Michalek served as Devan Dubnyk’s backup for the last two games, but with Darcy Kuemper back, he returns to Iowa where he has gone 6-3-0 with a 2.46 GAA and .919 S% in nine games this season.
Kuemper has missed the last two games with an upper-body injury, but will return in a backup role tonight vs. he Kings. With Kuemper back the Wild have reassigned Steve Michalek to Iowa (AHL).
Dubnyk allowed two goals on 31 shots in the Wild’s win in Chicago on Sunday. Dubnyk has won his last two starts while turning aside 60 of 64 shots (.938 SV%). Dubnyk has played very well in March, going 6-1-1 with a 2.47 GAA and .912 SV% in nine starts. Tonight he faces a Kings team that has won six of their last eight.
Ward allowed two goals on 32 shots in the Hurricanes 3-2 shootout loss in Minnesota. Ward has lost two extra-time games in a row and now sits at 2-0-2 with a 2.36 GAA and .911 SV% in his last four outings. Tonight he will make his third start vs. the Sabres—Ward is 0-1-1 with a 3.43 GAA and .842 SV% in the first two meetings.
Filppula will miss his fourth consecutive game with an upper-body injury he suffered nine days ago. He is day-to-day, but took part in the morning skate which suggest that he should be good-to-go for Friday’s game vs. the Islanders.
Callahan will miss his second straight game with a lower-body injury. Callahan did not take part in the morning skate, but the Lightning are off until Friday, so there’s a chance that he could be back by then. Monitor his status as the week progresses.
Armia will miss his eighth straight game with a lower-body injury, but is expected to play on Thursday. With Marko Dano playing, don't expect Armia to re-claimg his spot in the Jets’ top-6. He has four goals and four assists (eight points) in 34 games this season.
Ehlers will miss his 10th consecutive game tonight vs. the Canucks, but he is expected to play Thursday in Nashville. The Jets are currently without five of their full-time forwards, so Ehlers’ return will be welcomed with open arms. He has had a solid rookie season, recording 13 goals and 18 assists (31 points) in 63 games.
Bishop stopped all 32 shots that he faced in the Lightning’s shutout win in Arizona on Saturday. Bishop has gone 4-2-1 with a 1.72 GAA and .945 SV% in seven starts in March. Tonight he will make his fourth start against the Red Wings—the 29-year-old netminder has gone 1-2-0 with a 1.69 GAA and .935 SV% in the first three meetings.
Foligno is battling an illness and head coach John Tortorella listed him as questionable for tonight’s game vs. the Flyers. Consider him a game-time decision and expect Alex Wennberg, who missed Sunday’s game with a lower-body injury to replace Foligno if he can’t play.
Wennberg missed Sunday’s game in New Jersey with a lower-body injury, but he is expected to play tonight according to head coach John Tortorella. Wennberg has enjoyed a strong season, potting seven goals with 25 assists (32 points) in 59 games.
Bobrovsky gave up three goals on 30 shots in the Blue Jackets win over New Jersey on Saturday. Joonas Korpisalo started on Sunday, so they’ll come back to Bobrovsky tonight vs. his former team. Bob is 1-3-0 with a 3.28 GAA and .892 SV% since returning from a groin injury, but has been great in his career versus the Flyers—he is 4-1-0 with a 1.80 GAA, .940 SV% and one shutout in his first five starts vs. Philly.
Condon allowed four goals on 35 shots in the Canadiens loss to the Flames on Sunday. Condon has lost his last three starts while allowing a combined 11 goals on 92 shots (.880 SV%). Condon has struggled in the second half of the season and tonight he faces a Ducks team that has been surging since the All-Star break.
Melchiori mad this season debut on March 14th while Dustin Byfuglien was out with an illness, but he is back and could serve as a seventh defenseman tonight vs. Vancouver. Melchiori has just seven points (3G / 4A) in 62 games with Manitoba this season.
Smith, 26, has gone 7-3-1 with a 2.07 GAA and .932 SV% in 11 games with Providence this season. His recall suggests that something is ailing either Tuukka Rask or Jonas Gustavsson and Smith will be backing one of them up in Wednesday’s game in New York.
Vatrano, 22, has split his time between Boston and Providence during the 2015-16 campaign. He has registered six goals and one assist (seven points) in 30 games in Boston and leads the AHL in goals with 33 in 33 games. In addition to the 33 goals Vatrano has added 16 assists for 49 points, which is good for third on the team.
Elliott stopped all 19 shots that he faced to shutout the Canucks in his return to the Blues’ crease on Saturday. Elliott picked up right where he left off before suffering a lower-body injury on February 22nd. Elliott has gone 6-1-0 with a 2.08 GAA, .927 SV% and one shutout in his last seven starts. Tonight he faces a Sharks team that has won four of their last five.
Quick stopped 27 of 28 shots in the Kings win over the Bruins on Saturday. He won first start of the week honours last week by winning each of his three starts while posting a 1.32 GAA, .953 SV% and one shutout. Tonight he will be making his third start vs. the Predators—he has gone 2-0-0 wit ha 1.90 GAA and .925 SV% in their first two meetings of the season.
Rinne allowed two goals on 22 shots in the Predators win over the Islanders last Thursday. Carter Hutton got the call on Saturday, so look for Rinne to be back in goal tonight vs. the Kings. Rinne has won four of his last five starts while posting a 2.22 GAA and .920 SV%. Tonight will be his third start vs. the Kings—he has gone 0-0-2 with a 2.87 GAA and .898 SV% in the first two meetings.
Versteeg is listed as day-to-day with a lower-body injury and will not play tonight. There's no word on when Versteeg is expected to be back in the Kings lineup, but he is expected to be back before the playoffs.
