skate today and our practices over the next little bit, and he's getting closer to playing."
At the time of the injury, Doughty was second on Los Angeles with seven points (one goal, six assists) in four games and first in average ice time per game (22:37).