Cizikas was listed as a game-time decision on Monday but missed the game and will not dress tonight vs. the Red Wings. Head coach Barry Trotz said that Cizikas could be back for Thursday's game vs. the Rangers.
Hajek recently returned from a lengthy absence with a knee injury and will go to the AHL for a bit to help him get back up to speed. He has five assists in 28 NHL games this season.
Ullmark stopped 21 of 22 shots in the Sabres 5-1 win over the Red Wings on Sunday. The 26-year-old has gone 3-1-0 with a 2.25 GAA and .920 SV% in his last four starts but will be tested tonight with the Golden Knights in town. Vegas has struggled recently, losing there straight but are expected to get Jonathan Marchessault back after a five-game absence.
Poolman was forced to leave Sunday's game with a lower-body injury and will miss the rest of the Jets home stand. With Poolman out, Neal Pionk will move up to play with Josh Morrissey and Luca Sbisa is expected to draw back into the lineup.
Vasilevskiy stopped all 23 shots that he faced in the Lightning’s shutout win in Philadelphia on Saturday. Curtis McElhinney started and lot in New Jersey on Sunday, so they’ll obviously come back to the red-hot Vasilevskiy tonight vs. the Kings. He has posted back-to-back shutouts and has won eight in a row while posting a 1.63 GAA and .946 SV%.
Greiss gave up three goals on 35 shots in the Islanders win in New Jersey last Tuesday. He has cast aside as the Islanders’ No.2 netminder recently but at least that means he’ll usually get easier matchups. He’s allowed least three goals in four straight outings but that streak could come to an end tonight with the lowest-scoring team in the NHL in town.
Merzlikins stopped all 27 shots that he faced in the Blue Jackets shutout win in Vegas on Saturday. Merzlikins closed out their four-game road-trip at 3-1-0 with a 2.03 GAA, .942 SV% and one shutout. Now he returns to Columbus to face the Bruins for the second time this month. He stopped 25 of 26 shots in a 2-1 OT win in Boston in the first get-together.
With Morgan Rielly and Jake Muzzin both out, the Maple Leafs recalled Rasmus Sandin last night and Liljegren today and both could draw into the lineup on Tuesday. The 20-year-old has four goals and 20 assists (24 points) in 33 AHL games this season.
Backstrom is in the final year of the 10-year deal that carried a $6.7M AAV cap-hit and gets an extension that carries him through the 2025 season. He is now the 22nd highest-paid player in the NHL heading into 2021. He has nine goals and 26 assists (35 points) in 39 games, putting him on-pace for 17 goals and 49 assists (66 points).
Kassian will miss Tuesday's game vs. the Predators and Saturday's game vs. the Coyotes but is eligible to return following the Oilers' by week. Their first game back is against...Tkachuk and the Flames. Josh Archibald skated on the top line in Monday's practice and could replace Kassian next to McDavid on Tuesday.
Rask allowed two goals on 37 shots in the Bruins win over the Islanders on Saturday. Rask has won four of his last five starts (4-0-1) while posting a 2.19 GAA and .936 SV%. The lone loss came against these Blue Jackets on January 2nd. He stopped 31 of 33 shots in what turned out to be a 3-2 overtime loss.
Mrazek stopped all 32 shots that he faced in the Hurricanes shutout win over the Coyotes on Friday. Since the break, Mrazek has gone 3-2-0 with a 2.43 GAA, .918 SV% and one shutout in five starts. Tonight he faces the Capitals for the third time this season, he is 1-1-0 with a 4.03 GAA and .862 SV% in the previous two meetings.
Rielly underwent a CT scan on Monday and it revealed a fractured foot, that will sideline the Maple Leafs’ defenseman for at least two months. This is a huge blow for a Toronto team, that is already without Jake Muzzin with the same type of injury. Rasmus Sandin was called up from the Toronto Marlies (AHL) this morning to replace Rielly moving forward.
Howard surrendered five goals on 27 shots in the Red Wings loss to the Sabres on Sunday. It’s been a dreadful season for Howard, who has allowed at least three goals in five straight and has not won a game since October 29th. On the year, he is 2-15-1 with a 4.10 GAA and .880 SV%, so I wouldn’t even consider him against an Islanders team that has lost eight of their last 11 (3-6-2).
Rittich surrendered four goals on 34 shots in the Flames win in Minnesota on January 5th. Cam Talbot has started the last three games, so they'll get Rittich a game tonight so he doesn't sit too long. The 27-year-old is 9-6-2 with a 2.87 GAA, .913 SV% and one shutout on the road and gets set to face a Montreal team that has lost five in a row while scoring just 1.60 goals per game on home ice.
It's unclear when Bernier suffered the injury because he finished Friday's shootout win over the Senators but then did not come out for warmups on Sunday. Head coach Jeff Blashill expects him to miss at least a couple of weeks, leaning on Jimmy Howard and Calvin Pickard as their goalies moving forward.
Gibson allowed four goals on 33 shots in the Ducks loss in Chicago on Saturday. It was the fourth time in five games that Gibson has allowed four goals, allowing a combined 18 goals on 161 shots (.888 SV%) over that span. The Ducks are just so porous defensively that Gibson barely stands a chance. He should be avoided in St. Louis, where the Blues have won eight straight while scoring 4.00 goals per game.
Sandin has been all over the place this season. He started the year in the NHL, posting two assists in six games, was then sent to the AHL and then loaned to Team Sweden for the World Juniors, where he had 10 points (3G / 7A) in seven games. Toronto is trying to sort some stuff out defensively, so it looks like they'll give the 19-year-old another look.
