Avalanche's Valeri Nichushkin: Nearing return

Kucherov scored his 20th goal of the season in Monday's 7-1 loss to the Panthers. His tally early in the second period gave Tampa Bay a brief flicker of hope, but it only ended up spoiling Sergei Bobrovsky's shutout bid. Kucherov did extend his point streak to seven games, a stretch in which the 29-year-old has three goals and 11 points.

Toews (illness) is not expected to play Tuesday against Anaheim, Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times reports. Toews did not practice Sunday and Monday due to a non-COVID illness. He has produced 14 goals and 14 assists in 46 games this season. Chicago is slated to get Tyler Johnson (ankle) back in the fold Tuesday versus the Ducks.

Mayfield snapped a nine-game scoreless drought with an assist in the 4-0 victory over the Kraken on Tuesday. Mayfield has five goals, eight assists, and a rating of plus-2 in 54 games this season. There was some thought that Mayfield, who will be an unrestricted free agent after the season, could be on the move before the March 3 trade deadline, but the addition of Bo Horvat has signaled the team will be buyers this season and not sellers. Mayfield could still be on the move if the team's play were to take a nosedive. That seems unlikely, however, and the better question may be what other additions could be in store for the Islanders.

Brown (illness) has been ruled out for Monday's matchup against the Pistons, Sean Grande of NBC Sports Boston reports. Brown was a late addition to the injury report Monday afternoon and will ultimately be sidelined versus Detroit due to an illness. In his absence, Malcolm Brogdon, Payton Pritchard and Grant Williams figure to garner increased roles, though Jayson Tatum will presumably dominate the playmaking opportunities when he's on the court.

Beasley will not play in Wednesday's game against the Timberwolves and is set to join the Lakers after being part of a three-team trade, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reports. One of the top high-volume three-point shooters in the NBA this season, Beasley will be joined by Jarred Vanderbilt and D'Angelo Russell in Los Angeles, while the deal also sends Mike Conley and Nickeil Alexander-Walker to the Timberwolves. The trio will be absent for Utah on Wednesday which will allow ample opportunities for Collin Sexton, Talen Horton-Tucker and Ochai Agbaji. Once he's up to speed with the Lakers, Beasley will likely vie for a backup role on the wing, but he could also push to start. The Lakers' next game is on Thursday, but it would be surprising if Beasley would be able to go.

Rubio (knee) is not listed on the injury report for Wednesday's game against the Pistons. Rubio sat out the second leg of a back-to-back set on Monday, but he should return to the floor for Wednesday's game. Rubio has been heating up over the past five games, averaging 7.2 points, 5.8 assists, 1.6 triples, 1.0 steal and just 1.0 turnover per contest, so he could be worth a look in deep leagues if you need some dimes.