Bryzgalov did not finish the regular season on a high note. He allowed five goals on 21 shots before being yanked vs. the Predators. Aside from that outing though, Bryz has been great for the Wild. He has gone 7-1-3 with a 2.12 GAA and .911 SV% since being traded to Minnesota. He will need to continue his strong play, because Avs' netminder Seymon Varlamov is on top of his game right now.
Dillon is listed as day-to-day with the lower-body ailment. Aaron Rome, who was limited to just 25 games this season, will draw into the lineup for Dillon. Missing Dillon will hurt the Stars blueline considerably. At 6-foot-3, 225 lbs. they could definitely use his size against a Ducks team who have 11 players over 6-foot.
Lehtonen stopped all 22 shots in a shutout win over the Blues in his final regular season outing. Lehtonen was superb down the stretch--he has won 11 of his last 15 starts entering Wednesday. He wrapped up the season one win short of his career best with 33 while posting a 2.41 GAA and. 919 SV%. He did not play in any of the three games vs. Anaheim this season.
Bobrovsky won't win back-to-back Vezina Trophies, but he still had a really strong season. He won a career-high 32 games with a 2.38 GAA and .923 SV%. Bobrovsky carried the Blue Jackets to their second playoff berth in franchise history. They are still searching for their first postseason victory after being swept by Detroit in 2008-09.
Price is the owner of 34 wins with a 2.32 GAA and .927 SV% in 59 games this season. Price has gone 8-3 with a .930 SV% post-Olympics and comes into the playoffs as one of the NHL hottest goalies. With Ben Bishop sidelined with an arm injury, the Habs have a huge advantage between the pipes. Price was 1-1-2 with a 1.42 GAA and .956 SV% vs. the Lightning in the regular season.
Andersen stopped 27 of 30 shots in a win over the Kings in his last regular season start. He has won his last four starts while holding his opponents to 10 goals on 131 shots (.924 SV%). He finished his first NHL season at 20-5-0 with a 2.29 GAA and .923 SV% and with Jonas Hiller struggling down the stretch Andersen will make his postseason debut in game 1 vs. Dallas tonight.
Emery, who is 7-2-0 (.936 SV%, 1.87 GAA) lifetime against the Rangers, would appear to get the start at Madison Square Garden on Thursday night. Emery started the Flyers’ last game there - on March 26 - his only blemish in New York. Though Emery’s statistics this season (9-12-2, .903, 2.96) are not pretty, he has played against the stiffest competition in the NHL (Boston, St. Louis, Los Angeles, San Jose, Chicago) since the Olympic break.
Mason practiced for just 18 minutes on Tuesday and they Flyers said his workload would increase on Wednesday… Well he was not even at the arena this morning because he was receiving treatment. Mason is considered as day-to-day, Ray Emery will start Game 1.
Fleury had another stellar regular season. He won 39 games which mark the fifth straight full season he has won 30-plus. He posted a 2.37 GAA and .915 SV% along the way, but now is where he needs to prove himself. Over the last four playoffs (09-13), Fleury has gone 14-16 with a 3.18 GAA and .880 SV%. However, the Penguins draw a great first round matchup, which should help build Fleury's confidence.
McLeod missed the past six games because of a high left ankle sprain. McLeod had 13 points (5G / 8A) in 71 games this season, but has just two points in 16 career playoff games.
Malkin was on the ice for the morning skate taking line rushes with Jussi Jokinen and James Neal. His participation in the morning skate suggests that he will be good to go tonight in game 1 vs. the Blue Jackets.
Prust missed the final 12 games of the regular season. He was in practice on Tuesday skating on the second line with Tomas Plekanec and Brandon Gallagher. The 30-year-old is the type of player you need on your roster in the playoffs, but he has just four points in 28 career playoff games.
Tarasenko has not played since suffering an injury to his right hand in the final moments of a game at Nashville on March 15. Tarasenko, who had 21 goals this season, had a cast removed on Monday and skated without that protection for the first time on Tuesday. He looked good while shooting and handling pucks. “We'll see,” Tarasenko said, when asked how soon he could play. “I don't know yet. We'll see tomorrow.
Oshie skated again on Tuesday and said he is feeling better. Blues' head coach Ken Hitchcock said that all of his injured players will be back at some point in round 1, but Oshie might not be ready for game 1. "You've got to see how I am tonight, how I am tomorrow morning," said Oshie. "It really is a day to day thing. If I can, if medically it's OK and I'm not going to hurt myself worse, or hurt my team, I'll be in."
With Ben Bishop still out with an arm injury, Lindback will get the call in game 1 vs. the Habs. He struggled all season long, but after Bishop got hurt he won all three outings while stopping 77 of 79 shots (.975 SV%). He has played well, but this definitely favours the Habs as they have Olympic Gold medalist Carey Price between the pipes.
Bishop missed the final three games of the regular season after suffering an arm injury last Tuesday vs. the Maple Leafs. This is a huge blow for the Lightning, and Bishop must be extremely disappointed after he won 37 games with a 2.23 GAA and .924 SV% this season. This leaves Anders Lindback to get the nod vs. Montreal.
MacDonald was acquired by the Flyers around this year's trade deadline on March 4 from the NY Islanders, and since joining the team, has four assists in 19 games and recorded over 20 minutes of ice-time in 14 of those games, including a Flyers-high of 28:49 at Pittsburgh on April 12. The 6-1, 190-pound defenseman led all NHL players in blocked shots this season with 242 and was one of three players in the NHL with over 200 blocks. He finished the season with four goals and 24 assists for 28 points in 82 games between the Islanders and Flyers.
Mitchell missed the final two games of the regular season and likely will not play in the first round vs. Minnesota. Mitchell had scored two goals with four assists in seven games since returning from a back injury.
Barrie suffered an upper-body injury on Friday vs. the Sharks was held out on Sunday vs. the Ducks mainly as a precaution and should be good to go on Thursday.
Kane missed the final 12 games of the regular season after suffering a sprained knee. Kane said he felt ‘’pretty good’’ after Monday’s workout. But he acknowledged ‘’we’ll know a little bit more’’ after practicing with the team Tuesday and Wednesday. Even then, until Game 1, the status of Kane’s recovery will be up in the air.
