Fantasy Hockey Injury Updates: Roope Hintz, Zach Hyman, Roman Josi and More

Today, I have several injury updates for you. There have been a lot of elite players in the league going down for significant amounts of time, however we don't have answers on all of them.

We're going to take a look at some players who are not playing, timelines, a key return, and a notable disappointment who you should drop and cut your losses.

Let's dive right in on today's injury reports!

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Roope Hintz - Dallas Stars

Not much news yet on Hintz, but a notable injury nonetheless. Hintz was injured in Saturday's game against the Carolina Hurricanes after an illegal hit from Taylor Hall, resulting in him not playing in Sunday's game. He is still being assessed and no new news has been released about him, however he has been moved from out to day-to-day status, Maybe that is a good thing?

I've read both concussion protocol being initiated, and a potential shoulder injury, however nothing is confirmed and no official word has been released from the league or the Stars.

We'll keep an eye on Hintz, and report back.

Hintz has one goal, seven assists, and five powerplay points in eight games played as a forward. He also has 28 shots on goal, four hits, and five blocked shots.

Zach Hyman - Edmonton Oilers

The former 50-goal scorer, and notorious linemate of Connor McDavid, is set to return on Saturday (tentatively), and this is good news for the Oilers.

Both McDavid, and their powerplay has struggled out of the gate this year, and so long as Hyman can return to somewhat form, he should be an immediate grinder impact on both the top line and number one powerplay unit.

Hyman missed the end of the postseason last year after a wrist injury, so he has had quite the lengthy recovery and has missed not only the beginning of this season, but training camp, too. He will need a few games to shake off the rust, but if he can get going, he should help the Oilers get back to firing on all cylinders. 

Fantasy owners rejoice, and everyone else grab Hyman, who is now only owned at about 50%, and stash him until his hopeful return this weekend.

Last season, Hyman had 27 goals, 17 assists, and 12 powerplay points in 73 games played as a forward. He also had 210 shots on goal, 58 hits, and 24 blocked shots.

Roman Josi - Nashville Predators

Before we say I told you so, please note that this injury has nothing to do with Josi's postural tachycardia syndrome (POTS).

With that out of the way, he is listed as week-to-week and given a lengthy injury history, concerns for Josi's longevity are already creeping up again. Smashville has listed Josi as having an upper body injury, but no specifics have been reported, other than squashing that it is related to POTS, which I think is a smart public relations decision by the organization.

Josi does play a physical game and blocks a lot of shots, and is an older veteran in the league, who has a long history of injuries. Josi only has one full season in the past six.

I would still tentatively hold Josi. His upside and start of the season is still elite, and it's unlikely you'd be able to trade for anything of similar value in any fantasy format, however he is going to outperform any streamer you could bring in too. Ride this one out, and hope for the best.

Josi has one goal, four assists, and two powerplay points in eight games played as a defenseman. He also has 19 shots on goal, four hits, and 15 blocked shots.

Rickard Rakell - Pittsburgh Penguins

Rakell has been an underrated driving force behind the Penguins' offense the last couple of seasons. While the Pens have been overperforming expectations this season, it's a huge blow to their lineup having Rakell sidelined for the next 6-8 weeks.

During their last bout with the Columbus Blue Jackets, Rakell took a puck to the hand and left the game. He has since had successful surgery (which is the good news), but as stated will be out for potentially two months (bad news).

While Pens' fans, and Rakell owners may be disappointed with Rakell's injury, general manager Kyle Dubas may get his plans back on track in tanking for a high draft pick yet again this season. The Pens' early-season success has certainly put a damper on the plans for what was expected to be a bottom feeding team.

Fantasy owners: safely hold Rakell until his return. Worst case scenario he will be dealt at the trade deadline to a contending team and his already hot offense may take an uptick. Best case scenario is he slots back in with Sidney Crosby and continues to produce as a 60+ point pace.

Rakell has three goals, five assists, and three powerplay points in nine games played as a forward. He also has 17 shots on goal, nine hits, and 10 blocked shots.

Patrik Laine - Montreal Canadiens

I had to add Laine and his newest injury here. Nobody was happier to see him make his Canadiens' debut last season, after a preseason injury which resulted in him missing significant time to start the season. He played his first game and immediately started pounding in powerplay goals.

But his even strength was atrocious. The former No. 2 pick really started to show his defensive weaknesses, and although coined a powerplay specialist, head coach Martin St. Louis started to trust him less and less. Laine saw demotion after demotion and eventually was warming the bench, despite his powerplay prowess.

This season, Laine is without a goal, and is seeing just over 10 minutes of ice time per game. He simply cannot be trusted at even strength, and given his career that is riddled with injuries, I fear that this may have been Laine's last strike - not only with the Habs, but potentially in the league. His health, defensive ability, and seemingly his confidence are all now liabilities.

While I do hope that Laine can someday find his game again, and keeps his nose to the grindstone to get back into playing meaningful minutes, I reluctantly must give the advice for owners to drop him, and never look back. He is not worth an IR stash, and at this point is not even worth a stream.

Laine has zero goals, one assist, and zero powerplay points in five games played as a forward. He also has six shots on goal, two hits, and zero blocked shots.