Morning Briefing - September 22

Preseason games dress about half a roster. "Top line" means the top line among the players who dressed that night, often a mix of prospects and depth veterans, and power-play units are built from whoever is in the lineup. None of it is a depth chart. We tag preseason deployment no higher than WATCH; moving a tag further takes a regular-season game, a coach saying so, or the same assignment holding across several nights. Injuries are the exception, since those carry over.

TL;DR

• Ben Kindel left Pittsburgh's preseason opener injured. He is one of our biggest projected risers; details pending.
• Luke Evangelista ran on New Jersey's first power-play unit, matching our chart and an earlier camp report.
• Charlie Stramel centred Minnesota's top line with Danila Yurov out - a preseason assignment, not a promotion.
• Dante Fabbro (upper body) and Denver Barkey (lower body) are both out, no timelines.

Kindel hurt in Pittsburgh's opener

HOLD · PIT · C

Ben Kindel left Pittsburgh's preseason opener with an injury. The club has not described it or given a timeline.

This is the item on the page that matters most. Kindel is the fourth-biggest projected riser in the Metropolitan, 0.45 to 0.60 points a game, and the realistic route past that runs through a first-unit power-play seat he is contesting with Rickard Rakell. Missed camp time costs him in that contest even if he is healthy for opening night. Hold until Pittsburgh says more.

Evangelista on the Devils' first unit

HOLD · NJD · RW

Luke Evangelista skated on New Jersey's first power-play unit with Jesper Bratt and Nico Hischier.

On its own, one preseason power-play shift would rate a WATCH. It rates more here because it is the third thing pointing the same way: our depth chart already had him moving from Nashville's second unit to New Jersey's first, and a camp report earlier this week placed him there too. If you roster him, nothing to do. If you don't, he is the most corroborated power-play promotion in this digest.

Stramel centres Minnesota's top line with Yurov out

WATCH · MIN · C

Charlie Stramel centred Minnesota's first line after Danila Yurov was unavailable. The club did not say why Yurov sat.

Read this for what it is: the top line of a preseason lineup. Before treating it as a promotion, check who his wingers were - if Kaprizov and Boldy did not dress, this was a showcase line, not a role. It is also worth knowing that Yurov was not Minnesota's first-line centre on day one of camp either; he skated on the third line. Stramel is a WATCH until he holds the spot with the regulars dressed.

The more useful question is Yurov. If his absence turns into an injury, that changes Minnesota's centre depth more than one preseason game does.

Rust scores on a 5-on-3

NO ACTION · PIT · RW

Bryan Rust scored on a two-man advantage in the second period of Pittsburgh's 2-0 preseason win.

A 5-on-3 goal in preseason is about the least informative event in hockey: brief, rare, and against a lineup of mixed quality. Rust is a known veteran on a known role. Nothing here moves his value either way.

Holloway fights, returns in the third

WATCH · STL · LW

Dylan Holloway fought and returned to play in the third period. The report also says Jim Montgomery took him off power-play duty afterwards.

That last detail is the one worth checking against the source, because as reported it does not follow - a fighting major does not usually cost a player his power-play shifts.

Barkey out, no timeline

NO ACTION · PHI · C

Denver Barkey is out with a lower-body injury. The Flyers have not given a timeline.

We project him at 0.46 points a game, so he is a deep-league roster at best. If you have him there, hold until there is a timeline. An injury with no timeline in September is not a reason to drop anyone!

Fabbro leaves with upper-body injury

WATCH · CBJ · D

Dante Fabbro left with an upper-body injury and did not return. Rick Bowness said Columbus would know more in the morning. Fabbro was not projected into Columbus's top four, so the fantasy impact is limited unless it opens room for someone who is.

Kaskimaki gets looks on both special teams

WATCH · STL · LW

Aleksanteri Kaskimaki played on both the power play and the penalty kill, and Jim Montgomery praised his game afterwards. In preseason that is a coach taking a look at a player in every situation, which is how roster battles are run. It is a good sign for making the team, not yet a role on it.

Brazeau also hurt in Pittsburgh's opener

WATCH · PIT · RW

Justin Brazeau left the same game injured. No update. A depth forward; the fantasy relevance is whether his absence opens a bottom-six spot for someone else.

Also noted

Nico Daws (NJD, G): a reporter flagged an issue in Daws's game that surfaced in camp and again in preseason. [Needs the specific issue from the source - as written this tells the reader nothing.]

Avery Hayes (PIT, RW) and Sergei Murashov (PIT, G) both drew positive notices in the opener. Murashov will be contending for the starting role this season.