The Sharks are still waiting for Kennedy to make his season debut, but he is now one step closer. The 28-year-old tallied two goals and one assist in three games with Worcester during his conditioning stint. Look for him to play on Thursday vs. Vancouver.
After being hit in the face by a puck on Sunday, Bieksa made a quick recovery and his vision is good enough for him to suit up tonight; albeit with a visor now. He will be paired with Ryan Stanton, who will also be back in the lineup tonight.
Head coach Alain Vigneault said that the chances of Stepan returning to the lineup tomorrow are "very slim." After Wednesday, the Rangers are off until Saturday, so they will likely give him the extra three days. Saturday seems like a much more reasonable return date.
Miller allowed two goals on 27 shots in a win vs. Edmonton on Saturday. Miller has won five in a row while recording a 1.59 GAA and .948 SV%. When a guy is 8-1-0, you basically have to start him and the matchup vs. Colorado is a good one, they still rank in the bottom-third in the league in scoring (23rd - 2.38 G/PG).
Varlamov gave up three goals on 33 shots in the Avs' loss to the Ducks on Sunday. He will make his seventh straight start tonight having gone 2-1-3 with a 1.94 GAA and .943 SV% in six starts since returning from injury. He draws a tough matchup tonight vs. the 8-4-0 Canucks.
Greiss allowed four goals on 31 shots in a OT loss to the Red Wings in his only start this season. Marc-Andre Fleury started the last four games and is 0-5 in his career vs. the Wild, so Greiss will get the call for the second time this season. Minny is great at home, so he is not the best spot-start option tonight.
Hutton allowed two goals on 37 shots in a loss to the Blackhawks in his only start of the season. Pekka Rinne has started the last six in a row and the Preds have two really tough games coming up (DAL / STL), so Rinne will get the night off as Hutton gets the easiest of the three matchups.
Pavelec stopped all 38 shots that he faced in a 1-0 shootout win over the Rangers on Saturday. He was given Sunday off, but Michael Hutchinson posted a 1-0 shutout of his own, so Pavelec enters play tonight with a two-game shutout streak on the line for the Jets. He allowed two goals on 27 shots in a loss to the Predators in their first meeting.
Kuemper stopped 19 of 20 shots in a win over the Stars on Saturday. Kuemper has been great in his first eight starts of the season, posting a 6-2-0 record with a 1.62 GAA, .930 SV% and three shutouts. Despite being 5-0-0 at home so far, he is a risky start vs. a highly talented Penguins team.
Neuvirth stopped 36 of 38 shots and two of three shootout attempts in the Sabres 3-2 win over the Red Wings on Sunday. The win moved Neuvrith to 2-3-0 with a 2.96 GAA and .918 SV% on the season. He might pick up the odd win here and there, but he is too risky to start on a regular basis.
Greiss allowed four goals on 31 shots in a OT loss to the Red Wings in his only start this season. Marc-Andre Fleury started the last four games and is 0-5 in his career vs. the Wild, so it looks like Greiss will get the call for the second time this season. Minny is great at home, so he is not the best spot-start option tonight.
Hutton allowed two goals on 37 shots in a loss to the Blackhawks in his only start of the season. Pekka Rinne has started the last six in a row and the Preds have two really tough games coming up (DAL / STL), so it looks like Rinne will get the night off as Hutton gets the easiest of the three matchups.
Smith allowed three goals on 35 shots in the Coyotes loss so the Hurricanes on Saturday. Smith has lost five of his last six starts and he sits at 2-6-0 with a 3.84 GAA and .873 SV%. His fantasy value is at an all-time low right now and he could make for a low-risk, high-reward pick-up right now.
Quick allowed three goals on 32 shots in a 3-2 loss to the Hurricanes on Sunday. After a sizzling five-game winning streak, Quick has dropped his last three starts while posting a 3.31 GAA and .908 SV%. He will try to record his first road win of the season tonight, he is 0-2-2 away from Staples Center so far.
Clemmensen did not even get a chance to start for the Devils this season, but did make two relief appearances. He allowed four goals on 17 shots (.765 SV%) in those two outings, so that probably played a huge part in the decision to send the 37-year-old down.
Bieksa said that the vision in his injured right eye has improved since yesterday, so he is going to give it a go this morning. He will try a visor to protect the eye, but this is great news for the Canucks, the original feeling was that the damage to the eye was substantial.
Gonchar is looking to make his season debut tonight after missing the start of the season with a fractured ankle. He took part in the Stars morning skate and was paired with Jamie Oleksiak on the blueline, which suggests that he will play. We will find out during pre-game warmups at 8 p.m. ET.
Nichushkin skated on the Stars top line in practice this morning, so it looks like he will be in the lineup tonight, but we won't know until pre-game warmups at 8 p.m ET.
Semin was a healthy scratch for the last two games (they won both) but will get back into the lineup tonight vs. Columbus. Semin has struggled to start the year, but maybe being scratched will wake him out. He will start on a line with Eric Staal and Jiri Tlusty.
Mantha has been sidelined since mid-September with a fractured tibia. He has been cleared to do some practice drills this week and the Red Wings are hoping he will make his pro hockey debut with Grand Rapids in a couple of weeks. The Red Wings are always patient with their prospects so Mantha will have to get his feet wet with the Griffins, before he can even consider making his NHL debut.
