NHL Hockey Player News

Carter was not on the ice for the Kings morning skate and will not play Thursday vs. the Coyotes. With Carter out, Adrian Kempe will centre the Kings’ second-line.

Jones allowed three goals on 31 shots in the Sharks loss to the Kings lat Saturday. Jones has lost three of his last four starts and comes into Thursday at 5-3-1 with a 2.61 GAA, .910 SV% and one shutout in December. In his first two starts against Anaheim, Jones has gone 1-1-0 with a 3.47 GAA and .841 SV%.

Russell has missed the last five games but appears set to return to the Oilers lineup in one of the next two games. Russell was back on the ice for Thursday’s practice and will likely replace Chris Wideman when he is healthy.

Caggiula is day-to-day with the flu and will be replaced by Ty Rattie on Thursday.

Garrison is day-to-day with the flu and will be replaced by Chris Wideman in the lineup on Thursday.

Rittich gave up four goals on 36 shots in the Flames loss to the Lightning last Thursday. Rittich has lost two straight but remains a solid 3-2-1 with a 2.47 GAA and .920 SV% in seven December appearances. Even though he’s been steady all season, Rittich is a risky option in Winnipeg—the Jets are 13-4-2 on home-ice and rank fourth in the NHL in goal-scoring (3.53 GF/pg).

Copp has missed the last 10 games with an upper-body injury but is set to play Thursday vs. the Flames. Copp has just two goals and two assists (four points) in 23 games this season.

Lowry missed the final two games before the Christmas break but will play Thursday against the Flames. Lowry will be back in his usual spot on the third line and comes in with 10 points (5G / 5A) in 34 games this season.

Coming out of the Christmas break, Price is dealing with a lower-body injury and will not travel to Florida to start their three-game road-trip. Price could meet the team in Dallas, but that also seems unlikely.

Hutton allowed two goals on 24 shots in the Sabres loss in Washington last Friday. Hutton is on a three-game losing streak, allowing a combined nine goals on 97 shots (.907 SV%). Hutton has cooled off as of late but he should be extra motivated on Thursday as he faces his former team in St. Luis for the first time.

Dickinson will come out of the Stars lineup on Thursday and is listed as day-to-day. The Stars are hoping that Dickinson will return shortly.

Hanzal’s back issue continues to linger, so he will come out of the lineup on Thursday and the Stars don’t know when he will play again. Hanzal could be in and out of the lineup like he was last season.

Subban is expected to play Thursday after missing the last 20 games with an upper-body injury. Subban will replace Yannick Weber, who was moved to IR in a corresponding move. Subban has 12 points (2G / 10A) in 18 games this season.

Arvidsson is expected to play Thursday after missing 22 games with a broken thumb he suffered on November 10th. Arvidsson has 13 points (8G / 5A) in 13 games this season.

Rittich gave up four goals on 36 shots in the Flames loss to the Lightning last Thursday. Rittich has lost two straight but remains a solid 3-2-1 with a 2.47 GAA and .920 SV% in seven December appearances. Even though he’s been steady all season, Rittich is a risky option in Winnipeg—the Jets are 13-4-2 on home-ice and rank fourth in the NHL in goal-scoring (3.53 GF/pg).

Neuvirth stopped 32 of 34 shots in the Flyers win in New York last Sunday. Neuvirth earned himself the first start out of the break with great outing and will look to string two straight road wins together. Tonight’s game won’t be easy to come by, as he gets set to face a Lightning team that leads the NHL with 4.08 goals for per game.

Koskinen gave up five goals on 44 shots in the Oilers loss to the Lightning last Saturday. It was Koskinen’s first loss on home-ice this season but he will look to get back on-track in his second start against the Canucks. In his first start vs. Vancouver, Koskinen stopped 26 of 29 shots in a 4-2 loss on December 16th.

Khudobin allowed two goals on 27 shots in the Stars loss to the Islanders last Sunday. Khudobin has been mostly up-and-down this season, ultimately compiling a 6-7-2 record, 2.81 GAA and .912 SV% in 15 starts and two relief appearances. Tonight he will see a Predators squad that has gone 14-5-0 in Nashville this season.

Athanasiou missed the final two games before the Christmas break but is expected to retune to the lineup on Thursday. Athanasiou is expected to skate with Luke Glendening and Michael Rasmussen and returns with 11 goals and nine assists (20 points) in 32 games this season.