Stepan sustained an upper-body injury and will not return to Saturday's game against Philadelphia.

EDGE Analysis

Stepan left Saturday's contest shortly after blocking a shot from Philadelphia's Ivan Provorov, per Walt Ruff of the Hurricanes' official site. Stepan had a shot in 5:49 of ice time before he had to exit the contest. He has an assist in eight games this season.

Stepan failed to crack the scoresheet Friday against the Islanders, extending his current scoring drought to six games.

EDGE Analysis

Stepan notched a helper in the Canes' season opener Oct. 12 against Columbus, but he's been cold as ice since then. He continues to skate primarily in a checking-line role, manning the right side opposite Paul Stastny and Stefan Noesen with an average TOI of just 10:06. This role gives him little to no fantasy appeal in most standard formats.

Stepan signed a one-year, $750,000 contract with the Hurricanes on Tuesday.

EDGE Analysis

Stepan attended training camp with Carolina on a professional tryout. He recorded nine goal and 19 points in 58 games for the Hurricanes last season. Stepan is expected to occupy a depth role with the team this year.

Stepan will join the Hurricanes for training camp on a professional tryout agreement, CapFriendly reports Tuesday.

EDGE Analysis

Stepan played in 58 games for Carolina last season in which he registered nine goals on 96 shots, 10 assists and 14 PIM while averaging 10:48 of ice time. If the 32-year-old center can prove he still has something left in the tank, he could secure a spot in the bottom six during camp. If that happens, he'd be able to offer mid-range fantasy value as a 20-25 point producer.

Stepan was not in the lineup for Friday's 3-2 win over the Penguins. It was the seventh time in the last nine games he's sat out as a healthy scratch.

EDGE Analysis

Given that the Hurricanes have a healthy forward roster at the moment, Stepan's role on the team has essentially been reduced to that of depth forward. Going forward, he will likely only see ice time as an injury replacement or if one of the team's regulars needs a night off.

Stepan notched a goal on two shots in Monday's 4-3 overtime loss to the Maple Leafs.

EDGE Analysis

Stepan put the Hurricanes ahead 3-2 at 9:23 of the third period, but the lead didn't hold. The 31-year-old has rediscovered his scoring touch a bit since the start of January -- he has four goals and four assists in his last 12 games. For the season, Stepan's at 14 points, 61 shots on net and a plus-2 rating in 35 appearances. He'll continue to play in a bottom-six role that makes steady contributions on the scoresheet hard to count on.

Stepan scored a goal and an assist in Tuesday's 7-1 win over the Bruins.

EDGE Analysis

The veteran forward is stuck in a bottom-six role for Carolina, but Stepan has found a way to be productive lately. Over his last seven games, he's picked up two goals and five points, accounting for half of his scoring on the entire season.

Stepan scored a goal on five shots and added two hits in Friday's 6-3 win over the Flames.

EDGE Analysis

Stepan put the Hurricanes ahead at 7:40 of the second period, and they didn't look back. The 31-year-old has a goal and two assists in his last four games, providing some rare scoring from the fourth line. The American forward is at eight points, 44 shots on net and a plus-4 rating in 25 contests this season, so he's not really doing enough to be of interest in fantasy.

Stepan added an assist for the second consecutive game Saturday against the Blue Jackets.

EDGE Analysis

Stepan continues to center the Canes' fourth line, averaging just 11:23 in ice time this season. Now with just seven points in 24 games, his days of being a regular 50-point player are well behind him.

Stepan scored a goal and an assist in Saturday's 5-4 win over the Kings.

EDGE Analysis

A healthy scratch the prior two games, Stepan drew back into the lineup Saturday and was able to make an impact despite seeing limited minutes on the fourth line. Despite that performance, the 31-year-old has only three goals and five points through 14 games, and the Hurricanes simply have too much depth to expect Stepan to see a more prominent role.