The National Hockey League is back with eight games tonight, then a dozen more tomorrow.  For many players, the Olympic window of the past two-and-a-half weeks represented the longest in-season break of their careers, outside of injury situations.  Going forward, the volume of games through the end of the regular season will be strenuous: the schedule ends on April 16th, and some clubs have as many as 27 games left to play in those 50 days.

There have been positive developments lately for a former Waterloo Black Hawk with NHL experience.  Jacob MacDonald's last NHL game was on April 11, 2024, and this season, he hadn't played a game at any level until last Saturday.  The 32-year-old was recovering from preseason hip surgery.  However, MacDonald has now returned to competition in the American Hockey League; last weekend, he scored a power play goal during the Colorado Eagles' season-opening win versus Coachella Valley.  MacDonald is currently under contract with the Colorado Avalanche.
 
Other former Hawks are also hoping to overcome injuries and make an impact during the last seven weeks of the 2025/26 season.

Mikey Anderson – Los Angeles Kings
(Waterloo: 2015/16 – 2016/17)

Anderson was among the former Hawks on the injured list just prior to the Olympic break.  The Kings placed him on IR February 5th, and he missed the last two L.A. games before the league schedule went on pause.  That leaves him tantalizingly close to a notable career milestone.  Anderson's next game will be the 400th of his NHL career.  When he next plays, Anderson will become the ninth former Hawk to reach that number.  This season, he has two goals and seven assists in 54 games.

Matej Blumel – Boston Bruins
(Waterloo: 2017/18 – 2018/19)

In November, Blumel made his Bruins debut and skated in four games.  He was sidelined for most of December but is currently the fifth-leading scorer for the Providence Bruins in the American Hockey League with 31 points (10 goals, 21 assists).

Brock Boeser – Vancouver Canucks
(Waterloo: 2014/15)

Tonight against the Winnipeg Jets, Boeser may return to Vancouver's lineup.  A head injury put him on the shelf for the last five Canucks' contests before the Olympics.  Nonetheless, he remains tied as the team's fourth-leading scorer with 25 points (12 goals, 13 assists) in 50 games.  His 12 goals are currently the most by any former Black Hawk in the NHL this season, with three of them scored during his six most recent appearances.  For his career, Boeser is 27 points away from matching Jason Blake for second in scoring among Waterloo alumni.

Jack Drury – Colorado Avalanche
(Waterloo: 2016/17 – 2017/18)

Drury has been valuable to the best team in hockey.  The Colorado Avalanche currently lead the Western Conference and the President's Trophy race by five points.  Drury is +11, which is best among former Hawks in the league this season and equals his cumulative plus/minus from his other NHL seasons combined.  He has appeared in all 55 Avalanche games, generating eight goals and 11 assists.  Drury also remains one of the league's most effective faceoff men, winning over 59 percent of his draws.

Vinnie Hinostroza – Minnesota Wild
(Waterloo: 2010/11 – 2012/13)

In his first full season with Minnesota, Hinostroza has already played more games (44) than in any year since he skated for the Buffalo Sabres 62 times in 2021/22.  With 24 games remaining, the 31-year-old could still surpass that figure, although he does not have enough time left to challenge his career high (72 games with the Arizona Coyotes in 2018/19).  Hinostroza has scored three times and assisted on seven other goals.  Minnesota is currently five points behind Colorado for first in the division, the conference, and overall in the NHL.

Brandon Montour – Seattle Kraken
(Waterloo: 2013/14 – 2014/15)

Montour is flirting with a remarkable career achievement and may still have enough time to make it happen before this season runs out.  He has scored seven goals in just 38 games this year.  If he can generate nine more in Seattle's last 26 contests, it would put him at 100 regular season goals during his NHL career.  Overall this season, Montour's 22 points rank third among the Hawks' NHL contingent.  His most recent goal was the game-winner against the Toronto Maple Leafs on January 29th.  He was recognized as the game's #2 Star.

Tom Novak – Pittsburgh Penguins
(Waterloo: 2014/15)

This has been a standout season so far for Novak.  He has been in the lineup for all 56 Penguins games, and he currently leads the alumni corps with 20 assists and 31 points.  All of the career highs he produced as a Nashville Predator (71 games, 18 goals, 45 points, all in 2022/23) could be surpassed this season.  Novak went into the Olympic hiatus with 10 points (three goals, seven assists) in the last 11 games.  He is also +3, which puts him in close proximity to the +5 mark he enjoyed in 2022/23.

Sam Rinzel – Chicago Blackhawks
(Waterloo: 2021/22 – 2023/24)

During much of December and January, Rinzel was assigned to the Rockford IceHogs, but the rookie defenseman was recalled to Chicago for three contests starting last month.  That stint included his second career NHL goal when the Blackhawks met the San Jose Sharks on February 2nd.  Unlike many of his teammates, Rinzel was on the ice at times during the last two weeks, recording four assists in four Rockford games.  He has since been recalled by Chicago and could be included in the lineup tomorrow against the Nashville Predators.

Dylan Samberg – Winnipeg Jets
(Waterloo: 2016/17)

The Jets are currently 11 points out of the final Western Conference wild card spot, but with Olympic gold medal-winning netminder Connor Hellebuyck in the crease, there is every possibility that Winnipeg could reel off some wins in a hurry.  In at least one sense, Samberg is back on track after missing the first month of the season.  His 21:16 ice time average is right in line with the minutes he played last season (21:08).  Through 40 appearances, Samberg is looking for his first goal of 2025/26 to go along with nine assists.

Max Sasson – Vancouver Canucks
(Waterloo: 2020/21)

Leaguewide, Sasson has the 16th-highest shooting percentage among all NHL players who have scored 10 or more goals.  His 10 goals this winter have been produced on just 48 shots (20.8 percent).  It's the best mark among Vancouver's seven double-digit scorers.  He also has two assists in 50 2025/26 games.  The 25-year-old from Michigan will play in his 100th NHL game, as long as he is in the lineup for at least 21 of the Canucks' final 25 contests.  Vancouver is at home for three of their first four games after the Olympics, including tonight against Winnipeg.

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