NHL Injury Report for January 20: Matthew Tkachuk Returns

Welcome back to the Fantrax NHL Injury Report for January 20, 2026. In today’s report, Matthew Tkachuk is back, William Nylander has a groin injury, and Leo Carlsson will miss some time.  Read all about this and more in today’s NHL Injury Report from Fantrax.

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NHL Injury Report for January 20:

Matthew Tkachuk, Florida Panthers

#Canucks legend Vincent Desharnais hammers Matthew Tkachuk in Tkachuk's first game back from injury! 🔨

19+ | #TheFutureIsTeal pic.twitter.com/Dfxosv3w57

— PlayNow Sports (@PlayNowSports) January 20, 2026

It’s been almost a calendar year between games. February 8th, 2025, was the last time Tkachuk played an NHL game.  Vincent Desharnais, San Jose Sharks, welcomed him back in the grandest of fashions. Tkachuk scrambled to his feet quickly, with no injury concern from the hit. That should have shaken two periods of rust off of him, though.

Does anyone else have their fingers crossed with the Olympics around the corner? Tkachuk will play 9 games before the Olympic break.

A healthy Tkahuck means status quo multi-cat mayhem. It’s been a while, so you may have forgotten. He averages over a point per game, two hits per game, a penalty minute per game, and over three shots per game.

William Nylander, Toronto Maple Leafs

“I’m not sure when he’s going to be on the ice.”

Reminder: this is what caused Nylander to hit the shelf just days after he came back. It seriously doesn’t get more unlucky than this.. #LeafsForever https://t.co/yNlru8s2xL pic.twitter.com/PH6dqHdYRM

— Leafslatest (@Leafslatest) January 19, 2026

Nylander is missing his second consecutive game as he continues to battle injuries. In a rare occurrence, the Maple Leafs have labelled Nylander’s injury as a ‘groin injury.’ It seems strange to see the actual injury listed versus ‘lower body injury.’

Groins can be tricky. They won’t want to rush him back too soon. Expect him to miss several games. As of yesterday, he’s not skating.

In the meantime, Jacob Quillan has been recalled from the Toronto Marlies. At 23, Quillan is entering his second season with the Marlies, and we’re seeing him take a large step with the baby Buds. Quillan produced 37 points in 67 games last season. That production has leapt to 27 points in 28 games this year. Next year, Quillan will really press for a bottom-six spot. This year, he’s hard-pressed to crack the lineup even with his injury call-ups.

Leon Draisaitl, Edmonton Oilers

Oilers’ Leon Draisaitl taking brief leave of absence to attend to a family illness. https://t.co/lsJMAerfiF

— CityNews Edmonton (@CityNewsYEG) January 17, 2026

Don’t expect Draisaitl to miss much time. He did miss the Oilers’ last two games and could miss one or two more. However, considering it has been called a ‘brief’ leave of absence, he should be back sooner rather than later.

There’s no replacing him, so it’s dealing with his absence while it lasts.

Leo Carlsson, Anaheim Ducks

Anaheim Ducks forward Leo Carlsson will be sidelined for the next 3-5 weeks as he recovers from left thigh surgery to treat a rare lesion on his leg. That timeline could put his Olympic roster spot with Sweden in jeopardy.https://t.co/rRTvN6T2D4

— Dynes Sports (@dynessports) January 17, 2026

Carlsson is set to miss 3-5 weeks with a lesion on his thigh. The timeline puts his participation in the Olympics for Sweden in jeopardy. The five-week timeline places him fully healthy when NHL games resume.

With 44 points in 44 games, it’s worth noting that Carlsson’s production has cooled in the second quarter of the season.

Linus Ullmark, Ottawa Senators

Ullmark is back practicing with the team but has no timeline to return to games. Pressure for him to come back is mounting. Leevi Meralainen is leaking badly. Look no further than him giving up six goals on 19 shots Saturday in a 6-5 loss to the Montreal Canadiens.

Josh Norris, Buffalo Sabres

Norris is now week-to-week with a rib injury. It should surprise no one that Norris is sidelined again. It is one injury after another with him.