Avalanche's Valeri Nichushkin: Skates Tuesday

Toews won't play Thursday versus the Flames due to an illness. Toews' absence likely means Luke Philp draws into the lineup, while Jason Dickinson could be in line for more ice time. The Blackhawks' next game is Saturday in Edmonton, but it's unknown if Toews will be healthy enough to play in that contest.

Kucherov scored a goal and an assist in Tuesday's 4-2 win over the Wild. After helping to set up Steven Stamkos for the game-winner midway through the third period, Kucherov iced things with an empty-netter. The 29-year-old has found the scoresheet in four straight games and nine of the last 10, racking up six goals and 15 points over that stretch. If he can stay healthy, Kucherov is on track to reach 100 points for the first time since 2018-19.

January 27 - Nikita Kucherov had a goal and two assists, including one on Victor Hedman's game-winning tally, as the Tampa Bay Lightning won for the 11th straight time at home, edging Boston 3-2 and breaking the Bruins' seven-game road winning streak on Thursday night.

Love (back spasms) won't play Thursday against the Rockets, Chris Fedor of The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports. After getting added to the injury report late Thursday, Love will ultimately sit out against the Rockets, putting more minutes in line for Dean Wade and Cedi Osman. The veteran's next chance to return to the court will be Friday against the Thunder.

Gordon has been ruled out for Thursday's game against Cleveland due to right knee soreness. Gordon has played at least 30 minutes in each of his last six appearances, averaging 15.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.3 assists in 31.3 minutes per game over that stretch. However, he's dealing with a knee issue that will sideline him for the first time since Dec. 27. Jae'Sean Tate (ankle) is also out, so Kenyon Martin, Garrison Mathews and Tari Eason will likely see increased run Thursday.

Backstrom (illness) won't play Tuesday versus the Avalanche. Backstrom and T.J. Oshie (personal) are both unavailable, while Alex Ovechkin (lower body) is a game-time decision, which could leave the Capitals thin up front. Alexei Protas will likely take Backstrom's place in the lineup Tuesday.

Ovechkin scored a goal on three shots and added two hits in Tuesday's 3-2 loss to the Avalanche. Ovechkin said after the game he didn't feel 100 percent, per Samantha Pell of The Washington Post, but the star winger was good enough to suit up for a team that would have had to dress seven defensemen if he didn't play. Through 10 contests in January, he's scored five goals and added three assists. The 37-year-old is up to 31 tallies, 53 points, 208 shots on net, 127 hits and a plus-2 rating through 49 appearances.

Wilson (lower body) won't return to Tuesday's game versus the Avalanche. Wilson blocked a shot off of his right leg in the second period, which is the opposite leg from the one he had ACL surgery on last spring. He can be considered day-to-day for now, and he'll likely be evaluated further when the Capitals return home to face the Penguins on Thursday.

Kane scored a goal on two shots and went minus-2 in Tuesday's 5-2 loss to the Canucks. Kane opened the scoring with a shot from just inside the blue line at 17:49 of the first period. The 34-year-old has two goals and two helpers over six contests since he returned from a lower-body injury. He's up to nine goals, 31 points, 145 shots on net and a minus-26 rating through 43 appearances.

CALGARY, Alberta (AP) — Two games into his NHL career, Blackhawks rookie goaltender Jaxson Stauber is playing like a poised veteran. Stauber stopped 34 shots for his second consecutive win and 13 players contributed a point as Chicago beat the Calgary Flames 5-1 Thursday night. “Looks really solid and calm in there,” Blackhawks coach Luke Richardson said. “They’re a big team and they get to the net and they’re trying to get secondary chances. He just makes a save and even if there’s some scrambling going on, he doesn’t look scrambly.” Taylor Raddysh, Boris Katchouk, Jason Dickinson, Sam Lafferty and Connor Murphy scored for the Blackhawks (15-28-4), who entered last in the NHL standings. Max Domi had an assist, extending his point streak to four games.

Doncic (ankle) will not return to Thursday's contest against the Suns, NBA writer Marc Stein reports. Doncic picked up a left ankle sprain three minutes into Thursday's matchup with Phoenix and he won't return, finishing with only one rebound. Expect Josh Green, Spencer Dinwiddie and Tim Hardaway to all see an uptick in minutes for the remainder of Thursday's contest. The severity of Doncic's ankle injury is uncertain at this point.

