Kuemper did not skate on Wednesday or Thursday because of an illness, so he will not back-up in Game 1, instead that duty will go to Niklas Backstrom. Kuemper will likely be kept away from the team until he is healthy. The team can not afford to get sick in the playoffs.
Wisniewski, who was acquired from the Blue Jackets at the trade deadline, will be a healthy scratch for Game 1. This will be the second time in three games that he will sit in favour of Clayton Stoner.
Pouliot missed the final two games of the regular season and will be held out of game 1 of the playoffs because of an upper-body injury. Monitor his status prior to Game 2 on Saturday.
Ehrhoff will miss his 10th consecutive game with an upper-body injury, but he is expected to be close to a return, which leaves the possibility of him being back on the blue line for Game 2 on Saturday.
Pavelec won three of four and did not allow a goal in his last three starts before the playoffs. He has never played in a playoff game, but he has gotten hot at the perfect time. In two starts against the Ducks this season, Pavelec went 0-0-2 with a 3.82 GAA and .882 SV%.
Crawford was yanked after allowing three goals on 12 shots in the first period of Game 1. Despite Scott Darling coming in and stopping all 42 shots that he faced in the 4-3 double overtime win, the Blackhawks will go back to Crawford in Game 2. He will need a better showing tonight if he doesn’t want to lose his starting spot to Darling.
Smith was a healthy scratch in the season finale after taking a delay of game penalty from the bench in the Red Wings OT loss to the Canadiends on March 9th. It looks like he is still in Mike Babcock’s doghouse, so he will sit in Game 1 while Alexey Marchenko makes his playoff’s debut.
Abdelkader missed the final four games of the regular season and will be held out of Game 1 vs. the Lightning. Abdelkader continues to skate, but he is not believed to be too far from returning to the lineup. Monitor his status leading up to Game 2 on Saturday afternoon.
Parenteau missed Thursday’s practice after reportedly suffering an upper-body injury in Game 1 on Wednesday. Monitor his status for Game 2 during Friday’s morning skate.
Subban was given a game misconduct for slashing Mark Stone in Game 1, but won’t face any supplemental discipline. Stone reportedly suffered a micro fracture in his right wrist as a result and is “very questionable” to play again in the series.
It looks like Drouin will take a seat in game 1 as Vladimir Namestnikov gets set to suit up in his first career playoff game. Monitor Drouin’s status as the playoffs progress. The young forward is too goo to be held out of the lineup permanently.
Stone was injured when he was slashed by P.K Subban in Game 1. Subban was assessed a game misconduct for the slash, but will be back for Game 2, but it does not look like Stone will be. The Senators called him “very questionable” to play again in the series. This is a huge loss for the Senators. Stone came in as one of the NHL’s hottest players.
Andersen won four of his last five starts down the stretch and finished the regular season at 35-12-5 with a 2.38 GAA and .914 SV%. Andersen did not face the Jets this season, but will open the season at home, where he was 18-7-2 with a 2.39 GAA and .917 SV% this season.
Lundqvist missed nearly two months with a neck injury, but returned to his old form when he got back. He won five of seven with a 2.28 GAA and .924 SV% down the stretch. Lundqivst has gone 43-48 with a 2.24 GAA, .922 SV% and nine shutouts in 92 career NHL playoff starts.
Nash missed practice on Wednesday because of a “24-hour bug” according to him. Nash comes in having scored 42 goals and 27 assists this season, but he has historically struggled in the playoffs. In 41 career playoff games Nash has only recorded five goals.
Sustr missed the last six games of the regular season, but will be available for game 1 versus Detroit. Sustr, who is a giant at 6-foot-8, will be paired with Victor Hedman, who stands in at 6-foot-6. The two towers will likely play a ton of minutes against Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg. Sustr had no goals, but 13 assists in 72 games with the Lightning this season.
Killorn missed the final three games of the regular season, but will play in Game 1 vs. Detroit. Killorn will skate on the top line with Steven Stamkos and Ryan Callahan as well as play on the second power-play unit. He had 15 goals and 23 assists (38 points) in 71 games this season.
Coburn has been out since March 10th, but he will get back into the lineup for Game 1 vs. the Red Wings. Coburn only appeared in four games with the Lightning before getting injured. In those contests he had two assists and a plus-3 rating. He will be paired with Matt Carle to start tonight.
Bishop had one of the best seasons of his career. It was the first time he has ever won 40 games and he did so while posting a 2.32 GAA, .916 SV% and four shutouts. He has never started an NHL playoff game, but did have success against the Red Wings this season. He went 3-1-0 with a 1.97 GAA and .921 SV% in four games vs. Detroit.
After an injury ravaged season in 2013-14, Rinne returned to his old form in 2014-15. He was second in the NHL in Wins (41), third in GAA (2.18) and seventh in SV% (.923). He will face a Chicago team he was 1-1-1 with a 2.61 GAA and .923 SV% against this season.
