Ranta had three goals, three assists and eight PIMs across 14 games with the Colorado Eagles prior to his promotion to the Avalanche Wednesday. Ranta failed to pick up a point in his previous four-game stint with the Avalanche a few weeks back and will hope to pick up his first career point in 14 GP when he does make his way back into the lineup.
Reichel was recalled on an emergency basis Tuesday due to Jonathan Toews missing their game due to illness. He will head back to Rockford (AHL) just a day later but did manage to make his season debut picking up 13:58 TOI and posting a -1 plus/minus last night.
Luukkonen stopped 26 of 29 shots (.897 SV%) in a much-needed bounce-back victory over San Jose in his previous start. The 23-year-old has struggled in his limited action this season as shown by his .856 SV%, 4,17 GAA and 2-2-1 record. He will face the Columbus Blue Jackets, who have lost five of their last six games and are on the second half of a back-to-back after a loss to Pittsburgh Tuesday.
Heatherington has two goals and five points with 14 PIMs through 19 games played while captaining the Belleville Senators (AHL) prior to his promotion. The 27-year-old has 20 career NHL games played prior to this season, with two assists and a +6 plus/minus.
Korpisalo allowed four goals on 35 shots (.886 SV%) as he picked up his fourth loss in five starts his previous time out in a defeat to Detroit. The 28-year-old has done enough to take the Blue Jackets' starting job, with his 4-5-1 record, .905 SV% and 3.51 GAA. He draws another tough task as he takes on the Buffalo Sabres, who surprisingly rank 2nd in the NHL in goals with 3.8 average per game.
van Riemsdyk has missed the last 20 games with a finger injury but is set to play vs. the Capitals on Wednesday. van Riemsdyk will likely start in a bottom-6 role and on PP2.
Hart stopped 29 of 32 shots (.906 SV%) as he snapped a two-game losing skid with a victory over Colorado in his last time out. The 24-year-old started the season strong, but his numbers have been on a bit of a downfall lately leading to his 8-7-4 record, .911 SV% and 2.83 GAA. He takes on the Washington Capitals, who won their last game 3-2 over Edmonton but rank 27th in the NHL in goals per game (2.74).
Nieto took a massive hit from Rasmus Dahlin in the Sharks' previous contest and will not be placed on the injured reserve with an undisclosed injury. In 28 games this season, the 10-year veteran has six goals, 11 points, and 47 SOG while averaging 15:25 TOI nightly.
Suess has three goals, seven assists and 35 PIMs through 22 games with the San Jose Barracuda (AHL) prior to his promotion to the Sharks. The 28-year-old has played in four NHL games before this season but has yet to pick up his first career point.
Kochetkov stopped 31 of 33 shots (.939 SV%) as he picked up his third straight win in a victory over the Los Angeles Kings. Kochetkov has been sensational in filling in for the injured Frederick Andersen, posting a 5-1-3 record with his 2.27 GAA and .919 SV%. He takes on the Anaheim Ducks who are in the midst of a six-game losing streak after dropping their last contest 5-2 to Winnipeg.
With Sean Monahan (undisclosed) unavailable, the Canadiens will go with 11 forwards and seven defensemen on Tuesday. Wideman, who has been a healthy scratch for the last two games, has four assists in 13 games this season.
Monahan suffered an undisclosed injury midway through Monday's overtime loss in Vancouver. With Monahan out and Brendan Gallagher still dealing with an injury, the Canadiens will dress seven defensemen on Tuesday.
MacKinnon left Monday's game in Boston with an upper-body injury and is expected to miss at least one month. If MacKinnon is out for exactly four weeks, he'll miss 14 games and will be back around early-to-mid January. The Avalanche are incredibly banged up right now, so their lineup will likely be very fluid for the next few games.
Sorokin allowed two goals on 21 shots (.905 SV%) as he took his second straight loss with only two goals against in a defeat to Nashville his last time out. Sorokin is a leading Vezina Candidate this season due to him being second in the NHL in SV% (.932 SV%), third in GAA (2.17) and his 10-7-0 record. He will take on the streaky St. Louis Blues who are on a four-game losing skid and have dropped six of their last seven games.
Husso stopped 32 of 34 shots (.941 SV%) as he picked up his fifth win in seven starts with a victory over Columbus. He has enjoyed a strong first season in Detroit, posting a 10-4-3 record with his .912 SV% and 2.58 GAA. He will take on the Tampa Bay Lightning, who have won four of their last five games after a 4-3 overtime victory over Toronto.
Malkin missed Monday's practice due to an illness and is considered a game-time decision Tuesday as the Penguins take on the Blue Jackets. The 36-year-old star has eight goals, 16 assists and 81 SOG through 25 games this season.
Crosby missed the Penguins' practice Monday and will be a game-time decision Tuesday as Pittsburgh takes on Columbus. The Penguins' captain is in the middle of a five-game point streak (3G/3A) and ranks 10th in the NHL with 33 points (13G/20A) through 25 games played.
Copley will be making his season and Kings' debut Tuesday vs. Ottawa. The 30-year-old had been enjoying a strong season with Ontario of the AHL posting a 6-4-2 with a .913 SV% and 2.48 GAA. He will face off against Ottawa, who has played well of late, winning four of five games.
