Marchand missed the last two games due to a suspension he was handed for slew-footing Derick Brassard of the Rangers last Thursday. Tonight he will get back into the lineup on a line with Patrice Bergeron and Reilly Smith.
Bobrovsky stopped 25 of 26 shots in the Blue Jackets 3-1 win over the Wild on Monday. The win snapped a four-game losing streak for Bob, who will likely make his 32nd start of the season tonight. He comes in ranked t-15th in the NHL in Wins (16), 20th in SV% (.915) and 32nd in GAA (2.80).
Whitney, 42, was originally drafted 23rd overall by the Sharks in 1991. He played 22 years with the Sharks, Oilers, Panthers, Blue Jackets, Red Wings, Hurricanes, Coyotes and Stars. He scored 385 goals and 679 assists (1064) in 1330 career NHL games. He had 53 career playoff points (21G / 32A) and won a Stanley Cup with Carolina in 2006.
Niemi gave up four goals on 23 shots in the Sharks 4-3 overtime loss to the Flames on Saturday. After going 7-1-1 in December, January hasn’t been kind to Niemi. He is 3-3-1 with a 3.49 GAA and .874 SV% this month. Tonight he will face the Kings, who he is 1-1-0 with a 1.53 GAA and .952 SV% against this season.
Rask made 36 saves on 37 shots in the Bruins 3-1 win over the Stars last night. Rask was excellent last night, like he has been in his last seven starts. In his last seven starts he has gone 5-1-1 with an awesome 1.41 GAA and .954 SV%. He has gone 0-2-1 with a 2.82 GAA and .904 SV% in the second game of back-to-back sets.
Fistric, 28, did not record a point and was a minus-3 in nine games with the Ducks. Fistric is in the first year of a three-year deal, which is likely the reason that he cleared waivers.
Bourque served as a healthy scratch on Saturday, but will be back in the lineup tonight vs. the Flames. He has two goals and four assists in 21 games with the Ducks.
Smith-Pelly has not recorded a point in the last six games and has just 15 points (4G / 11A) in 41 games this season. He will be replaced by former Flame Rene Bourque.
Andersen made 26 saves on 28 shots in the Ducks shootout win over Los Angeles on Saturday. Andersen has won five consecutive starts with a 2.29 GAA and .925 SV%. Tonight he will make his third start of the year against the Flames—he is 1-0-1 with a 2.41 GAA and .906 SV% in the first two meetings.
Lee did not see any playing time during his recall. He likely won’t be recalled now that Mike McKenna is with the Coyotes.
Lessio, 21, has one goal and one assist in nine games with the Coyotes. In Portland he has registered 16 points (9G / 7A) in 26 games.
Samuelsson, 23, had not recorded a point in four games with the Coyotes. He heads back to the Pirates where he has one goal and two assists in 16 games.
Gormley has recorded two goals, one assist and four penalty minutes (PIM) in 15 games with the Coyotes this season. He will likely be recalled after the All Star break. He will likely play a few games with Portland over the break.
McKenna has posted a 16-13-2 record with a 2.09 GAA and a .934 SV% in 32 games with the Pirates. The 6-foot-2, 190-pound native net minder owns a 3.40 GAA and a .891 SV% in 21 career NHL games.
The Predators are done until after the All Star break, so he heads to Milwaukee where he will likely start a couple of games this week, before returning to the Predators next week.
Falk is currently out with a lower-body injury. He has been placed on waivers for the purpose of being assigned to Iowa (AHL).
Oleksiak has registered one goal and seven assists in 31 games with the Stars this season. He will likely be the first defenseman recalled after the All Star break.
Jokipakka had two assists in three games during his recall. He has been sent down because the Stars are done until after the All Star break. If Trevor Daley is not ready after the break, Jokipakka could be recalled.
Perreault will miss his second straight game with an arm injury that he suffered last Friday. There is still no word on exactly how long he will be out, but expect an update over the All Star break.
Stuart missed yesterday’s practice and today’s game day skate with an undisclosed injury. Coach Paul Maurice said that Stuart could probably play tonight, but will benefit from having a week off during the All Star break. He will be replaced by Jacob Trouba, who will return from IR.
