Dubnyk comes into 2015-16 with a lot of questions around whether or not he can repeat last year’s insane performance. Dubnyk was 27-9-2 wit a 1.78 GAA and .936 SV% after being traded to Minnesota last season. He has started this year strong as well, posting a 1.33 GAA and .926 SV% in three preseason games, but some regression has to be expected in 2015-16. He gets things started tonight in Colorado.
Halak practiced on Thursday, but said “hopefully, I’ll be back soon,” after practice which doesn’t sound like he will be available for Friday or Saturday’s games (both vs. Chicago). If he doesn’t play over the weekend, Thomas Greiss could start back-to-back and then Halak’s next chance to return would be Monday against the Jets.
Silfverberg was cleared for practice on Wednesday so it wasn’t a surprise to see him back at practice on Thursday, but it is a positive sign that he should be available for the Ducks season opener on Friday.
Svedberg, 24, is a monster. At 6-foot-9, 235 lbs. he rivals Zdeno Chara for the tallest player in the NHL. Svedberg had a strong training camp and is expected to replace David Rundblad on Friday. He had three goals and 11 assists (14 points) in 49 games with Rockford (AHL) last season.
Hiller sat on the bench and watched Karri Ramo give up five goals in the Flames’ season opener, so it is no surprise to to see them turn to Hiller in the second game of the season. The Flames couldn’t matchup with the Canucks in the first meeting, but should bring their A-game in the second game. Hiller went 0-1-1 with a 2.52 GAA and .922 SV% vs. Vancouver last year.
Bernier had a rough start to 2015-16, allowing the first shot that he faced to trickle across the goal line. After that he settled in, stopping a total of 27 shots on the night in a 3-1 loss to the Canadiens. The Maple Leafs didn’t actually look too bad, but they will be in tough again on Friday as they face a young, talented Red Wings squad.
Ouellet, 22, being sent back to the AHL suggests that Alexey Marcheko is set to come off of IR before Friday’s game. Ouellet will head to Grand Rapids, where he had 16 points (1G / 15A) in 52 games a season ago.
Schneider started a career high 69 games last season and will probably start close to that this season. Despite being one of the very few goalies who will start 65-plus games, the Devils are really bad, which will limit the number of wins. However, paired with a goalie who will win a lot, Schneider is a great No. 2 option because he posts elite splits. He will start the season off at home, where he was 14-13-6 with a 1.87 GAA and .934 SV% last season.
Grigorenko was acquired from the Sabres in the Ryan O’Reilly trade this summer, but he will be a healthy scratch in his first game with his new team. The 21-year-old has a tonne of potential but has had a difficult time getting his NHL career off of the ground.
Pavelec and Michael Hutchinson are expected to split playing time like they did last season, but it will be Pavelec who will man the crease in the season opener. He outplayed Hutchinson in the preseason, posting a 2-0-1 record, 2.41 GAA and .921 SV% in four games. The 28-year-old did not face the Bruins last year, but went 10-8-5 with a 2.00 GAA and .932 SV% in 23 starts on the road last year.
Gorges had been battling a lower-body injury and at one point there was a chance that he would miss the start of the season. He appears to have made a quick recovery and practiced the last few days and will play tonight. Dan Bylsma said Gorges is “100 percent.”
MacArthur’s practicing has been sporadic this week, but he was on the ice for the morning skate and he is listed as a game-time decision. MacArthur said there is a 50/50 chance that he plays tonight. Monitor his status when the teams hit the ice for warmups at 6:30 pm ET.
Gionta suffered an injury in practice on Tuesday and has missed the last two practice sessions, so he will be held out of the lineup tonight. Head coach Dan Bylsma said Gionta could play if he had to, but they don’t want to risk making the injury worse. He is day-to-day.
Scott is not fantasy relevant having scored just three goals and one assist in 38 games with the Sharks last season. He will likely go unclaimed and be sent to the AHL.
After a difficult 2013-14 season due to injury, Rinne bounced back in a big way in 2014-15, winning 41 games with a 2.18 GAA and .923 SV%. He reasserted himself as an elite fantasy hockey netminder and should be in for a big season. He struggled big time in the preseason (3.98 GAA / .868 SV%) but don’t read into that too much. He was 1-1-0 with a 2.02 GAA and .920 SV% vs. the Hurricanes last year.
Niemi spent the last five years in San Jose but will start a new chapter tonight as he makes his Dallas Stars’ debut at home vs. the Penguins. He had a 2.59 GAA and .914 SV% in 61 starts last season, but the Stars weren’t very good defensively last season and if that is the case again in 2015-16, those numbers could rise a little bit. Either way, it looks like he has the upper hand as the team’s No. 1…for now.
Porter was only a placeholder on the roster until they could recall Olli Maatta prior to their season opener tonight in Dallas. Porter will report to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton—he had 39 points (16G / 23A) in 76 games with the Grand Rapid Griffins last season.
Maatta was sent down as a paper move to maximize the Penguins cap flexibility but it was always the plan to recall him and have him play in their season opener tonight in Dallas.
Schneider returned to practice on Thursday after missing Wednesday’s session for “maintenance” reasons. It appears as if Schneider is on track to start the Devils’ season opener on Friday—in what should be the first of many starts for Schneider this season.
Chara has been battling an upper-body injury and despite practicing yesterday and taking part in this morning’s gameday skate, he will sit out tonight’s game vs. the Jets. He reportedly started taking slapshots yesterday and continued today—but the strength on his shots are not where it usually is. That report suggests Chara may still be a few days or games away from returning.
