Howard will be out until late-January to mid-February, which was basically the best case scenario for the Red Wings. When Howie was stretchered off of the ice, it looked as if he would miss much longer. However, groin injuries with goalies can be very difficult to manage, so the Red Wings will be extremely careful with Howard.
Arcobello has one goal in four games since being acquired from the Oilers. If he clears waivers, he will report to Milwaukee (AHL).
Letang missed Monday’s practice because of a maintenance day, but he was on the ice for the Penguins morning skate and will be in the lineup tonight vs. the Wild. Letang has three assists and a minus-3 rating in his last eight games.
Stewart has been battling the flu as of late and was not on the ice for the Sabres morning skate, so don’t expect him to be in the lineup tonight vs. Detroit. Matt Ellis has been recalled from Rochester (AHL) and will replace Stewart in the lineup.
Price stopped 35 of 37 shots in the Canadiens to the Penguins on Saturday. After winning five in a row, Price has dropped each of his last two while allowing six goals on 73 shots (.918 SV%). Tonight he will start in Columbus—Price has gone 9-5-1 with a 2.23 GAA and .928 SV% on the road this season.
Backstrom allowed four goals on 35 shots in the Wild’s 4-1 loss to Chicago on Sunday. He has lost three consecutive starts while posting a 3.34 GAA and .877 SV%. It is evident that this 36-year-old is at the tail-end of his career and he is a dangerous start tonight in Pittsburgh. The Penguins are 10th in scoring and Backstrom has an .889 SV% on the road.
Hutchinson allowed four goals on 29 shots in the Jets win in Los Angeles on Saturday. He was given Sunday night off, but it is his turn tonight vs. the Panthers. In seven starts at the MTS Center this season, Hutchinson has gone 4-3-0 with a 1.93 SV%. He has been better than Ondrej Pavelec, but he has been average over his last five starts.
The Islanders will go with the same lineup as they used on Saturday, so that means that Grabovski will miss a second straight game with a lower-body injury. He is day-to-day, monitor his status leading up to Friday’s game vs. Pittsburgh.
Halak allowed two goals on 23 shots in the Islanders win over the Devils on Friday. Halak has been victorious in four of his last six while posting a 2.47 GAA and .891 SV%. Tonight he will make his second start of the year vs. the Rangers—he stopped 40 of 43 shots in a 6-3 win in Madison Square Garden in early-October.
Lehtonen allowed four goals on 30 shots in the Stars 4-3 defeat vs. the Avs on Saturday. After winning four in a row, Lehtonen has dropped three straight while surrendering a combined 12 goals on 92 shots (.870 SV%). He will face the Senators tonight—Lehotnen is 6-2-1 with a 3.10 GAA and .895 SV% vs. the Eastern Conference this season.
Schneider made 40 saves on 42 shots in the Devils loss to the Bruins last Thursday. He was given Friday night off and has had nearly a full-week off in between starts. He has gone 2-1-0 with a 1.68 GAA and .940 SV% in the 2015 calendar year. Schneider has struggled, going 8-13-0 on the road this season.
Benn missed Monday’s practice with an undisclosed injury, but his return to the ice this morning suggests that he will play tonight against the Senators. Benn has two goals and four assists in his last six games.
Seguin was sent home from practice with an illness on Monday, but was on the ice this morning, which is a good sign that he will play tonight vs. the Senators. Seguin has one goal and four assists in his last six games.
Lundqvist made 30 saves on 31 attempts in the Rangers win over the Sharks on Saturday. King Henrik has won four in a row and 11 of his last 12 starts while posting a 1.57 GAA and .939 SV%. Even though he was lit up by this strong Islanders offence in their first meeting, the way he is playing right now, there is no way you can bench him.
Emery allowed three goals on 13 shots after replacing Steve Mason in the Flyers loss to the Bruins on Saturday. The Flyers gave Rob Zepp the start on Monday, but it looks like it will be Emery tonight vs. the Capitals. He enters play with a 7-7-1 record, 3.21 GAA and .889 SV% on the year.
Khudobin stopped 19 of 20 shots in the Hurricanes 2-1 shootout win over the Bruins on December 4th. After going winless in his first 10 starts, Khudobin has stopped 37 of 39 shots (.949 SV%) to earn back-to-back wins. Tonight he will face an Avalanche team at home where he is 1-3-0 despite posting a 1.75 GAA and .929 SV%.
Fleury made 27 saves on 28 shots in the Penguins’ 2-1 OT victory over the Habs on Saturday. It was a nice bounce-back for Fleury who had lost his two previous starts. Tonight he faces a Wild team who have lost five in a row while being outscored 22-8—Fleury is 14-5-2 with a 2.07 GAA and .930 SV% at CONCOL Energy Center.
Rask stopped 24 of 25 shot attempts in the Bruins 3-1 win over the Flyers on Saturday. After losing three in a row, Rask has now won back-to-back starts and will look to make it three consecutive tonight vs. the Lightning. He is 2-0-2 with a 1.69 GAA and .944 SV% in four starts in 2015 and catches a break against a Lightning team who could be missing Tyler Johnson and Victor Hedman.
Neuvirth made 45 saves on 47 shots in the Sabres 2-1 loss to the Lightning on Friday. It was an awesome effort from Neuvirth, who is still looking for his first win since November 18th. Tonight he will start vs. fellow Czech Petr Mrazek on a night where the Sabres will retire Czech legend Dominik Hasek’s jersey. He is 1-1-0 with a .384 GAA and .896 SV% vs. Detroit.
Khudobin stopped 19 of 20 shots in the Hurricanes 2-1 shootout win over the Bruins on December 4th. After going winless in his first 10 starts, Khudobin has stopped 37 of 39 shots (.949 SV%) to earn back-to-back wins. Tonight he would face an Avalanche team at home where he is 1-3-0 despite posting a 1.75 GAA and .929 SV%.