Andersen did not dress for Monday’s game vs. the Kings, but head coach Mike Babcock said that Andersen will start Thursday vs. Pittsburgh. Returning to the ice on Tuesday is a good sign that Babcock’s plan is still on-track.
Schwartz missed the Blues last two games with a lower-body injury, but was back on the ice for Tuesday’s practice. Schwartz skated in his regular spot on the Blues’ second line and power-play, suggesting that he will play on Wednesday. Schwartz has registered two assists and seven shots on goal in three games this season.
Mrazek allowed two goals on 25 shots in the Hurricanes loss in Winnipeg on Sunday. It was Mrazek’s best start in a Carolina jersey and tonight he will make his fourth appearance of the season. Mrazek has a 3.05 GAA and .870 SV% so far and is a risky start against a Lightning team.
Nilsson gave up two goals on 26 shots in the Canucks win in Florida on Saturday. Nilsson has won back-to-back starts while stopping 57 of 60 shots (.950 SV%) and will make his third straight start tonight. Dating back to last season, Nilsson is 5-1-0 while allowing just nine goals on 165 shots (.946 SV%) in six October starts.
Elliott allowed one goal on 21 shots in the Flyers loss to the Golden Knights on Saturday. After an opening night win, Elliott has lost three straight while allowing a combined 13 goals on 103 shots (.874 SV%). Tonight he will face a stacked Panthers team that has had a slow start to the season—averaging just 2.33 goals for per game in their first three games.
DeSmith allowed three goals on 40 shots in the Penguins shootout loss to the Canadiens on Saturday. Despite Matt Murray being healthy, DeSmith will make his third straight start tonight vs. the Canucks. DeSmith has picked up three of a possible four points in his two starts, stopping 72 of the 77 shots (.935 SV%) that he has faced.
Thorburn played just 1:52 TOI in his season debut in Chicago on Saturday. Thorburn doesn’t bring a lot to the Blues lineup, so he heads back to San Antonio and Zach Sanford has been called-up.
Sanford has started the AHL season with two goals in four games. After being recalled for Chris Thorburn, Sanford could make his season debut in Montreal on Wednesday. The 23-year-old had five points (2G / 3A) in 13 games with St. Louis in 2016-17.
Bratt is a week and a half into a 2-3 week timetable with a fractured jaw. Bratt will return to the ice on Thursday and should re-join his teammates for practice this weekend or early next week.
Hischier left Monday’s practice with a lower-body issue that he suffered while blocking a shot in their last game. Hischier is good-to-go vs. the Stars and comes into play with two assists in three games.
Andrei Vasilevskiy started the first three games of the season, but Domingue will make his season debut tonight vs. the Hurricanes. Domingue was 7-3-1 with a 2.89 GAA and .914 SV% in 12 games after arriving in Tampa Bay last season. He draws a very difficult matchup tonight vs. a Hurricanes team that is leading the NHL in shots per game (42.3) and seventh in goals for (3.83).
Andrei Vasilevskiy started the first three games of the season, but it looks like Domingue will make his season debut tonight vs. the Hurricanes. Domingue was 7-3-1 with a 2.89 GAA and .914 SV% in 12 games after arriving in Tampa Bay last season. He draws a very difficult matchup tonight vs. a Hurricanes team that is leading the NHL in shots per game (42.3) and seventh in goals for (3.83).
Engelland is not expected to play Tuesday vs. the Sabres because of an undisclosed injury. With Engelland out, Brad Hunt is expected to draw into the Golden Knights lineup and skate on the third pair with Colin Miller.
Varlamov allowed three goals on 41 shots in Colorado’s 3-2 overtime loss to Calgary on Saturday. The loss snapped a three-game winning streak for Varlamov, who now has a 1.75 GAA and .946 SV% through four starts. The veteran netminder has been great so far this season and can be trusted against a Rangers team that is averaging just 2.40 goals for per game so far.
Dubnyk allowed five goals on 57 shots in the Wild’s loss to the Hurricanes on Saturday. He was given a breather in Nashville last night, but will be back in net tonight vs. the Coyotes. Despite ranking dead last in goals per game (0.50), the Coyotes are fifth in the NHL in shots per game, so Dubnyk could be a busy man again tonight.
Matheson will not play Tuesday in Philadelphia or Friday in Washington, but is eligible to return Saturday vs. the Red Wings. Pettersson will miss at least 7-10 days with a concussion as a result of the hit.
Stastny was picked up this offseason to stabilize the Golden Knights’ second line, but it looks like that duty will fall on Erik Haula until mid-December. Stastny “will be out for a bit, potentially up to two months” according to head coach Gerard Gallant. This will allow someone like Alex Tuch to move back into the top-6 right away as soon as he is healthy.
Howard allowed four goals on 34 shots in the Red Wings loss to the Maple Leafs last Thursday. Howard was given the afternoon off in Boston on Saturday, so will draw Monday’s start in Montreal. Howard has had very little success against the Canadiens in his career, especially last season—he allowed 11 goals on 34 shots (.676 SV%) vs. Montreal.
