Price was yanked after allowing four goals on 14 shots in the Canadiens loss to the Oilers last Saturday. After winning five in a row upon his return to the crease, Price has now lost there in a row while allowing a combined 11 goals on 90 shots (.889 SV%). Despite his recent struggles, Price has a good matchup tonight with the Taylor Hall-less Devils in town.
Gibson allowed two goals on 30 shots in the Ducks win over the Hurricanes on Monday. The win snapped a three-game losing streak for Gibson, who will make his 25th start of the season tonight in St. Louis Two weeks ago Gibson stopped 37 of 39 shots in a 3-2 win in St. Louis.
Brossoit allowed two goals on 29 shots in the Oilers blowout win in Columbus on Tuesday. Brossoit has been excellent in his last three appearances, going 2-1-0 while allowing just five goals on 76 shots (.934 SV%). The young netminder is still searching for his first win on home ice this season but will be in tough tonight with the Predators in town.
Jagr will miss his fifth consecutive game with a lower-body injury tonight vs. San Jose. The Flames signing of Jagr has not worked out as they would have hoped so far as the veteran has only appeared in 17 games, collecting just one goal and six assists.
Smith stopped 21 of 22 shots in the Flames’ shootout loss in Minnesota on Tuesday. It was an excellent outing for Smith, who has now stopped 71 of the last 75 shots (.947 SV%) that he has faced in his last three starts. Tonight the Flames will dos the Sharks at the Scotiabank Saddledome where Smith is 7-7-0 with a 3.11 GAA and .896 SV% this season.
Cousins has been out of the lineup for the last five games but will replace Zac Rinaldo tonight vs. the Lightning. Cousins has recorded just three goals and one assist (four points) in 23 games this season.
Rinaldo is under the weather so he won’t play tonight vs. the Lightning. Nick Cousins will replace him in the lineup.
Dell stopped all 25 shots that he faced in the Sharks shutout win over the Senators last Saturday. Dell has won three straight starts while stopping 86 of 88 shots (.977 SV%). Tonight he will face the Flames as the Sharks kick-off a back-to-back in Western Canada. Dell is 3-1-1 with a 2.14 GAA and .927 SV% on the road this season.
Varlamov allowed four goals on 22 shots in Colorado’s loss in Washington on Tuesday. Varlamov has gone 1-4-0 with a 3.33 GAA and .895 SV% in five starts and one relief appearance in December. The one win came against the Panthers, who he will face again tonight—he stopped 39 of 42 shots in a 7-3 win in Florida last Saturday.
Raanta stopped 33 of 34 shots in the Coyotes 1-0 loss to the Blue Jackets last Saturday. It was a nice return to the crease for Raanta, who has stopped 99 of the last 103 shots (.961 SV%) he has faced dating back to before his injury. Raanta has a rough matchup tonight with the Lightning in town—he is 1-2-1 with a 2.38 GAA and .926 SV% on home ice.
Lappin has picked up 12 goals and six assists (18 points) in 23 games with Binghamton this season. The 25-year-old returns to the Devils with Taylor Hall (lower-body) not in Montreal. He had seven points (4G / 3A) and a minus-17 rating in 43 games with New Jersey last season.
Despite being placed on IR and listed as week-to-week earlier today, the Wild also announced that Dubnyk will travel on their upcoming trip. Just because he is travelling doesn’t mean he will play, but it’s a good sign that he shouldn’t be sidelined for an extended period of time.
Parise returned to the ice on Wednesday and will travel with the team on their road trip that starts Sunday in Chicago. Parise will not make his season debut on the trip, but the fact that he will travel and practice with the team is a big step in his recovery.
Spurgeon will miss his eighth consecutive game tonight vs. the Maple Leafs but will travel on their four-game road trip starting Sunday in Chicago. Expect Spurgeon to return at some point during the trip.
Bouwmeester missed Tuesday’s game vs. the Lightning but will be back in tonight vs. the Ducks. Bouwmeester has collected just one goal and one assist in 10 games this season. Bouwmeester will replace Jordan Schmaltz on the blueline.
Lehner allowed two goals on 26 shots in the Sabres’ win over the Senators on Tuesday. Lehner has lost five of his last seven starts and has struggled on the road this season, going 3-6-3 with a 3.74 GAA and .893 SV% in cities not named Buffalo. Tonight he runs into a Flyers team that is riding a four-game winning streak.
Binnington, 24, has gone 6-1-0 with a 6-1-0 with a 1.84 GAA and .933 SV% in eight starts with Providence this season. Binnington comes up to serve as Jake Allen’s backup on Thursday and will likely return to Providence after that.
Andersen gave up three goals on 38 shots in the Maple Leafs loss in Philadelphia on Tuesday. Andersen has actually been better on the road this season, going 9-5-1 with a 2.47 GAA, .929 SV% and two shutouts in 15 starts. In his first start against the Wild, Andersen stopped 35 of 37 shots in a 4-2 win.
Melchiori has picked up 12 points (4G / 8A) in 26 games with Manitoba this season. With Dustin Byfuglien out, Melchiori has been recalled to serve as an extra defenseman. Melchiori has picked up just two assists in 30 career NHL games.
Byfuglien was listed as week-to-week so his move to IR simply opens up a roster spot to recall an insurance defenseman. Julian Melchiori was brought up to be their seventh blueliner. There’s no firm timetable on when Byfuglien is expected to return.
