Pacioretty left the Hurricane's game vs. Minnesota after 16:38 TOI on a non-contact play and will be out indefinitely as he deals with a lower-body injury after being placed on the injured reserve Friday. It is a terrible break for the six-time 30-goal scorer, as he had just returned from offseason Achilles surgery and had three goals in his first five games.
Gustavsson stopped 34 of 36 shots (.944 SV%) for his fourth win in five starts as he beat Washington in his previous time out. The 24-year-old Wild backup has made Minnesota's crease a 50/50 split due to his incredible play, with his 11-6-1 record, 2.16 GAA and .926 SV%. He will hope to continue his hot run of late as he takes on the Florida Panthers, who have won three of their last four games after a 6-2 win over Montreal last game.
Samsonov stopped 37 of 38 shots (.974 SV%) for his third win in four games as he beat the Winnipeg Jets in his previous start. The 25-year-old has been enjoying an excellent first season splitting starts in Toronto, with his 14-4-1 record, .920 SV% and 2.18 GAA. He will face the Montreal Canadiens, who are coming off a 6-2 loss to Florida and are 29th in the NHL in goals per game (2.57).
Bertuzzi left the Red Wings' previous game vs. Vegas after just 11:22 TOI due to a lower-body injury and is questionable to play Saturday when Detroit takes on Philadelphia. Bertuzzi has been back for only six games since his previous long-term injury so he will be hoping this is nothing serious.
Alexandrov has two goals, two assists, 17 SOG, and a +5 plus/minus through 16 games with St. Louis but has been reassigned to Springfield (AHL) Friday. Prior to his promotion to St. Louis, he had 11 goals, seven assists, 12 PIMs and a -2 plus/minus through 22 games with Springfield.
Brown hasn't played since December 29th due to an upper-body injury but has been activated from the injured reserve Friday. The 24-year-old has two assists, five SOG, and a -1 plus/minus through nine injury filled games this season.
Poehling has not played since Dec. 30th due to an upper-body injury but will be a game-time decision Friday as Pittsburgh takes on Ottawa. The 24-year-old has four goals, four assists, 34 SOG and a +3 plus/minus through 31 games prior to the injury.
Kapanen has six goals, 11 assists, 54 SOG, and a -2 plus/minus through 35 games but is now considered week-to-week with a lower-body injury. Kapanen picked up the injury in the Penguins' previous contest vs. Ottawa.
Tarasov was 2-9-1 with a 3.28 GAA and .908 SV% but has been re-assigned to the Cleveland Monsters (AHL). Tarasov will be looking to improve on his ugly AHL stats with his return, as he had a 2-2-0 record, .850 SV% and 4.29 GAA prior to his promotion to Columbus.
Petry took part in the morning skate and quarterbacked the top power-play unit but said he'll have to see how he responds after the skate. Petry, who has 12 points (3G / 9A) in 28 games this season, would be a really nice fantasy asset in the short-term with Kris Letang still sidelined.
Jarry last played on January 2nd and was pulled after stopping all eight of eight shots due to a lower-body injury. The Penguins will be very happy to have their starting netminder back, as he is 15-5-4 on the season, with his 2.75 GAA and .918 SV%. He will take on the Ottawa Senators, who won their last game 5-4 in overtime vs. Pittsburgh but are sixth in the NHL in shots per game (33.5).
Sandstrom had a 4-1-2 record, .911 SV% and 2.39 GAA in seven games for Lehigh Valley (AHL) but had to be returned to Philadelphia due to his conditioning stint running out. The 26-year-old has struggled at the NHL level, with his 1-6-1 record, .888 SV% and 3.37 GAA.
Ersson had a 5-0-0 record, 2.37 GAA and .918 SV% with Philadelphia but was re-assigned to Lehigh Valley (AHL) on Friday. Ersson had to be returned to the minors due to Felix Sandstrom's conditioning stint finishing up as he had to be returned to the Flyers or waived.
Copley allowed three goals on 30 shots (.900 SV%) for his third straight win as he beat San Jose in his previous start. The 31-year-old continues to win as he is now 12-2-0 on the season even though he has a mediocre .904 SV% and 2.58 GAA. He will face the Dallas Stars, who have lost three of their last four games but are seventh in the NHL in goals (3.43).
Blackwood allowed two goals on 37 shots (.946 SV%) as he snapped a two-game losing streak with a win over Los Angeles in his previous start. The 26-year-old has continued to struggle for a second-straight season, with his 6-3-1 record, 2.95 GAA and .895 SV%. He will face the Seattle Kraken, who are on a two-game losing streak after a 5-2 loss to Edmonton, which came after an eight-game winning streak.
Hill stopped 38 of 39 shots (.974 SV%) for his second win in as many starts as he beat Florida the last time he took the crease. The 26-year-old backup has been solid this season, with his 10-3-1 record, 2.61 GAA and .909 SV%. He takes on the Detroit Red Wings, who have lost three straight games and are 19th in the NHL in goals per game (3.09).
