Niskanen suffered a lower-body injury on Sunday vs. the Panthers. He missed Monday’s practice, skated briefly on Tuesday and participated in today’s morning skate, but is still considered a game-time decision. He said “I don’t know yet,” when asked if he would play, so monitor his status during pre-game warmups.
Holtby allowed three goals on 32 shots in the Capitals 4-3 win over the Panthers on Sunday. Holtby has won each of his last two starts and six of his last eight—he has posted a 2.24 GAA and .928 SV% over that eight game span. He was pulled after allowing three goals on 12 shots in the first period of his only start vs. Toronto this year.
Bryzgalov allowed six goals on 31 shots in his first start with the Ducks back on December 19th. Overall he has allowed eight goals on 38 shots for a .790 SV%. He has had a lot of practice time since that start, so look for a sharper Ilya Bryzgalov tonight. However, he draws a tough matchup with the Rangers in town.
Potter never got into a game during his recall, so he will head back to the AHL Flames, where he had five assists in 19 games before being called-up.
Granlund, 21, recorded 13 points (5G / 8A) in 29 games with Calgary this season. With Mikael Backlund returning to the lineup tonight, Granlund gets squeezed back into the AHL where he has three goals and two assists in eight games.
Horcoff has missed the last four games with an illness, but will be back in the lineup tomorrow vs. the Predators. Horcoff has 13 points (5G / 8A) in 35 games this season.
Today was the first time that Regehr has practiced since suffering a hand injury on December 18th. He has missed the last seven games but could be back in the lineup by next week.
Havlat missed Tuesday’s game with an illness, but could return tomorrow vs. the Bruins. He has three goals, six assists and a minus-10 rating in 24 games this season.
Jordan, 24, is a solid offensive defenseman who has seen power-play time with the Hurricanes, but has failed to record a point in 16 games since his recall. If he clears waivers he will be sent to Charlotte (AHL), where he has two goals and five assists in 15 games.
Boychuk, 25, is a former first-round pick (14th overall in 2008) but hasn’t panned out as the Hurricanes would have hoped. He has six points (3G / 3A) in 31 games this season, so they have placed him on waiver with the intent of sending him to Charlotte.
Smith-Pelly served as a healthy scratch on Sunday, but will be back in the lineup tonight vs. the Rangers. Smith-Pelly has four goals and 11 assists (15 points) in 36 games this season.
Kuemper left late in the Wild’s practice session with an undisclosed minor injury. Monitor his status during Thursday’s morning skate, if he is unable to go, look for Niklas Backstrom to start.
Koivu left briefly but returned to practice, so expect him to be in the lineup on Thursday. Monitor his status tomorrow just to be sure.
Scandella was injured in the second period of Tuesday’s game and missed Wednesday’s practice with an upper-body injury. The injury will keep him out of Thursday’s game, he is listed as day-to-day.
Backlund has been out since October 28th because of abdomen surgery. He recorded four points (1G / 3A) in 11 games before getting hurt. Tonight he will return to the lineup on the Flames’ third line with Paul Byron and Mason Raymond.
Pavelec allowed four goals on 32 shots in the Jets loss to the Islanders on December 31st. Michael Hutchinson has started five of the last six games, but Pavelec will start on Thursday in Arizona. It is a nice matchup to get Pav back in the crease. He won his only other start against the Coyotes—he is also 5-3-2 with a 1.96 GAA and .929 SV% on the road.
Bryzgalov allowed six goals on 31 shots in his first start with the Ducks back on December 19th. Overall he has allowed eight goals on 38 shots for a .790 SV%. It is a strange time to give Bryz a start considering the Ducks are off until Sunday after tonight, but either way it looks like he will face a Rangers team who have won 10 of their last 11.
Kane, who returned to practice this afternoon, is hopeful that he will return to the lineup during this week’s three game road trip. Kane was originally expected to be out until early-February, but he is way ahead of schedule. Playing tomorrow seems unlikely, but monitor his status heading into the weekend.
Ashton cleared waivers this afternoon and has been assigned to the Toronto Marlies because the Maple Leafs want him to get some games in.
