Czarnik will head back to Detroit from Grand Rapids (AHL) where he enjoyed a strong opening to the season with 14 points (6G/8A) in 12 games played. In his brief stint with the Red Wings, he was solid, picking up a goal off four SOG in four games while averaging only 11:50 in a bottom-six role.
It is more bad luck for Tyler Bertuzzi who was already forced to miss a chunk of the early season due to injury and will now head to the IR due to a hand injury. The 27-year-old has a goal, three assists and 22 SOG through nine games prior to hitting the shelf.
Hinostroza will be a healthy scratch yet again Thursday as the Sabres take on the Avalanche. The 28-year-old heads to the press box having eight assists and 17 SOG through 15 games played.
Krebs has been a healthy scratch since Nov. 23rd but will draw back into the Sabres lineup Thursday as they take on Colorado. The 21-year-old has no goals, three assists and is a -4 plus/minus through 17 games this season.
Thompson stopped 26 of 28 shots (.929 SV%) to win his fourth start in five attempts after beating Columbus in his last time out. The 25-year-old rookie has been incredible this season, with his 12-4-0 record, .921 SV% and 2.44 GAA. He faces the Pittsburgh Penguins who have lost their last two games after a 3-2 overtime defeat to Carolina their last time out.
Madden scored five goals and three assists with four PIMs through 16 games with Ontario (AHL) prior to being promoted to the NHL Thursday. If Madden cracks the Kings' lineup it will be the 23-year-olds NHL debut.
Knight allowed four goals on 40 shots (.900 SV%) as he lost in overtime for a second straight contest being downed by Edmonton. The 21-year-old has been the better of the two Panthers' goalies this season with his 6-3-3 record, .914 SV% and 2.74 GAA. He will take on the Vancouver Canucks who lost vs. Washinton in their last game snapping a three-game winning streak.
Copley has been recalled from Ontario (AHL) to replace Cal Peterson, who was waived on Wednesday. Copley has enjoyed a strong season in the minors, with a 6-4-2 record, a 2.48 GAA and a .913 SV%. He will back-up Jonathan Quick on Thursday.
Kuemper stopped 31 of 32 shots (.969 SV%) to win his third straight contest with a victory over Vancouver in his last start. Kuemper has been solid in his first season in Washington, with a .917 SV%, 2.50 GAA and an 8-9-1 record. He will take on the surging Seattle Kraken who are in the middle of a six-game winning streak.
Demko stopped 32 of 35 shots (.914 SV%) for his second win in three starts as he beat San Jose his last time out. It has been a nightmarish season for Demko so far as shown by his 3-9-2 record, .887 SV% and 3.80 GAA. He takes on a Florida Panthers team that has lost six of their last seven contests.
Gallagher will need to be reevaluated after it was announced he would miss Thursday's game due to a lower-body injury. The 30-year-old has three goals, five assists and 51 SOG through his first 22 games prior to the injury.
Binnington allowed three goals on 23 shots (.870 SV%) as he picked up his third straight loss in a defeat vs. Dallas his last time out. The 29-year-old has had a shaky start to the season, posting a 9-8-0 record with a .900 SV% and 3.05 GAA. He is expected to face a lot of rubber Thursday as he takes on the Carolina Hurricanes, who are third in the NHL in shots per game (35.4) and currently on a two-game winning streak.
Kovacevic finds himself a healthy scratch for the third time this season after collecting two points, eight PIMs, 27 SOG and a +5 plus/minus rating through 20 games this season.
Xhekaj missed Montreal's last game as a healthy scratch but will draw back into the lineup Thursday vs. Calgary. The rookie has had a strong start to his career, with three goals, three assists, 36 SOG and a league-leading 47 PIMs through 20 games prior to his scratching.
Grubauer stopped 20 of 22 shots (.909 SV%) in his previous start vs. Vegas to pick up his first win of the season. The 31-year-old has battled injury all season and struggled in his limited action, posting a 1-1-1 record with a 3.35 GAA and .870 SV%. He will face the Washington Capitals, who have won three of their last four contests after a 5-1 win over Vancouver in their last game.
Daws did not see any action as he backed up Vitek Vanecek for a game and will head back to Utica (AHL) after being reassigned there Thursday. Prior to his promotion, the 22-year-old netminder had a 3-4-1 record, a .906 SV% and a 2.46 GAA. He played in 25 games with the Devils last season, struggling with a .893 SV% and 3.11 GAA.
Detroit was Hellberg's third NHL team this season after playing one game between both Ottawa and Seattle where he won after stopping 29 of 31 shots (.935 SV%). The 31-year-old veteran has six career NHL games and has won three of them. He has been assigned to the Grand Rapids Griffins (AHL) for conditioning.
Oettinger allowed five goals on 28 shots (.821 SV%) in a loss to Winnipeg in his previous start. The 23-year-old has been solid this season, posting an 8-2-3 record with a 2.52 GAA and .917 SV%. He takes on the struggling Anaheim Ducks, who have lost seven of their last eight contents and rank 31st in the NHL in goals per game (2.48).
Allen stopped 20 of 23 shots (.870 SV%) but took his second straight loss as he was defeated by San Jose in his previous start. The 10-year veteran has struggled this season, with a 6-8-0 record, 3.57 GAA and .890 SV%. He faces off against the Calgary Flames who will be looking to extend a three-game home winning streak.
Beaulieu was a healthy scratch last game for Anaheim but will be back in the lineup Thursday vs. Dallas. The 29-year-old has three assists and 28 PIMs with a -3 plus/minus through 12 games this season.
