Shore, who had 16 points in 37 KHL games last season, will make his Maple Leafs debut vs. Ottawa. Shore will centre the fourth line instead of Jason Spezza and has 53 points (15G / 38A) in 236 career NHL games with the Kings, Senators and Flames.
Andersen has been a model of consistency during his tenure in Toronto. The Dane has averaged 64 starts and 36 wins while posting a 2.75 GAA and .918 SV%. The Maple Leafs want to scale back his workload in 2019-20, but he remains a high-end fantasy option. His opening night matchup is outstanding, but Andersen was 1-1-0 with a 4.11 GAA and .881 SV% in two games vs. Ottawa last season.
This comes as no surprise because Tuch is expected to miss at least a couple of weeks. Tuch is officially listed as week-to-week, so expect an update on his status in mid-October. Cody Glass will get a huge early-season look while Tuch is on the mend.
Motte was set to skate on the Canucks fourth line in the season opener but will be replaced by Loui Eriksson. Motte will likely miss the first five or six games of the regular season but should travel on the Canucks east coast road-trip, which starts on October 17th.
Jurco was gearing up to skate on a line with Connor McDavid in his Oilers debut, but won’t play due to an undisclosed medical procedure. With Jurco not on the ice, Edmonton shuffled their lines and Joakim Nygard took his spot next to Connor McDavid.
After posting a 2.33 GAA and .921 SV% from 2013-to-2017, Holtby has a 2.90 GAA and .909 SV% over the last two years. Still, he has won 34 and 32 games in those seasons and has won at least 30 games in five straight seasons. He’ll be in tough against the reigning Stanley Cup Champions on opening night. Holtby was 15-10-1 with a 3.07 GAA and .903 SV% on the road last year.
Haley spent 2019 with the Panthers and the Sharks, totalling two goals, four assists (six points) and 75 PIMS in 43 NHL games. Haley will likely be a rotation player on the Rangers fourth-line to begin 2019-20.
Pateryn appeared in 80 games with the Wild last season but is set to miss the first six weeks of the 2019-20 season. With Pateryn expected to be out until mid-November, Brad Hunt is expected to open the season as the Wild’s No.6 defenseman.
Crosby practiced for the first time since being hit in the foot with a shot during Pittsburgh’s preseason game last Saturday. “I felt good today,” Crosby told reporters, but his status for Thursday’s season opener remains unknown. Expect another update on Thursday.
Larkin went down along the boards in what head coach Jeff Blashill described as “fairly innocent” but was forced to leave early. Larkin will be evaluated on Tuesday and the Red Wings will likely release more information on his status on Wednesday.
Montour is a few weeks away from any type of contact, which suggests that he won’t be back until late-October. Luckily the Sabres went out and got Colin Miller and Henri Jokiharju this offseason, so their blueline should remain strong in Montour’s absence.
Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan said that Rust is expected to be out “longer-term” and his move to LTIR means he will miss at least 10 games (24 days). His injury means that Zach Aston-Reese will likely start the season on the Penguins fourth-line.
Galchenyuk is officially listed as day-to-day but GM Jim Rutherford said the Penguins are confident that Galchenyuk will be able to play Thursday. The 25-year-old is coming off of a disappointing season in Arizona but is expected to skate alongside Evgeni Malkin, which makes him an excellent bounce-back/post-hype candidate.
Howard is coming off of a tough season, going 23-22-5 with a 3.07 GAA and .909 SV%. It was one of the worst seasons of his 13-year career and there isn’t a lot of optimism heading into 2019-20. On paper, the Red Wings look like one of the weakest teams in the league and Howard draws a tough assignment in Nashville—the Predators are coming off of a 5-2 win over the Wild on Thursday.
Comrie was a second-round pick of the Jets in 2013 and has appeared in just five NHL games since. Last year he was 25-20-2 with a 2.69 GAA, .917 SV% and two shutouts in Manitoba (AHL) last year. Comrie provides a little extra goaltending depth for the Coyotes, who had to dip into the minor leagues last year because of a long-term Antti Raanta injury.
Dahlstrom was originally selected in the second round of the 2013 NHL Draft and has appeared in 49 NHL games over the last two seasons. The 24-year-old has spent most of his time in the AHL, where he had eight points (1G / 7A) in 22 games last year but will serve as an extra defenseman in Winnipeg this season.
Anderson appeared in 50 games last season, going 17-27-4 with a 3.51 GAA and .903 SV%. Playing for the league’s weakest team makes Anderson as risky of a goalie option as you will find in fantasy and an opening night meeting with the Maple Leafs must be avoided. Surprisingly, he was 2-1-0 despite a 3.36 GAA and .910 SV% vs. Toronto last season.
