Chris Kreider (upper body) could miss his fourth straight game against the Nashville Predators at Madison Square Garden on Sunday (7 p.m. ET; FDSNSO, MSG2, SNP, SNO, SNE, TVAS). The forward participated in the morning skate but remainder on the ice afterwards. He placed on injured reserve Saturday but can be activated at any time.

This is not a good situation that the Vancouver Canucks are finding themselves in as the schedule officially hits crunch time with the NHL Trade Deadline now only days away. Following Saturday night’s loss to the Seattle Kraken,

While it’s not confirmed exactly when he reinjured himself, Hughes did have an awkward fall after one of the Kraken goals in the second period, which could be the culprit. He went down the tunnel to the dressing room shortly after but returned to the bench just a few moments later.

The Canucks built themselves a bit of a cushion in the standings before the 4 Nations Face-Off break. But a disastrous 1-4-0 post-break road trip has left their playoff spot vulnerable.

After leaving mid-way through the third period in Vancouver's 6-3 loss to the Seattle Kraken on Saturday, Hughes was absent at team practice the next day.

Hughes leads the Canucks in scoring with 60 points, and his 46 assists are the most among NHL defensemen. His return comes as the Canucks are fighting for a playoff spot. Wednesday night's win put them one point ahead of Calgary for the second wild card in the Western Conference.

Quinn Hughes will be a game-time decision for the Canucks against the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday (10 p.m. ET; MAX, truTV, TNT, SN). The defenseman has missed six games because of an undisclosed injury, which also caused him to miss the 4 Nations Face-Off after he was selected to play for the United States.