Key NHL Injuries That Will Heavily Impact The 2026-27 Season

The NHL always starts a new season with several players on the injury list.

In some cases, like Jonathan Huberdeau with the Calgary Flames, injuries won’t last long. Or in Columbus, where Elvis Merzlikins is out, the Blue Jackets found a replacement in Cam Talbot. In Los Angeles, a timeline for someone like Kevin Fiala is uncertain. He won't be ready to start training camp next week, but he might not miss much time. 

However, not every team is so fortunate. 

There are a number of organizations with devastating injury situations. Which players will impact the start of their respective team’s seasons the most?

Troy Terry underwent successful surgery on June 9 to address hip impingement and a labral tear. The news was followed by the announcement that he had begun rehabilitation and was expected to make a full recovery in about 5-6 months. That timeline would put him out for the first chunk of the upcoming season. 

Terry is a huge piece of the Ducks, and given their roster took a hit, it’s a problematic setback. This is not great news for a team that has had a very busy off-season. They lost several pieces of their blue line, had to match an offer sheet for Leo Carlsson, lost Chris Kreider, and are trying to negotiate a high-cost extension for Cutter Gauthier. 

The defending Stanley Cup champions got bad news when it was revealed Seth Jarvis would miss 4-6 months after shoulder surgery, per Hurricanes GM Eric Tulsky. Jarvis had 32 goals and 66 points for the Hurricanes in 2025-26. 

He’ll be a big part of that team being able to repeat as champions. The good news is that Jarvis was getting in some work less than a month and a half after having surgery to repair a torn labrum and rotator cuff. All indications are that he's on schedule. 

If the Chicago Blackhawks hope to stand a chance of making the playoffs this season, they’ll need a healthy Connor Bedard. The 21-year-old has been getting in some work as he continues to rehab his shoulder, but he’s not ready to return. 

Scott Powers writes, "From what I'm hearing, Connor Bedard's recovery is going as planned so far. He was expected to be skating at this point. He's obviously restricted what he can do on the ice for now. Whether he's deemed ahead of schedule and can return earlier will be something the Blackhawks assess as his rehab progresses."

Bedard’s original timeline following his shoulder surgery was 4 months. 

There are questions about the severity of Matt Savoie’s injury situation with the Oilers. GM Stan Bowman says Savoie won’t be out for a long period of time and that they aren’t terribly worried. Not long after that, the team went and signed Alex Formenton as a backup plan to help kill penalties in Savoie’s absence. 

Savoie was a winger the Oilers had high hopes for this season. He scored 18 goals in 2025-26 and was one of the team's better forwards after the Olympic break. If he’s out some time, it’s a setback for their top six. It’s also tough to gauge what kind of contract extension to offer him if he’s not around long enough to really know what he’s going to become. 

There is a lot of uncertainty surrounding Max Domi, but the news doesn’t sound good. It was mentioned by Maple Leafs GM John Chayka that the forward will address his injury situation himself "at the right time in the near future."

“He’s not going to be ready to start training camp. He’s going to be out indefinitely. At the right time in the near future, he wants to address it himself, and I think that’s best for him to do.”

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