Sheffield cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Tacoma by the Mariners on Thursday. Sheffield got the boot off the 40-man roster last week to open up a 40-man roster spot for Tommy La Stella. A former top prospect, Sheffield holds a career 5.47 ERA in 186 innings (33 starts, 15 relief appearances) at the major-league level. It's certainly notable that he didn't draw much interest from other MLB teams on the waiver wire leading into what will be his age-27 campaign.

Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch said Saturday that Towns (calf) has "no timetable" to return to game action, Dane Moore of 'The Dane Moore NBA Podcast' reports. Finch's comments came two days after Towns revealed during a Twitch stream that he's been sidelined since Nov. 28 with a Grade 3 right calf strain. The injury appears to be more severe than initial reports suggested, with Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN having reported at the time Towns was diagnosed with the calf strain that the 27-year-old big man was facing a projected recovery timeline of 4-to-6 weeks. Towns' absence is now closing in on two months, and though he disclosed in his Twitch stream that his rehab is going well, he didn't go into specifics regarding when he might be able to resume full-contact work in practices. If Towns cannot accelerate his activity in practice over the next week or two, he'll likely end up being sidelined through the All-Star break.

Pastrnak tallied a goal and three assists in Tuesday's 4-2 win over the Canadiens. Pastrnak was involved in all four of Boston's goals Tuesday, grabbing assists on their first three tallies before scoring an empty-netter to cap the victory. Pastrnak has yet to go more than one game without recording a point this season. He's second in the NHL with 37 goals and third in points with 69. Pastrnak now has 11 points (five goals, six assists) in his last six games.

Ayton (illness) was present for Wednesday's practice and was spotted taking part in work during the media-access portion of the session, Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic reports. While it's unclear if Ayton was a full or partial participant in the session, his involvement in any capacity bodes well for...

Powell finished Tuesday's 127-126 loss to the Wizards with 22 points (8-12 FG, 6-7 FT), nine rebounds, one assist, one block and one steal over 34 minutes. Powell came out of nowhere to set new season highs in points and rebounds, doing so while shooting more reliably than usual from the free-throw line. Considering he played just 21 minutes one game earlier and reached double figures in scoring just once in his previous nine outings, Powell will need to string together a few eye-popping performances in a row before he'll be worthy of scooping up on waiver wires in 12-team category leagues. His outlook is also expected to take a hit in the near term, as Christian Wood (thumb) could be cleared to play as soon as the end of the week.

Adams (knee) has been ruled out for Wednesday's game at Golden State. The veteran center sat out Monday's matchup with the Kings due to right knee soreness and will be sidelined Wednesday for the second straight game. Xavier Tillman started in Adams' place Monday and could do so again versus the Warriors.

Gobert (groin) supplied 15 points (5-8 FG, 5-7 FT), 16 rebounds, four blocks and one assist across 36 minutes during Monday's 119-114 loss to the Rockets. Gobert didn't skip a beat in his return to action after missing Minnesota's previous three games with a groin injury. While taking back his starting role at center from Naz Reid, Gobert dominated on the boards and as a rim protector while faring better than usual at the free-throw line. Fantasy managers shouldn't hesitate to activate Gobert again now that he escaped without a setback with his groin in his return to action.

Taylor (back) was traded from Boston to Kansas City on Monday in exchange for Adalberto Mondesi and a player to be named later, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports. Taylor owns a 3.69 ERA and a 29.4 percent strikeout rate in 102.1 career innings of relief. The lefty missed all of last season while dealing with back issues, with two separate rehab stints getting paused due to setbacks, but the Royals evidently felt confident enough in his health to acquire him. If he's fully healthy this year, he could be a useful weapon for his new team, though he's unlikely to see many save chances.

Middleton chipped in 10 points (3-8 FG, 2-4 3Pt, 2-2 FT), two rebounds, three assists and one steal across 15 minutes during Wednesday's 107-99 victory over the Nuggets. Middleton has played exactly 15 minutes in his two games since returning to action, scoring a combined 18 points while going 6-for-15 from the field in that span. He's going to be eased back into action, and his fantasy value should begin to increase when -- and not if -- he returns to the starting unit, as Pat Connaughton has been starting at small forward over him.