Fantasy Hockey Injury Updates: Charlie McAvoy, Jack Hughes, Joseph Woll and More

Hey folks. Today, I have more huge injury updates for you.

Luck may be today's theme, or bad luck to be more specific. From a puck to the face, to a team dinner gone wrong; we've got injury reports to key players from around the league that will impact your team in a big way.

Let's take a look at another round of recent injury reports!

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Charlie McAvoy - Boston Bruins

Bad luck for the injury prone McAvoy has taken a puck to the face against the Montreal Canadiens where he immediately fell to the ice in pain and did not return. The shot was brutal, and the team has not disclosed the seriousness yet, only listing him as day-to-day with an upper body injury.

We all saw the shot though, and for the top defensemen who has yet to have a full season under his belt without injury, owners should have seen this coming, despite this just being dumb luck. McAvoy was eating huge minutes for the Bruins, picking apples like he was Johnny Appleseed, and adding to his fantasy floor with elite peripherals and deployment.

Let's see how serious this injury is before we panic, but initial looks don't look promising.

McAvoy has zero goals, 14 assists, and five powerplay points in 19 games played as a defenseman. He also has 25 shots on goal, 26 hits, and 32 blocked shots.

Jack Hughes - New Jersey Devils

Hughes somehow cut himself with a knife at a team dinner according to Elliotte Friedman at Sportsnet, and is now out for six-to-eight weeks. What is being called a “fluke accident” is yet another bout of dumb luck, sidelining the best forward on the Devils for a significant amount of time.

This is terrible timing for the Devils who have been rolling strong and sit atop the Metropolitan Division, and worse for not only Hughes owners, but owners of any Devils. Hughes drives both the locker room, but a lot of offensive production as well, so it will be interesting to see how the Devils adapt to the rest of this year, having now only the less talented Hughes brother on the roster.

What's more, is that Jack was a strong advocate for Luke Hughes getting more prominent powerplay time, citing their chemistry as a leading argument. Will Luke's deployment now suffer with the sudden departure of his older brother?

Hughes has 10 goals, 10 assists, and five powerplay points in 17 games played as a forward. He also has 69 shots on goal, two hits, and 10 blocked shots.

Joseph Woll - Toronto Maple Leafs

One up, and one down. As Woll came up to play his first game, it was just in time for tandem partner Anthony Stolarz to go down. Stolarz has now been placed on the IR, and it's ironic that nearly a quarter into the season and between Stolarz and Woll, they've yet to be active on the roster at the same time, making their elite tandem very difficult to get going.

Woll not did get a win against the surging Chicago Blackhawks, his numbers were still stellar and he had an above .900 save percentage which is great considering this was Woll's first NHL game this season, only having gone through a few games in the AHL for conditioning.

Woll owners should hope for the Maple Leafs' defense to somehow stabilize, and Stolarz to return quickly so both tendys will benefit and can get back into last season's winning groove.

Woll has zero wins in one game started as a goaltender. He also has a .906 save percentage, a 3.07 goals against average, and zero shutouts.

Thatcher Demko - Vancouver Canucks

Another injury prone career leads to another tendy down. Demko had taken a couple maintenance days with something nagging him, before playing the Winnipeg Jets on November 11. He left the game and did not return, and now has been placed on IR and is considered week-to-week.

Kevin Lankinen and Jiri Patera will now be guarding the blue paint for the Canucks, which is going to hurt the team long term. Neither are close to Demko's caliber of goaltending, and this most recent injury comes as a severe blow to both the Canucks, and Demko fantasy owners.

Demko's history of injury is quite lengthy, and Elliot Friedman reported on his 32 thoughts podcast that Demko has taken this injury especially hard, though it may not be that serious.

Demko wants to get healthy, help his hockey club, and play meaningful hockey, but can't seem to catch a break. Look for a short-term solution in net, and hold Demko for his return as all reports point to his dedication to getting healthy and playing at an elite level upon his return. 

Demko has five wins in 10 games started as a goaltender. He also has a .903 save percentage, a 2.80 goals against average, and zero shutouts.

Jamie Benn - Dallas Stars

The Stars' captain underwent surgery for a collapsed lung in September, and has now been upgraded as day-to-day, meaning a return is likely imminent. The Stars' organization are conditioning him before he returns, and it is unknown in what capacity his return will have his deployment at.

An aging player saw himself already dropping down the lineup, playing a middle six role with powerplay time. Now more of a locker room stabilizer and a supplementary production player, Benn may not have the physical prowess post surgery as he has had in seasons past which helped raise his fantasy floor.

While Benn does still have name power, and on a deep and winning squad, his ceiling continues to lower with age, and now his floor may yet lower a couple levels, too. Add with caution, as a streamer to start while we feel out his deployment and ability after such a health scaring surgery.

Remember that Benn is past his prime, coming back in off of injury, and his best days are behind him. Don't let nostalgia fool you.

Benn hasn't played yet this season, but last season he had 16 goals, 33 assists, and 10 powerplay points in 80 games played as a forward. He also had 136 shots on goal, 113 hits, and 45 blocked shots.