Walker to play against Leafs

TORONTO -- Scott Walker will return very soon -- tonight, in fact.

Canes coach Peter Laviolette said today that the forward, out the last month following hand surgery, would play tonight against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

"It's good to get him back -- a heart and soul guy," Laviolette said. "He gives everything he's got, every shift.

"He got injured doing exactly that, in sticking up for a teammate. When you take a guy like that out of the lineup, you take out a piece of the core. He's been champing at the bit to get back in there."

Laviolette said he would try to "find him a dozen minutes somewhere."

With Walker returning, the decision was made to place forward Dan LaCouture on waivers, with the intent of sending him to Albany (AHL), and keep Patrick Dwyer up.

Dwyer, called up from Albany, made his NHL debut Surday against the Leafs and played well.

"We have a lot of penalty killers out of the lineup right now, and sometimes the minutes get racked up if you're using (Eric) Staal and (Rod) Brind'Amour all the time," Laviolette said.

"Pat Dwyer is probably one of the smarter penalty killers in the organization. He's going to get that opportunity again. We threw him right in there the other night killing penalties and he did a super job."

Center Matt Cullen, who missed the last game with a groin injury, is "day to day," Laviolette said.