Kuhnhackl was held out of the lineup in Detroit on Saturday but was back on the ice for Monday’s morning skate. Despite taking part, head coach Barry Trotz was unsure if Kuhnhackl would be available to play against his former team tonight.
Lee was forced to leave Saturday’s game in Detroit following a huge hit by Niklas Kronwall. Lee ended up returning to the game but it’s good to know that there were no lingering effects post-game. Lee will be in the lineup vs. the Penguins and has five goals and two assists in his last eight games.
Lehner missed two games with a minor undisclosed injury but served as Thomas Greiss’ backup over the weekend. Lehner was impressive in his last outing, stopping 35 of the Bruins’ 36 shots in a shootout loss on November 29th. Lehner was forced to leave his first start vs. the Penguins but made 23 saves on 25 shots in the first two periods. He is 1-0-1 with a 2.36 GAA and .933 SV% on home-ice.
Howard allowed five goals on 35 shots in the Red Wings shootout loss to the Lightning last Tuesday. Jonathan Bernier ended up starting the next two games, so look for Detroit to come back to Howard tonight vs. the Kings. The 34-year-old has been pretty solid all season, especially at Little Caesars Arena, where he is 6-3-3 with a 2.69 GAA and .922 SV% in 13 starts.
Hyman will miss Tuesday’s game in Carolina and Thursday’s game in Tampa Bay before being eligible to return Saturday in Florida. Hyman was given a five-minute interference penalty on the play and was forced to answer the bell against Matt Grzelcyk. You should see either William Nylander or Patrick Marleau move back into the top-6 with Hyman suspended.
With Curtis McElhinney banged up, Darling quickly returns to the NHL after clearing waivers and being sent down on November 30th. Darling struggled with the Hurricanes this season but has gone 3-1-0 with a 2.35 GAA and .911 SV% in five games with Charlotte. He will likely split time with Petr Mrazek while McElhinney is out.
Wagner has spent most of his season in the NHL but has three goals in seven games with Ontario. In 18 games with the Kings, the 21-year-old winger has one goal and three assists.
With Jake Allen and Chad Johnson struggling in the Blues crease, it looks like St. Louis will go with three goalies for a little bit. Binnington is a former third-round pick, who has gone 8-4-0 with a 2.34 GAA and .914 SV% in 13 games with the Rampage this season. Binnington could make his first NHL appearance since the 2015-16 season this week.
Blais has split his season between the AHL and NHL, picking up just one assist in 16 games with the Blues. He heads back to the AHL so that Jordan Binnington can join the Blues as they elect to go with three netminders for the foreseeable future.
Kunin has spent the last two-plus months in Iowa working his way back from knee surgery and an injury to Mikko Koivu has finally opened the door for an NHL return. The 2016 No.15 overall pick has registered 15 points (8G / 7A) in 21 games with Iowa this season.
Koivu was hurt in Calgary on Thursday in a collision with Mark Giordano, a play that resulted in Giordano getting suspended. The Wild listed Koivu as day-to-day but he could miss three weeks with a sprained MCL and hamstring injury according to Michael Russo of The Athletic. Luke Kunin was recalled from Iowa (AHL) to replace Koivu on the roster.
