NHL Hockey Player News

Cunningham had five goals and four assists before being called up to the Coyotes. Tonight he will make his season debut on the fourth line with Boyd Gordon and Kyle Chipchura.

Lindback gave up three goals on 36 shots in the Coyotes’ win in Anaheim last Monday. Mike Smith started the last three games, but the Coyotes will go back to Lindback tonight in Brooklyn. Lindback has gone 2-2-0 with a 1.99 GAA and .928 SV% in two starts and three relief appearances this season.

Petan played the last three games, failing to record a point and registering a minus-2 rating. Overall he has just one goal in 14 games and will come out of the lineup tonight in favour of Anthony Peluso.

Peluso has been a healthy scratch for the last three games, but he will be in in the lineup vs. a heavy Blues team on Monday. Peluso has one assist and 13 PIMS in seven games this season.

Hutchinson was pulled after allowing three goals on seven shots in the Jets’ 7-0 loss in Nashville on Saturday. Despite being yanked, the Jets will go back to Hutchinson tonight in St. Louis. November hasn’t been kind to Hutchinson, who is 0-2-1 with a 4.68 GAA and .841 SV% in three starts and one relief appearance this month.

Parise who is dealing with a sparring knee was originally expected to be out until at least next Monday. However, the Wild said there is still no timetable for his return. Parise returning to the ice is a positive sign that his knee is healing well.

Taormina will play his first game since December 17th, 2013 when he suits up as the Lightning’s seventh defenseman vs. Florida. Taormina had five points (2G / 3A) in 10 games this season.

Blunden will make his his season debut after being recalled because the Lightning are dealing with multiple injuries. Blunden has three goals and two assists in 12 games with Syracuse this season.

Marchessault has failed to record a point in two games with the Lightning this season. During his time in the AHL, Marchessault has nine points (6G / 3A) in 11 games with Syracuse. He will likely play on an all AHL fourth line with Mike Blunden and Matt Taormina, who will be serving as a seventh defenseman.

Vasilevskiy gave up three goals on 26 shots in the Lightning’s loss to the Sabres last Tuesday. Ben Bishop started the last two games, including a loss to the Panthers on Saturday. Vasilevskiy will get his shot at the Panthers tonight in Florida. He has a 2.37 GAA and .924 SV% in three starts but will have an extremely banged up lineup in front of him tonight.

There is no definitive word as to what is ailing Drouin, but he will miss his sixth game of the season. With Drouin out, the Lightning will go with seven defensemen as Matt Taormina will make his season debut.

Paquette has been in and out of the lineup this season due to injuries. Tonight will mark the 10th game of 20 that Paquette will have missed this year. With Paquette out, Mike Blunden will be in the lineup.

Johnson was hit high and hard by Panthers’ forward Dave Bolland on Saturday. He has been ruled out of tonight’s game, but the Lightning say it is not concussion related and he is not expected to miss an extended period of time. With Johnson out, Jonathan Marchessault will play.

Pulkkinen missed Saturday’s game in Boston with a minor undisclosed injury, but will return to the lineup tonight in Ottawa. Pulkkinen is expected to play o the third line with Andreas Athanasiou and Drew Miller. The young forward has had a difficult time hitting the net this season, but still has five goals and 33 shots, which shows how much he fires the puck.

Howard allowed three goals on 14 shots in the Red Wings loss to the Sharks last Friday. Howard has gone 1-4-1 with a 2.80 GAA and .909 SV% in his last five starts. He has had a difficult time collecting wins this season, but draws a fairly strong matchup tonight vs. a Senators team that has lost three of their last four.

Reimer made 43 saves on 45 shots in the Maple Leafs 4-2 win over the Canucks on Saturday. Reimer has been great as of late, winning three in a row while posting a 1.62 GAA and .952 SV%. He has clearly perched himself atop the Maple Leafs’ goaltending depth chart and will start his eighth game in Toronto’s last nine.

Andersen allowed four goals on 27 shots in the Ducks overtime loss to the Oilers last Wednesday. He lost both of his starts in extra time last week. With Anton Khudobin starting on Monday, look for Andersen to go on Tuesday vs. the Predators. Andersen enters play with a 0-4-1 record, 2.43 GAA and .928 SV% on the road this season.

Khudobin allowed four goals on 29 shots in the Ducks loss to the Islanders on Friday. Anaheim has a back-to-back on Monday and Tuesday, so Khudobin will start his second straight game tonight vs. his former team. Khudobin has posted a 3.09 GAA and .902 SV% in five starts this season.

Vasilevskiy gave up three goals on 26 shots in the Lightning’s loss to the Sabres last Tuesday. Ben Bishop started the last two games, including a loss to the Panthers on Saturday. Vasilevskiy will get his shot at the Panthers tonight in Florida. He has a 2.37 GAA and .924 SV% in three starts but will have an extremely banged up lineup in front of him tonight.

Backes has spent the majority of the season playing alongside mediocre wingers, but on Monday he was moved to the top line with Vladimir Tarasenko and Alex Steen. Backes has just six points (3G / 3A) in 17 games this season, so moving him to the top line should help spark some production.