Claesson will miss the Senators back-to-back set on Friday and Saturday, so look for Ben Harpur to draw into the lineup. Claesson is eligible to return to the lineup next Wednesday in Detroit.
Quick allowed two goals on 31 shots in the Kings loss in San Jose last Saturday. Quick has gone 5-3-0 with a 2.12 GAA and .927 SV% in eight starts in December. Tonight he faces a still red-hot Vegas team at the STAPLES Center where he has gone 8-5-1 with a 2.13 GAA and .932 SV% this season.
Bishop gave up three goals on 30 shots in the Stars loss in Minnesota on Wednesday. Bishop will make his sixth straight start tonight having lost three of his last five starts with a 2.33 GAA, .917 SV% and one shutout. Wednesday’s loss came on the road where he has struggled this season, but starts tonight on home ice where he is 11-3-1 with a 2.08 GAA and .928 SV%.
Forsberg stopped 21 of 22 shots after replacing Corey Crawford in the Blackhawks loss in New Jersey before the Christmas break. With Crawford landing on IR on Wednesday Forsberg becomes the Blackhawks No.1 going forward. Forsberg has gone 1-3-2 with a 3.71 GAA and .894 SV% on the road this season.
Smith allowed three goals on 35 shots in the Flames loss to the Canadiens before the Christmas break. Smith has lost four of his last five starts (1-3-1) while allowing 10 goals on 136 shots (.926 SV%). With David Rittich going last night, Smith will face the Ducks for the second time tonight—he posted a 43-save shutout in his first start in Anaheim.
Rittich allowed one goal on 17 shots in the Flames win in Vancouver on December 17th. Rittich came up to the NHL as a relative unknown but has played well in his first four career NHL games—the 25-year-old enters Thursday at 3-1-0 with a 2.10 GAA and .919 SV% but draws a tough road matchup in San Jose tonight.
Tanev returned to practice on Wednesday but is not quite ready to play. Tanev will miss his sixth straight game but it looks like he’s trending towards a return on Saturday.
Schneider allowed one goal on 32 shots in the Devils win over the Red Wings on Wednesday. Schneider has rattled off five straight wins while stopping 144 of 154 shots (.935 SV%). Tonight he faces the Sabres for the second time this season—he stopped 23 of 25 shots in a 6-2 win in the early part of 2017-18.
Rittich allowed one goal on 17 shots in the Flames win in Vancouver on December 17th. Rittich came up to the NHL as a relative unknown but has played well in his first four career NHL games—the 25-year-old enters Thursday at 3-1-0 with a 2.10 GAA and .919 SV% but draws a tough road matchup in San Jose tonight.
Ruhwedel departed Wednesday’s game early and did not return. He will likely miss at least a couple of weeks with an upper-body injury so Frank Corrado has been recalled from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (AHL).
Howard allowed two goals on 31 shots in the Red Wings loss in New Jersey on Wednesday. Howard has lost six of his last seven starts while posting a 2.71 GAA and .902 SV%. Tonight he faces a Rangers team he has enjoyed success against in his career but was on the wrong end of a 2-1 OT final in late-November.
Condon allowed one goal on 38 shots in the Senators loss in Florida before the break. Condon has lost four straight starts while posting a 3.86 GAA and .894 SV%. Condon has gone 0-0-2 with a 3.39 GAA and .895 SV% in four appearances Canadian Tire Centre this season.
Jones stopped all 28 shots that he faced in the Sharks shutout win over the Kings before the Christmas break. It was a much-needed game for Jones, who had been struggling and in trouble of losing playing time to Aaron Dell. The 27-year-old has gone 8-4-2 with a 2.39 GAA and .914 SV% in 14 starts at the SAP Center this season.
Markstrom allowed two goals on 33 shots in the Canucks loss to the Blues last Saturday. Markstrom has dropped his last three starts while allowing a combined 12 goals on 84 shots (.857 SV%). This season the 27-year-old has gone 5-8-2 with a 2.58 GAA and .916 SV% in 15 starts on home-ice.
Rust left Wednesday’s game with an upper-body injury and the Penguins announced that he will be out “longer term.” The Penguins will likely have to dig into their farm system to find some forward depth with Rust out.
Letang will miss his second straight game with a lower-body injury but it doesn’t sound like he will be sidelined for an extended period of time because the Penguins expect him to join the team at some point during their brief three-game road trip.
Murray finished last night’s shootout win over the Blue Jackets but the Penguins announced on Thursday that he will travel with the team to Carolina but won’t be available to start.
Aho has recorded nine goals and 11 assists (20 points) in 29 games with the Sound Tigers in his first season in North America. The Swedish defenseman could make his NHL debut with Johnny Boychuk (lower-body) landing on IR on Thursday.
Boychuk finished Wednesday’s game vs. the Sabres but he must have sustained a lower-body injury somewhere throughout the game. Boychuk will likely miss a couple of weeks so the Islanders have recalled Sebastian Aho from Bridgeport (AHL).
