Varlamov stopped 51 of 52 shots in Colorado’s win in Toronto on December 11th. Varlamov missed the next three games with a minor groin injury, but will be back in tonight in Minnesota. The Russian netminder has gone 3-6-0 with a 3.59 AA and .895 SV% on the road this season and will be in tough against a hot Wild team.
Crawford was on the ice again on Monday and confirmed that he is hoping to be back in the crease by Friday. Scott Darling will start tonight, but continue to monitor Crawford’s status as the week progresses.
Anisimov will miss his second straight game with an upper-body injury. With Anisimov out, Jonathan Toews will continue to skate with Patrick Kane and Artem Anisimov and Vince Hinostroza will be in the top six. Anisimov is day-to-day.
Murray stopped all six shots after replacing Marc-Andre Fleury for about half of a period after he was cut by a skate. Murray has gone 5-0-1 with a 1.57 GAA and .950 SV% in December and will start tonight vs. the Rangers. The 22-year-old stopped 16 of 17 shots in a 6-1 win in his first start vs. New York this season.
Nash hurt his groin on Sunday and will miss the next three games. Nash had scored two goals in three games since returning after a four-game absence. Brandon Pirri will draw back into the lineup with Nash out.
Markov missed Monday’s practice because of a lower-body injury and will be held out of the lineup tonight vs. the Ducks. The veteran defenseman has had a strong season, so this is a big loss for the Canadiens, who will replace him with Zach Redmond.
Raanta allowed two goals on 26 shots in the Rangers’ loss to the Blackhawks last Tuesday. Henrik Lundqvist started the last three games, but Raanta will start tonight in Pittsburgh. Raanta has gone 3-1-0 with a 0.74 GAA, .923 SV% and two shutouts in December. He also carries a 1-0-0 record, 2.76 GAA and .923 SV% in two appearances vs. Pittsburgh.
Lehner allowed two goals on 35 shots in the Sabres’ win over the Islanders on Friday. Anders Nilsson got the call on Saturday, so they’ll go back to Lehner in Florida tonight. Lehner has won his last two starts while stopping 63 of 68 shots (.927 SV%). The 25-year-old has gone 4-4-2 with a 2.51 GAA and .920 SV% on the road this season.
Darling turned aside 33 of 34 shots in the Blackhawks’ win over the Sharks on Sunday. Darling won both games of the back-to-back and has won five straight gams while stopping 140 of 151 shots (.927 SV%). Darling has been excellent in Corey Crawford’s absence and will face the Senators on home-ice, where he is 6-1-1 with a 1.84 GAA and .941 SV% this season.
Howard allowed three goals on 30 shots in the Red Wings’ loss to the Kings on Thursday. Howard was slated to start last night, but the game was postponed, so Howard will go tonight in Tampa Bay. Howard has gone 0-2-1 with a 2.35 GAA and .913 SV% in December and tonight will be his seventh start on the road. He has gone 3-2-0 with a 2.20 GA and .925 SV% away from Detroit.
Budaj gave up on goal on 30 shots in the Kings’ loss in Boston on Sunday. It was a great outing for Budaj, who has gone 2-1-1 with a 2.27 GAA and .918 SV% in six December starts. In his first start against the Blue Jackets, Budaj stopped 19 of 21 shots in a 3-2 overtime win. Luckily for him,Curtis McElhinney goes for Columbus.
Raanta allowed two goals on 26 shots in the Rangers’ loss to the Blackhawks last Tuesday. Henrik Lundqvist started the last three games, but Raanta is expected to start tonight in Pittsburgh. Raanta has gone 3-1-0 with a 0.74 GAA, .923 SV% and two shutouts in December. He also carries a 1-0-0 record, 2.76 GAA and .923 SV% in two appearances vs. Pittsburgh.
Palat was on the ice for the morning skate in a no-contact sweater and will miss his third straight game with an undisclosed injury. With Palat sidelined, Brian Boyle will skate on the left side of the first line.
Callahan appeared to be close to returning the lineup last week, but he remains sidelined with a lower-body injury. Callahan is day-to-day.
Kucherov will miss his fourth consecutive game with a lower-body injury. The Lightning are extremely banged up and with Kucherov out, Jonathan Drouin will play on the right side of Tyler Johnson.
Paquette missed Saturday’s game in Edmonton, but will return to the lineup tonight vs. the Red Wings. Paquette will centre the third line with Erik Condra and Cory Conacher on his wings. Paquette has three goals and four assists (seven points) in 30 games this season.
Marchessault has missed the last two games and six of the last seven due to a lower-body injury. Marchessault has had a strong year and comes in with two goals and four assists (six points) in his last nine games.
Howard allowed three goals on 30 shots in the Red Wings’ loss to the Kings on Thursday. Howard was slated to start last night, but the game was postponed, so Howard will go tonight in Tampa Bay. Howard has gone 0-2-1 with a 2.35 GAA and .913 SV% in December and tonight will be his seventh start on the road. He has gone 3-2-0 with a 2.20 GA and .925 SV% away from Detroit.
Dubnyk allowed two goals on 36 shots in the Wild’s win in Nashville on Thursday. Darcy Kuemper started on Saturday, so Dubnyk will start tonight vs. the Avalanche. Dubnyk has won six consecutive starts while posting a 1.47 GAA and .951 SV%. Dubnyk has had a great year, but has gone 0-2-0 with a 2.05 GAA and .942 SV% in his first two starts vs. the Avalanche.
