Multiple teams need reinforcements amid major injuries in NHL 

Life without Jack Hughes is tough for New Jersey Devils

The Devils are 4-6-0 with only two regulation wins since Hughes went down with an off-ice injury to his hand. New Jersey has only scored 39 percent of five-on-five goals in 10 games without Hughes — 30th in that span according to Natural Stat Trick. 

Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald's situation is complicated by other injuries — defenseman Brett Pesce is not ready to return from an injury caused by a blocked shot last month. Johnathan Kovacevic is still not ready to return following May's knee surgery. The Devils have fallen from first to fifth in the absurdly competitive Metropolitan Division, but they are still in an Eastern Conference playoff spot. 

Six of their next nine games are against Western Conference teams, and none are in-division. It's not necessarily panic time yet, but New Jersey should be thinking about how to add a player who can contribute down the lineup when Hughes is healthy and help them when he's not. 

New York Rangers' early returns without Adam Fox are encouraging

Adam Fox has once again been one of the best defensemen in the league. There have been 224 different defensive pairings used across the league this season. No defensive pairing has played more minutes at five-on-five than Vladislav Gavrikov and Fox. The Rangers have won 59.3 percent of the goals with these two on the ice, according to MoneyPuck. He is considered week-to-week. 

Gavrikov with Braden Schneider hasn't been quite as good, but they've been better than passable. The Rangers are 2-0-0 with this combination together. That's the good news. Unlike New Jersey, New York started from the bottom of a stacked division. 

Of note, an already struggling power play is 0-of-6 without Fox. TSN's Elliotte Friedman connected the Rangers to defenseman Erik Gustafsson on the Dec. 5 edition of "32 Thoughts: The Podcast." Gustafsson spent one season with the Rangers during the 2023-24 Presidents' Trophy run. He is signed with Detroit, but has only played one NHL game this season, splitting time between the NHL and AHL.

Dallas Stars have options with Tyler Seguin injury

The injury to the veteran forward is a double-edged sword. He's a well-respected player who still contributes offensively when he's on the ice. The 33-year-old likely tore his ACL against the Rangers this week. He will be missed. 

The injury opens up his sizable $9.85 million cap hit, a number that likely exceeds the value of his actual production. They have the resources now to acquire multiple players with this cap space. The Stars can also do this on their own time frame, thanks to a blistering start to the season, to earn the league's second-best record.