Wood has not played since November 27th, missing 26 games due to an upper-body injury, but appears to be nearing a return to the lineup. Before his injury, the 29-year-old Wood was averaging 12:02 time-on-ice and had three points (2G / 1A) in 16 games this season.
The Sabres are coming off a 3-2 win over the Vancouver Canucks when Luukkonen has a tremendous performance, saving 32 of 34 shots (.941 SV%). They will likely roll with him on Thursday against the Calgary Flames. The 25-year-old Luukkonen has a 2.99 GAA and .897 SV% in 34 games this season (15-14-4). The Sabres enter Thursday's contest as +124 road underdogs against a Flames squad that has scored three or fewer goals in three straight (1-2-0).
Howden had an impressive outing in Monday's 5-4 shootout loss to the St. Louis Blues, recording one goal, five shots, and one hit in 13:29 time-on-ice, but is battling an illness, making his status uncertain for Thursday's rematch. The 26-year-old Howden is averaging 15:10 time-on-ice and has 22 points (16G / 6A) in 47 games.
The Canucks are coming off a disappointing 3-2 loss to the Buffalo Sabres and will roll with Demko between the pipes on Thursday against the Edmonton Oilers. Demko saved 13 of 15 shots (.867 SV%) in a 3-2 win over the Edmonton Oilers less than a week ago. The 29-year-old Demko has a 3.23 GAA and .873 SV% in 11 appearances this season (3-4-3). The Canucks enter Thursday's contest as +157 road underdogs against an Oilers club without Connor McDavid (suspension) for a second consecutive game.
Kostin has missed six straight due to a lower-body injury and will remain sidelined week-to-week. The 25-year-old Kostin is averaging 10:32 time-on-ice and has four points (1G / 3A) in 26 games this season.
Sturm missed three games earlier this month with a lower-body injury, returned to the lineup for five games, and is once again sidelined. The 29-year-old Sturm is averaging 9:51 time-on-ice and has 11 points (5G / 6A) in 41 games this season.
The Sharks have been outscored 21-10 in their last four games (0-4-0) and will attempt to return to the win column with Askarov between the pipes on Thursday against the Nashville Predators. Askarov has been solid this season but struggled in his most recent outing, allowing four goals on 31 shots (.871 SV%) in a 6-3 loss to the Boston Bruins. He has a 2.58 GAA and .912 SV% in nine games this season (3-4-2). The Sharks enter Thursday's contest as sizeable +206 home underdogs against a Predators squad that defeated them 7-5 on Tuesday.
Toffoli has missed the previous three games with a lower-body injury and will return to the lineup on Thursday against the Nashville Predators. Before his injury, Toffoli has four points (2G / 2A) in his last two games. He has 30 points (17G / 13A) in 47 games this season.
Collin Graf will be the odd-man out of the lineup on Thursday against the Nashville Predators to accommodate an open roster spot for Duehr to make his team debut. Duehr split time between the Calgary Flames and Calgary Wranglers (AHL) before being acquired by the Sharks via waivers. The 27-year-old forward has 19 points (9G / 10A) in 84 career games, all with the Flames.
Walker Duehr will make his Sharks' debut on Thursday against the Nashville Predators, resulting in Graf being a healthy scratch. The 22-year-old Graf is averaging 14:17 time-on-ice and has two points (0G / 2A) in 10 games this season.
Clark Bishop will make his Flames' debut on Thursday against the Buffalo Sabres, resulting in Rooney being a healthy scratch. The 31-year-old Rooney is averaging 9:40 time-on-ice and has four points (3G / 1A) in 37 games this season.
Bishop was a fifth-round pick in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft but has primarily been an AHL player, limited to 47 NHL games in his career. The 28-year-old forward has 33 points (16G / 17A) in 39 games with the Calgary Wranglers (AHL) this season. Kevin Rooney will be a healthy scratch to accommodate Bishops' season debut.
The Capitals are riding a five-game winning streak, all with Logan Thompson between the pipes, but they will switch to Lindgren on Thursday against the Seattle Kraken. The 31-year-old Lindgren has been serviceable this season for the Capitals, posting a 2.65 GAA and .900 SV% in 21 appearances (10-8-2). The Capitals enter Thursday's contest as -129 road favorites against a Kraken team riding a two-game winning streak.
Perron has not played since November 23rd but could return to the lineup on Thursday against the Boston Bruins. The 36-year-old Perron has had a rough first year in Ottawa, limited to only nine games and scoring zero points.
Sergachev will miss a third straight game due to an upper-body injury on Thursday when Utah visits the Minnesota Wild. The 26-year-old defenseman is averaging a monstrous 25:45 time-on-ice, a career-high, recording 30 points (8G / 22A), 81 blocks, and 23 hits in 44 games this season.
Connor Ingram has been proficient since returning from an injury, starting the last two games, but Vejmelka will return to the crease on Thursday against the Minnesota Wild. Vejmelka has struggled lately, allowing nine goals on 51 shots (.824 SV%) in his last two games (0-2-0). He has a 2.54 GAA and .910 SV% in 28 appearances this season (10-13-3). Utah HC enters Thursday's contest as +131 road underdogs against a Minnesota team that will welcome Kirill Kaprizov back into the lineup.
Laczynski has 44 games of NHL experience, including scoring one point (1G / 0A) in a six-game stint with the Golden Knights earlier this season, but has primarily been an AHL player. The 27-year-old forward has 25 points (8G / 17A) in 25 games with the Henderson Silver Knights (AHL) this season.
Brisson was the 29th overall pick of the Golden Knights in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft. He has 14 points (4G / 10A) in 31 games with the Henderson Silver Knights (AHL) this season. He had a brief seven-game stint with the Golden Knights earlier this season and failed to record a point.
The Flames are coming off an impressive 3-1 win over the Winnipeg Jets, courtesy of a spectacular 38-save performance from Wolf (.974 SV%), and will turn to him between the pipes again on Thursday against the Buffalo Sabres. The 23-year-old Wolf remains a strong candidate for the Calder trophy this season, posting a 2.50 GAA and .917 SV% through 25 games (16-7-2). The Flames enter Thursday's contest as -133 home favorites against a Sabres team coming off a 3-2 win against the Vancouver Canucks.
