Zamula will sit for the second time this season despite an impressive offensive output through his first two games. He has registered a goal and an assist to go along with four shots on goal despite the fact that he's been limited to an ATOI of 14:40. Emil Andrae will draw into the lineup in his place.
The 54th overall pick of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft, Andrae will make his second start of the season and his career on Thursday against the Oilers. He was quiet in his debut, registering just one blocked shot and one hit in 16 minutes of ice time in Saturday's 5-2 loss to the Senators.
After a forgettable season-opening performance that saw him allow four goals on 16 shots, Campbell led the Oilers to their first victory on Wednesday, saving 42 of 43 shots against the Nashville Predators and will be rewarded with another start on Thursday against the Philadelphia Flyers. Until he can consistently string together quality performance, Campbell remains difficult to rely on from a fantasy-hockey perspective, even against the low-scoring Flyers (2.67 GF/GP). The Oilers, -199 road favourites, will look to improve to a .500 record with a victory tonight.
Jets' newcomer Vilardi will miss approximately four to six weeks after suffering an injury (sprained MCL) in Tuesday's matchup against the Los Angeles Kings. In three games this season, Vilardi was seeing time on the top line and top powerplay unit, recording one assist and nine shots on goal. The loss is a sizeable one for the Jets, who will likely turn to Mason Appleton and Alex Iafallo for an increase in playing time.
Juulsen had appeared in the Canucks first three games of the season prior to being scratched on Thursday. Ice-time will likely be harder to come by for Juulsen moving forward following Tuesday's addition of fellow blue-liner Mark Friedman from the Penguins. Juulsen has one assist on the season while playing less than 13 minutes a game.
Bertuzzi missed practice Tuesday for maintenance and was a game-time decision Thursday vs. Florida. The 28-year-old left-winger has a goal, nine SOG, 10 PIMs and a +3 plus/minus through three games this season. Bertuzzi was signed to a one-year, $5.5 million deal in the offseason and has been attached to the hip of Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner on Toronto's top line.
Friedman will make his Vancouver Canucks debut on Thursday after being acquired from the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday with Ty Glover in a trade for Jack Rathbone and Karel Plasek. The 27-year-old Friedman has 65 NHL games under his belt, all with the Penguins, where he amassed 12 points (4G / 8A) along with 102 hits and 59 blocked shots. Akito Hirose was sent to Abbotsford (AHL) to make room for Friedman on the Canucks roster.
Stamkos returns to the Lightning lineup after missing two games due to the lower-body injury. The perennial all-star will be looking to regain the elite form he flashed prior to the injury. Stamkos has registered two goals and two assists with eights shots on goal in just two games so far this season.
Johansson allowed three goals on 31 shots (.903 SV%) for his second straight loss as he was downed by Buffalo in his previous start. The 28-year-old net-minder has struggled to fill the shoes of Andrei Vasilevskiy early on in 2023-24 as he is 1-1-1 with an .893 SV% and a 3.71 GAA. He takes on the Vancouver Canucks Thursday, who lost thier previous game to Philadelphia but are fifth in the NHL in goals per game (4.0) while being 29th in shots per game (24.3).
Shesterkin is coming off a season-high 26-save, 2-1 victory over the Arizona Coyotes and will look to record consecutive victories for the first time this season. Shesterkin has started all three contests for the Rangers thus far and should continue to see the lion's share of action going forward. Shesterkin looks poised for a strong performance tonight as the Rangers are -182 home favourites against a Nashville Predators team that has struggled out of the gate, being outscored 14-9 in their first four games of the season (1-3-0).
Bertuzzi missed practice Tuesday for maintenance and will be a game-time decision Thursday vs. Florida even though he is expected to partake in warmups. The 28-year-old left-winger has a goal, nine SOG, 10 PIMs and a +3 plus/minus through three games this season. Bertuzzi was signed to a one-year, $5.5 million deal in the offseason and has been attached to the hip of Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner on Toronto's top line.
Zub left the Senators' previous game after just 19 shifts and 14:11 TOI due to an undisclosed injury and is now expected to be out for their game Saturday vs. Detroit. The 28-year-old has started off 2023-24 with a bang, picking up a goal, two assists, two SOG, four PIMs and a +3 plus/minus in four games so far this season.
Alexandrov has yet to dress in any of the Blues first two games but Is set to make his season debut Thursday vs. Arizona. The 23-year-old forward appeared in 28 games in 2022-23, picking up three goals, four assists, 28 SOG and eight PIMs. He is set to line up on the Blues' fourth line alongside Oskar Sundqvist and Jake Neighbours.
Saros was pulled in his last start vs. Edmonton after allowing four goals on 11 shots against (.638 SV%) but will draw the start Thursday against the New York Rangers. The 28-year-old workhorse net-minder is 1-3-0 this season with a 3.41 GAA and an .887 SV%. He takes on the New York Rangers, who won their previous game 2-1 over Arizona but are seventh in the NHL in shots per game (33.7) and 11th in goals for (3.33).
Luneau was Anaheim's 2022 second-round pick (53rd overall) and is set to make his NHL debut Thursday vs. Dallas as he replaces Jamie Drysdale in the Ducks' lineup. The 19-year-old defensemen was not originally returned to Gatineau (QMJHL) as expected to start this season, where he had 20 goals, 63 assists, 31 PIMs and a +49 plus/minus through 65 games in 2022-23.
Lindgren left Monday's morning skate with an undisclosed injury and did not suit up against Calgary that night which has led to him being placed on the injured reserve. The 29-year-old has only started one game this season and is 0-1-0 with a .886 SV% and a 4.00 GAA. Clay Stevenson was recalled in his absence.
Aktell had a goal, and was a -1 plus/minus in two games with Hershey (AHL) and has been recalled to Washington for the first time in his career. The 25-year-old Swede was drafted by Nashville in the fourth round of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft (108th overall) but he only crossed the border to North American this season after three years in the SHL. Aktell has a chance to make his NHL debut Saturday.
Johansson allowed three goals on 31 shots (.903 SV%) for his second straight loss as he was downed by Buffalo in his previous start. The 28-year-old net-minder has struggled to fill the shoes of Andrei Vasilevskiy early on in 2023-24 as he is 1-1-1 with an .893 SV% and a 3.71 GAA. He takes on the Vancouver Canucks Thursday, who lost thier previous game to Philadelphia but are fifth in the NHL in goals per game (4.0) while being 29th in shots per game (24.3).
Ullmark will start his second game of the season as the Bruins will attempt to start on a three-game winning streak when they face off against the San Jose Sharks on Thursday. Picking up where he left off with his Vezina-winning 2022-23 campaign, Ullmark saved 20 of 21 shots for a 3-1 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks in his season debut. The Bruins should be able to continue their hot start to the season as they are a -266 road favourite over the Sharks on Thursday.
Raanta is expected to make his third appearance and second start of the season in Thursday’s game against the Kraken. The 34-year-old netminder will be hoping to improve on a disappointing start to the season. He’s stopped just 31 of the 37 shots he’s faced, resulting in an .838 SV% and a 3.17 GAA. Luckily for Raanta and his fantasy managers, he draws an excellent matchup tonight with Carolina being sizable favourites at -140 to come out on top tonight against the winless Kraken.
