With Mackenzie Blackwood out with an upper-body injury, Cormier comes up to be the backup. He has played nine games in both the AHL and ECHL this season and has never appeared in an NHL game.
Blackwood underwent dental work after Tuesday's game vs. the Islanders but started Thursday, where he was eventually yanked. It looks like the Devils will give him a night off on Saturday to get back to 100 percent, so Evan Cormier comes up to serve as Louis Domingue's backup.
Bratt has missed the last three games with an undisclosed issue but will be back on the top line in Washington. Bratt started to heat up before getting hurt, scoring two goals with four assists (six points) in his last eight games.
With Jake McCabe returning from his upper-body injury, Miller will be scratched for the first time since New Year's Eve. He's had a tough debut season in Buffalo, scoring just one goal on 49 shots (2.0 SH%) with five assists (six points) in 32 games.
McCabe missed Thursday's game in St. Louis but will replace Colin Miller on Saturday afternoon vs. the Canucks. McCabe has just two goals and five assists (seven points) in 41 games this season.
Domingue allowed one goal on 12 shots after replacing Mackenzie Blackwood in the Devils loss in New York on Thursday. Since joining the Devils, Domingue has gone 1-4-0 with a 3.99 GAA and .867 SV% in five starts and two relief appearances. Now he faces a Washington team that has gone 5-1-0 in their last six home games, so look elsewhere for a spot-start.
Varlamov stopped all 32 shots that he faced in the Islanders shutout win over the Avalanche on Monday. It was a terrific outing for Varlamov, who was facing his former team for the first time. Varlamov has gone 3-2-0 with a 1.62 GAA and .947 SV% inn his last five starts and stopped 27 of 29 shots in a 3-2 shootout win in his first start vs. the Bruins this season.
Dell allowed one goal on 31 shots in the Sharks win over the Blue Jackets one Thursday. Dell has played well in January, going 3-1-0 with a 1.99 GAA and .933 SV% in four starts. Tonight he faces a Dallas team that is riding a six-game winning streak, while scoring 3.33 goals per game.
Borowiecki missed the morning skate and was listed as a game-time decision in Detroit, but is not on the ice for warmups so look for Cody Goloubef to play on the third pair.
Crosby was scheduled to skate today but wasn't feeling well, so he will not play in Colorado. The Penguins will stick with the same lineup as Tuesday.
Murray allowed two goals on 28 shots in the Penguins win in Montreal last Saturday. Tristan Jarry has played great and that has limited Murray to just four starts since the start of December, but he is 3-1-0 with a 3.29 GAA and .890 SV% in four starts over that span.
Hart allowed two goal on 28 shots in the Flyers win over the Capitals on Wednesday. Hart is happy to be back in Philalphia, where he is now 12-1-2 with a 1.52 GAA, .945 SV% and one shutout at the Wells Fargo Centre this season. He draws a terrible assignment with the Lightning in town on Saturday. They are riding a nine-game winning streak and have scored at least four goals in six of those games.
Lundqvist gave up four goals on 29 shots in the Rangers loss in Calgary on January 2nd. Igor Shesterkin has won his first two starts but the Rangers will make sure that Lundqvist doesn't sit too long, giving him the nod tonight in St. Louis. He is a real ugly 2-6-2 with a 3.52 GAA and .893 SV% in 11 road appearances (nine starts) on the season.
Francouz stopped 32 of 33 shots in Colorado's 1-0 loss to the Islanders on Monday. Francouz has played very well since the middle of December, going 4-2-0 with a 2.02 GAA and .940 SV% in his last six outings. Tonight he faces a Penguins team that has gone 6-1-0 while averaging 3.86 goals per game in their last seven road games.
Fischer has played in six consecutive games but will be scratched for Michael Grabner on Friday. It's been a difficult season offensively for Fischer, who has just one assist in his last 10 games.
Grabner has not played in the last five games but will replace Christian Fischer in the lineup in Carolina. Grabner has just 11 points (8G / 3A) in 39 games this season.
Raanta stopped all 17 shots that he faced before getting hurt in the Coyotes win over the Flyers last Saturday. He missed the last two games but will start tonight in Carolina. In his last three outings, Raanta has stopped 81 of 84 shots (.964 SV%) and gone 3-0-0, but draws a tough assignment in Carolina. The Hurricanes have gone 5-3-0 while scoring 3.63 goals per game in their last eight home games.
Hainsey has missed the last seven games with an undisclosed issue but will play Friday vs. the Red Wings. The veteran defenseman doesn't bring a lot of offence to the lineup but has been a stabilizing defensive force for Ottawa this season. He'll return one the first pair next to minute eating Thomas Chabot.
