NHL Hockey Player News

Allen, 34, had one assist in five games with Montreal after being acquired from Anaheim.

Smith allowed three goals on 26 shots in the Coyotes win over the Blue Jackets on Saturday. It was Smith’s first win since December 1st, snapping a five-game losing streak for the 32-year-old. Tonight he has a terrible matchup against a Blues team who lit him up for six goals in October.

Bennett, who has three assists in three games since returning to the Penguins lineup, was moved up to the second line on Tuesday. He skated with Evgeni Malkin and Nick Spaling today and should start the game there on Wednesday.

Luongo gave up three goals on 21 shots before leaving the game with an undisclosed injury after the second period in the Panthers loss to the Capitals on Sunday. Despite being hurt, the three days off will allow Bobby Lu to get the nod in Vancouver vs. his former squad. He is 7-4-4 with a 2.35 GAA and. 926 SV% on the road this year, but this game will be totally different from those other 16 starts.

Bernier missed the last two games with a lower-body injury, but will be back in tonight vs. the Sabres. He has 10 points (3G / 7A) in 28 games this season.

Martin, who missed practice on Monday, is on the ice this morning, which suggests that he should be in the lineup as expected on Wednesday.

Neal, who is listed as day-to-day, is not on the ice for the morning skate, which suggests that he will miss a third straight game with a lower-body injury.

Kuemper was pulled after he allowed four goals on 21 shots in the Wild’s blowout 7-1 loss to the Stars on Saturday. Over the last month, Kuemper has lost five of seven starts with a 3.15 GAA and .902 SV%. He has become an extremely risky fantasy investment. Be cautious until he proves otherwise.

Lindback allowed one goal on 10 shots after replacing Kari Lehtonen in the Stars shootout win over the Oilers on December 21st. He comes into play tonight with a 1-5-0 record, 4.28 GAA and .864 SV%. Yep, those are real numbers, so be extremely careful with Lindback.

Giroux missed the morning skate, but is listed as a game-time decision. He was listed as GTD on Saturday as well and did not come out for warmups, that is not likely to be the case tonight. Giroux did jump on the ice late in the skate just to shoot some pucks, so monitor his status during pre-game warmups.

Mason stopped six of eight shots after replacing Ray Emery in the Flyers loss to the Devils on Saturday. It was an ugly night for the Flyers altogether. He has not recorded a win since December 13th and is riding a five-game losing streak with a 2.44 GAA and .904 SV%.

Kadri was expected to miss 7-10 days which would have suggested that he would miss tomorrow’s game but his full availability this morning is a good sign he should play. He skated on the second line with Mike Santorelli and Daniel Winnik this morning.

Bishop gave up two goals on 22 shots in the Lightning’s 4-2 win over the Senators on Sunday. He has won three of his last four games with a 2.49 GAA and .901 SV%. Tonight he gets the nod in Montreal, he made 16 saves in a 7-1 win over the Habs in October. Bishop is 6-3-1 on the road this year.

Giroux, who missed Saturday’s game with a leg laceration, is not on the ice this morning after missing Monday’s practice as well. This does not bode well for Giroux playing tonight, but expect an update after the skate.

Duclair had been on a loan to Team Canada for the World Juniors. He posted four goals and four assists in seven games en route to a gold medal. Despite a strong tournament, the Rangers are playing great right now, so there is no reason to rush Duclair’s development. He heads back to the Quebec, where he had 50 goals and 49 assists (99 points) in 59 games.

Mrazek allowed three goals on 16 shots in the Red Wings win over the Sabres on December 23rd. He served as Jimmy Howard’s backup for the last five games, but returns to the crease tonight in the second half of a back-to-back. He faces a Flames team who have won four of five—Mrazek is 3-1-0 with a 2.70 GAA and .916 SV% on the road.

Howard surrendered two goals on 22 shots in the Red Wings’ 4-1 loss to the Canucks on Saturday. It was tight game throughout, but two empty netters made it look closer than it was. He has alternated wins and losses in his last five and that is likely to continue as he gets the nod vs. the Oilers.

Elliott allowed two goals on 20 shots in the Blues win over the Sharks on Saturday. After making 44 saves in his first game back, he was less busy on Saturday. He draws a great matchup tonight in Arizona—despite posting a 2.22 GAA and .918 SV% on the road, he is just 4-3-1.

Pastrnak has 27 points (10G / 17A) in 24 games with Providence this season. He had been representing the Czech Republic at the World Juniors since Boxing Day and he recorded one goal and six assists in five games at the tournament.

Morin, 30, had no points in five games with the Stars. He will report to Texas where he has 24 points (10G / 14A) in 23 games and 112 points (42G / 70A) in 89 games over the last year and a half. Despite tremendous AHL success, he has not been able to translate it to the NHL—he has just one assist in 12 career games.