Colorado might get a veteran back in the lineup tonight as head coach Jared Bednar told reporters including NHL.com’s Amalie Benjamin that winger Andrew Cogliano could be an option to return. The 35-year-old underwent hand surgery to repair an injury sustained during the Western Conference Final but returned to practice on Friday and participated in the morning skate today. Cogliano, who leads all Colorado players in terms of the number of playoff games played, has two goals and an assist in 11 games so far this postseason while logging a little more than nine minutes a night of action. If Cogliano is able to return, Nicolas Aube-Kubel may be the one to cede his spot.
Elsewhere around the NHL:
- In an appearance on ESPN’s The Point on Friday (video link), commissioner Gary Bettman acknowledged that former Panthers head coach Joel Quenneville has expressed a desire to return to the NHL though not for a specific job opening. At the time of Quenneville’s resignation following the findings of the Kyle Beach investigation being released, Bettman indicated that he would “require a meeting in advance in order to determine the appropriate conditions under which such new employment might take place”. That meeting probably won’t be coming soon as Bettman added during his appearance that he doesn’t believe that this is the right time to discuss the potential of Quenneville returning to work for a team.
- In his latest reader chat, Tom Timmermann of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch suggests that winger Klim Kostin is a likely trade candidate for the Blues this summer. Alexey Toropchenko plays a very similar style as Kostin and is someone that head coach Craig Berube is a fan of, giving Torochenko a leg up for that spot on the lineup. A 2017 first-round pick, Kostin is waiver-eligible next season but could still carry some value after picking up nine points and 90 hits in 40 games with St. Louis this season while also playing a key role for AHL Springfield as the Thunderbirds get set to start the Calder Cup Finals tomorrow.