Dubnyk allowed two goals on 30 shots in the Wild’s win over the Blues on Saturday. Dubnyk has posted a 3.00 GAA and .891 SV% through his first two games and while those numbers aren’t pretty, he is still 2-0. He will look to stay unbeaten tonight against an Arizona team who is off to a red-hot start to the season.
Bobrovksy was pulled after allowing four goals on 22 shots in the Blue Jackets 5-2 loss in New York on Saturday. It was his second game in as many nights, which is never an easy thing to do, but Bobrovksy struggled mightily. He enters play on Monday having allowed eight goals on 47 shots (.830 SV%) but draws a strong matchup vs. the Sabres.
Johnson allowed four goals on 31 shots in his first start of the season. They lost 4-1 to the Lightning, but Johnson played well enough to earn another start today vs. the Blue Jackets. So far this season he has allowed five goals on 50 shots (.875 SV%) which certainly isn’t great. There are better options than Johnson on Monday.
Brad Marchand sufferd a concussion on Saturday night and is out indefinitely. Marchand’s injury leaves a hole on the Bruins’ top line, which Connolly filled in Sunday’s practice. Connolly has no points and a minus-4 rating through the first two games of the season.
Chara missed the Bruins’ first two games of the season with an upper-body injury, but he practiced over the weekend and is likely to return tomorrow vs. the Lightning. Chara is likely to take Matt Irwin’s spot in the lineup after Irwin was placed on waivers on Sunday morning.
After Craig Anderson stopped 37 of 41 shots in a shoutout win over the Maple Leafs last night, the Senators will turn to rookie Matt O’Connor to face the Canadiens tonight. The 23-year-old was superb at Boston University last season, going 25-4-4 with a 2.18 GAA and .927 SV%.
Marchand suffered the concussion on an inadvertent elbow from Dale Weise on Saturday night. Bruins’ coach Claude Julien confirmed that Marchand is out with a concussion and there is no timetable for his return.
Tarnasky has not played in the NHL since 2009-10 and had ousted five points (1G / 4A) in 26 AHL games last season, suggesting he won’t be claimed on waivers.
Schultz was a minus-1 with one shot on goal in 18:15 in the season opener, but was a healthy scratch on Friday. Schultz will likely go unclaimed and could be sent to Manchester (AHL).
Irwin signed a one-year deal with the Bruins this offseason but has struggled through the first two games of the season. Irwin is a minus-5 while averaging 14:56 TOI. It wouldn’t be surprising if Irwin is claimed by another team--he had 19 points (8G / 11A) in 53 games with San Jose last year.
Lehner suffered the injury in the Sabres’ season opener on Thursday. He will miss at least a month and a half, but could be out for 10 weeks. In the meantime the Sabres will go with Chad Johnson as their starter, but don’t be surprised if they make a trade for another goalie.
Fabbri left Saturday’s game in the first period after taking an elbow to the head. He played just 3:27 TOI of game two in his nine game NHL tryout. Consider him day-to-day.
Michalek was held out of Saturday’s game with an upper-body injury. The veteran blueliner’s injury is not believed to be serious—he should be back in the lineup on Wednesday in Anaheim.
Gionta has missed the Sabres’ first two games of the season, but he returned to practice this morning which suggests that the veteran winger could return to the lineup on Monday vs. the Blue Jackets.
Marchand left last night’s game and was not on the ice for Bruins’ practice this morning. Immediate concern is that Marchand suffered a concussion, which could sideline him for a little while. The Bruins play on Monday, monitor Marchand’s status heading into tomorrow’s morning skate.
Niemi was spectacular in his first start with the Stars. He stopped all 37 shots that he faced while recording two assists in the Stars’ 3-0 win over the Penguins. It was a dream start for Niemi, who is in line to start his second straight game tonight in Colorado. Niemi was 17-10-2 on the road with San Jose last season.
Smith stopped 40 of 41 shots that he faced in the Coyotes win over the Kings last night. What a great start to the season for Smith, who had the worst season of his career last year. Smith is the Coyotes clear No. 1 netminder which is why the Coyotes will turn to him again in tonight’s difficult matchup with the Penguins.
Talbot played very well in his first start with the Oilers, stopping 28 of 30 shots in a 2-1 loss to the Blues. It was a strong debut for the 28-year-old, who will see increased goal support as the season goes on. Tonight he will be in tough against Pekka Rinne and a strong Predators team.
Rinne allowed one goal on 26 shots in the Predators 2-1 win over the Hurricanes on Thursday. It was a nice start to the season for Rinne, who will start again tonight vs. Edmonton. The Oilers have a lot of young, talented forwards, but Rinne dominated them last season going 3-0-0 with a 0.98 GAA, .966 SV% and one shutout.
After Corey Crawford started the first two games of the season, the Blackhawks will turn to Darling in the second game of the home-and-home with the Islanders. In his first NHL season, Darling went 9-4-0 with a 1.95 GAA and .936 SV%. Crawford is expected to start nearly 60 games, making Darling one of the NHL’s best spot-start options for the other 22 games.
