Raanta allowed three goals on 35 shots in the Coyotes win in New Jersey last Friday. Due to Darcy Kuemper's stellar play, Raanta hasn't played a lot yet this year, but he has been impressive when he's been given the crease. Through three starts, he is 2-0-1 with a 2.62 GAA and .922 SV% but draws a tough assignment on Wednesday. The Habs come into the night tied for fourth in goal-scoring (3.64 GF/gm) through their first 11 games.
Markstrom surrendered five goals on 29 shots in the Canucks loss to the Capitals last Friday. Thatcher Demko started Monday, so it's not surprising to see them coming back to Markstrom in Los Angeles. He is 2-2-0 with a 2.28 GAA and .927 SV% in four road starts this season and faces a Kings team that has lost three in a row while being outscored 15-to-4.
Grubauer allowed one goal on 26 shots in Colorado's win in Vegas last Friday. Pavel Francouz started on Saturday, so Grubauer is well-rested coming into Wednesday's game vs. the Panthers. He is 3-0-0 with a 2.34 GAA and .931 SV% at the Pepsi Center this season, so don't hesitate to start him against the NHL's eighth-best offence (3.50 GF/gm).
Steen suffered a lower-body injury in Detroit on Sunday but could play Wednesday vs. the Wild. Steen is officially listed as a game-time decision but took part in the morning skate and looks to be good-to-go. Steen has just four assists in 12 games this season.
Fabbri played 11:14 TOI on Sunday but will come out of the lineup on Wednesday with Sammy Blais returning from a thumb injury. The former first-round pick has had a very difficult time getting his career back on-track since missing the entire 2017-18 season with a knee injury.
Tavares was originally expected to miss two weeks with a broken finger and he will hit that two-week mark on Thursday. Returning to practice on Wednesday is a positive sign that he is on-track in his recovery and means he could be an option on Saturday.
Muzzin is believed to be dealing with a charley horse, so you have to think he'll be available for Saturday's game in Philadelphia. Muzzin has quietly picked up nine points (3G / 6A) in 14 games this season.
Maroon suffered an upper-body injury in a fight with Michael Haley early in the first period of Tuesday's game. It seems unlikely that Maroon will be available for Wednesday's game in New Jersey, so expect someone to be called up from Syracuse (AHL) to replace him if Anthony Cirelli (undisclosed) can't play again.
Hedman was forced to leave Tuesday's game after playing just 6:37 TOI. While he hasn't been officially ruled out, it seems unlikely that Hedman will be available for Wednesday's game in New Jersey. Expect Jan Rutta to draw in for Hedman.
Gunnarsson has missed the last five games with a lower-body injury but will play Wednesday vs. the Wild. Gunnarsson, who has one assist in five games, will replace Robert Bortuzzo and skate on the third pair with Vince Dunn.
Blais missed Sunday's game in Detroit but is set to play tonight vs. the Wild. Blais will get a huge opportunity tonight as he lines up on the first line with Brayden Schenn and Jaden Schwartz, replacing Vladimir Tarasenko. Blais has three goals and two assists (five points) in 10 games this season. The 23-year-old provides even more value in banger leagues, averaging 2.6 hits per game.
Nutivaara missed the last two games with a lower-body injury but will play Wednesday vs. the Oilers. He has two goals while playing 16:13 ATOI in his first eight games this season but should see a bump in ice-time as he replaces Ryan Murray on the second-pair.
Smith was yanked after allowing three goals on 13 shots in the Oilers loss to the Panthers on Sunday. Smith has not won a game since October 12th, going 0-3-1 despite posting a 2.33 GAA, .920 SV% and one shutout (in a 1-0 shootout loss). The Oilers goaltenders need more goal-support and Smith could get it tonight against a Blue Jackets team allowing the sixth-most goals per game (3.55).
Binnington gave up four goals on 33 shots in the Blues win in Detroit on Sunday. It wasn't Binnington's best outing but it was enough to win for the third time in four games. The 26-year-old has yet to lose in regulation on home ice this season, going 3-0-2 with a 2.15 GAA and .926 SV% in his first five starts at Enterprise Center. He is a must-start against a Wild team that played last night and come in ranked 28th in the NHL in scoring (2.42 GF/gm).
McElhinney allowed three goals on 40 shots in the Lightning's overtime loss to the Predators on Saturday. With Andrei Vasilevskiy going last night in New York, McElhinney is expected to face the Devils on Wednesday. He has started the season at 0-1-2 with a 3.29 GAA and .915 SV% in his first three games with the Lightning and tonight he faces a Devils team that is the fifth-lowest scoring team in the NHL (2.44 GF/gm).
Koivula has two assists in six games with Bridgeport this season. With Matt Martin and Tom Kuhnhackl out long-term, Koivula is expected to make his NHL debut on Friday.
Kuhnhackl was already expected to miss 4-to-6 weeks with an undisclosed injury so his movement to IR is simply a formality to open up a roster spot to bring up reinforcements.
Martin suffered a lower-body injury in Ottawa last Friday and the Islanders immediately announced that he will miss at least one month. So moving him to IR simply opens up a roster spot for the Islanders to call-up Otto Koivula from Bridgeport (AHL).
