Perry has been out since December 5th with a sprained knee. Despite skating again on Monday, neither Perry or coach Boudreau would commit to Perry playing tomorrow vs. the Sharks. Monitor Perry’s status during the Ducks’ morning skate tomorrow.
Backlund has been out since October 28th because of abdominal surgery. The Flames never gave a timetable for Backlund’s return, but he is hoping to join the team for practice tomorrow and will go from there.
Draisaitl did not practice on Monday and his status for Tuesday’s game vs. the Kings is up in the air. Monitor his status during the Oilers’ morning skate on Tuesday.
Nikitin has been out with a back injury since December 3rd. To make room for Nikitin, the Oilers sent Brad Hunt back to the AHL. Nikitin, who has five points (2G / 3A) and a minus-6 rating will likely be paired with Justin Schultz on Tuesday vs. the Kings.
Hunt had two assists and an EVEN rating in five games during his recall. He has a total of three points (1G / 2A) in 11 games with the Oilers this season. His demotion creates room for Nikita Nikitin to be activated from IR.
Granlund suffered a broken wrist in Saturday’s loss to the Jets. He underwent surgery this afternoon and is expected to be back in last January/early-February. With Granlund out, Charlie Coyle should see and increased workload.
Fleury made 31 saves on 34 shots in the Penguins’ 3-0 loss to the Capitals on Saturday. That is three straight losses and three straight games allowing three goals. It is hard to blame Fleury when you look at the Penguins roster right now, they are simply decimated by injuries. Regardless, Fleury should be a great start tonight in New Jersey. He is 2-0-0 with a 1.50 GAA and .938 SV% vs. the Devils.
Kuemper missed his start on Saturday due to food poisoning but he said that he feels good and will be back in goal tonight. He allowed four goals on 29 shots in a loss to the Flyers in his last start. In five starts this month he is 1-3-0 with a 3.69 GAA and .864 SV%.
The Predators have a back-to-back tonight and tomorrow, but look for Rinne to get the start tonight vs. the Blackhawks and then either Rinne will go again or Carter Hutton will start tomorrow vs. the Blues. Rinne is coming off of a 26-save performance in Saturday’s 4-1 win over the Flyers. He has won four straight and leads the league with 23 wins.
Roy, 31, will head back to the AHL for the first time since 2005-6 when he had 20 points (7G / 13A) in eight games with the Rochester Americans. He had 10 points (1G / 9A) in 26 games with the Predators this season.
Sharp has three goals and four assists (7 points) in nine games since returning from a leg injury, but tonight he will skate with Marcus Kruger and Ben Smith on the Hawks’ fourth line. With Brad Richards coming back someone had to be bumped down, but it is surprising to see it be Sharp.
The Penguins announced that Hornqvist will miss a few weeks on Sunday, so it is no surprise to see him going on IR to clear room for the Penguins to recall a forward.
Quick stopped 21 of 22 shots in the Kings 3-1 win over the Sharks on Saturday. Quick has won three of his last four while points a 2.71 GAA and .884 SV%. Tonight he gets the nod in Calgary—Quick has gone 2-5-4 with a 3.12 GAA and .903 SV% on the road so far in 2014-15.
When Petteri Lindbohm was sent back to the AHL this morning, there was some optimism that Gunnarsson was close. He is improving, but he will not play tonight or tomorrow. The Blues first game after New Year’s is Friday in Anaheim.
Rask allowed three goals on 15 shots after replacing Niklas Svedberg in Saturday’s loss to the Blue Jackets. Neither net minder was good in this one as a tough December continues for the Bruins. Rask is 3-4-2 with a 3.10 GAA and .895 SV% this month and tonight he will face a Red Wings team who always plays the Bruins tough in the regular season.
Fleury made 31 saves on 34 shots in the Penguins’ 3-0 loss to the Capitals on Saturday. That is three straight losses and three straight games allowing three goals. It is hard to blame Fleury when you look at the Penguins roster right now, they are simply decimated by injuries. Regardless, Fleury should be a great start tonight in New Jersey. He is 2-0-0 with a 1.50 GAA and .938 SV% vs. the Devils.
Mason has missed the last four games with a back injury he suffered in practice. He stopped 31 of 32 shots in a shootout loss to the Panthers in his last start. He comes into tonight with a 1.97 GAA and .931 SV% in seven December starts and draws a nice matchup vs. the Coyotes—however he is 1-6-3 with a 2.65 GAA and .921 SV% on the road this season.
Jonathan Bernier did not take part in the optional morning skate, which suggests he won’t be available so Reimer should start his second game in as many nights. He allowed five goals on 32 shots in the Leafs 6-4 loss to the Panthers last night. He has allowed nine goals on 67 shots (.866 SV%) in his last two starts. He draws an awful matchup tonight in Tampa Bay.
Gaudet, 21, has eight points (4G / 4A) in 29 games with Portland (AHL) this season. There is no word on who will come out of the lineup for Gaudet.
Brodin will not play tonight after being injured in Saturday’s game. However, he says he is feeling much better and that Wednesday vs. the Blue Jackets is a possibility.
