NHL Hockey Player News

Carter has 10 points (2G / 8A) in 26 games for the Wild this season. With Carter out, Stu Bickel will draw in on the Wild’s fourth line.

Roberto Luongo had to make 29 saves in the Panthers shootout win over the Red Wings last night, so we will see Montoya tonight in Buffalo. He stopped 21 of 23 shots in a loss to the Blue Jackets in his last start back on December 1st. He draws a nice spot-start matchup vs. the league’s lowest scoring team.

Backstrom allowed four goals on 19 shots but still walked away with the win over the Islanders on Tuesday. He draws a beauty matchup tonight vs. a struggling Arizona team. Backstrom is 2-2-0 with a 2.27 GAA and .901 SV% on the road this season.

Bishop allowed four goals on 34 shots in the Lightning’s loss to the Capitals on Tuesday. After getting Thursday night off, Bishop will be back in the cage tonight and get a second crack at Washington. Bishop is 16-5-2 with a 2.31 GAA and .915 SV% on the season so it is easy to expect a bounce-back performance from the 6-foot-7 net minder.

Dubnyk allowed four goals on 24 shots in the Coyotes loss to Boston last Saturday. He has gone 5-2-1 with a 2.74 GAA and .918 SV% on the year, but continues to rotate start with the struggling Mike Smith. Tonight it looks like Dubnyk will face a Wild team who have alternated wins and losses in their last 10 contests.

Potter, 30, has registered five assists in 19 games with Adirondack in his first year with the Flames organization. With Ladislav Smid on IR, Potter will serve as the Flames’ seventh defenseman.

According to head coach Mike Johnston said Maatta is still being tested and is going to miss a couple more weeks. With Maatta out, Christian Ehrhoff and Paul Martin will take on bigger roles on the blue line. Expect him to be out until after Christmas.

Enroth stopped 42 of 45 shots in the Sabres win over the Flames on Thursday. Somehow, Enroth has managed to win five of his last six starts with a 2.11 GAA and .940 SV%. It has been extremely impressive what the 24-year-old has been able to do as of late and draws a solid enough matchup that you can actually trust him tonight.

Andersen stopped 21 of 23 shots in the Ducks win over the Oilers last night. It was not an overly busy night for Andersen which will allow him to start his 18th consecutive game. Over the span of 17 straight starts, Andersen has gone 10-3-4 with a 2.86 GAA and .899 SV%. If he starts tonight, he comes in with a 8-1-2 road record.

Andersen stopped 21 of 23 shots in the Ducks win over the Oilers last night. It was not an overly busy night for Andersen which leads us to believe he will start his 18th consecutive game. Over the span of 17 straight starts, Andersen has gone 10-3-4 with a 2.86 GAA and .899 SV%. If he starts tonight, he comes in with a 8-1-2 road record.

Smid was injured on Friday on a hit from Penguins’ defenseman Simon Despres. The hit looked pretty vicious, but Despres was not assessed a penalty on the play. Smid left the game and did not return. There is no word on the severity of the injury or who will be recalled from the AHL.

Miller stopped 22 of 24 shots in the Canucks 3-1 loss to Montreal on Tuesday. Given it was Jean Beliveu night in Montreal, it was tough to bet against the Habs in this one. But, now that Canucks are back at home ready to take on their former head coach and the Rangers, who are 12-10-4 on the year and have the league’s ninth best offence.

Bobrovsky allowed two goals on 41 shots in Tuesday’s 3-2 overtime win over the Capitals. He is red-hot right now, having won all five of his December starts with a 1.73 GAA and .949 SV%. He will look to keep things rolling tonight and he catches a break with Sidney Crosby not in the Penguins lineup.

If Smith’s injury is to keep him out for an extended period of time, expect J.G Pageau to be recalled form the AHL. After today’s game the Sens are off until Wednesday, so Smith has some time to recover before their next game.

Rinne stopped 31 of 32 shots in the Predators 5-1 blowout win over the Coyotes on Thursday. Tonight the Predators will wrap up a three-game road trip—so far they are 2-0 and Rinne has stopped 57 of 58 shots (.983 SV%) on the trip. It is not a great matchup, but you can’t keep this guy out of your lineup.

Hemsky has served as a healthy scratch for the last two games, but will be back in the lineup tonight with Travis Moen out with an injury. He will skate on the second line with Cody Eakin and Antoine Roussel.

Pickard gave up three goals on 33 shots in the Avs’ shootout win over Winnipeg on Thursday. The 22-year-old net minder continues to impress everyone with his strong play. He now sits at 4-5-0 with a 2.36 GAA and .926 SV% this season. Despite the recent success, he draws a really tough matchup tonight with the Blues in town.

Niemi has missed the last two games with an undisclosed injury, but will be back between the pipes tonight vs. Nashville. He comes in riding a four-game winning streak while posting a 2.75 GAA and .910 SV% over that span. He has yet to face the Predators this season, but they come in winners of both games on their current road-trip.

Matthias has missed the last two games with a head injury, but will return to the lineup tonight vs. the Rangers. Before getting hurt, Matthias had four goals and two assists in his previous six games.

Roberto Luongo had to make 29 saves in the Panthers shootout win over the Red Wings last night, so expect to see Montoya tonight in Buffalo. He stopped 21 of 23 shots in a loss to the Blue Jackets in his last start back on December 1st. He draws a nice spot-start matchup vs. the league’s lowest scoring team.