Chimera suffered a lower-body injury in the Capitals loss to the Sharks on Tuesday and was not on the ice for practice on Wednesday. With Chimera potential out on Thursday, expect Alex Ovechkin to return and Stanislav Galiev to remain in the lineup.
There is no word on what Mason is dealing with, but it must be serious. Mason missed Tuesday's game, but returned to practice on Wednesday. However, he remains without a timetable for a return, which means that Michal Neuvirth will continue to man the crease for Philadelphia.
Ovechkin was held out of Tuesday's game due to personal reasons but returned to practice on Wednesday and should be back in the lineup on Thursday vs. the Blackhawks. The Capitals struggled without Ovechkin, who had one goal and one assist in the season opener.
Bogosian has missed the first three games of the season but returned to the ice on Wednesday which is a big step in his return to the lineup. Bogosian was listed as week-to-week and he remains without a firm timetable for return.
Bobrovksy allowed four goals on 33 shots in the Blue Jackets loss in Buffalo on Monday. Bobrovsky has allowed four goals in all three of his starts this season. It has been a rough start for Bobrovksy and the Blue Jackets, but they will look to get back on track tonight vs. Ottawa. Bobrovsky enters play with a 4.66 GAA and .850 SV%.
Boucher was sent down yesterday because the Devils needed to make room to recall Yann Danis as their backup. With Cory Schneider set to return on Friday, Danis has been reassigned and Boucher is back with the Devils.
Danis served as Keith Kinkaid’s backup last night with Cory Schneider out, but Schneider will be back for Friday’s game, so Danis’ services were no longer needed.
Mason missed Monday’s game due to personal reasons, but Michal Neuvirth excelled in his place, posting a 31-save shutout. Mason returned to practice this morning but Neuvirth will stat tonight and Mason may not even dress as his backup.
Hickey was expected to miss four weeks from the end of September, so basically he was expected back in late-October, early-November. However, returning to practice in the middle of October suggests that he will miss less than four weeks. Monitor his status going forward.
To this point in the season, Halak has only been skating on his own before practice, but on Wednesday he finally joined his teammates. Halak has sat out the first three games of the season, but returning to practice is a good sign that he is nearing a return. Thomas Greiss will continue to start until Halak is cleared to play.
Neuvirth stopped all 31 shots that he faced to shutout the Panthers in his first start as a Flyer. Neuvirth earned a second straight start tonight as he gets set to face the reigning Stanley Cup Champions. Neuvirth will be looking to get some goal support after the Flyers scored just five four goals through their first three games.
Bouma was spotted leaving the building with crutches and a walking boot, which is obviously not a good sign for Bouma. The big forward played just 7:36 before retiring from the contest. Expect an update on Wednesday.
The Blues head coach Ken Hitchcock said that Shattenkirk left for precautionary reasons and will be reevaluated on Wednesday. Shattenkirk missed a lot of time in 2014-15 with an abdominal injury. St. Louis is back in action on Thursday, so monitor Shattenkirk’s status leading up to their meeting with the Oilers.
Smith has been sensational to start the season. After a troubling 2014-15 campaign, Smith has started this year off 2-0-0 while stopping 67 of 69 shots (.971 SV%) vs. the Kings and Penguins. He draws another tough matchup on Wednesday vs. Anaheim—a team that he played well against last year—1-3-0, 2.22 GAA, .936 SV%.
Varlamov allowed three goals on 33 shots in the Avs’ 6-3 win over the Stars on Saturday. Through two games, Varlamov has allowed a combined eight goals on 63 shots (.873 SV%) but has also had 10 goals scored in front of him. The Avs’ offence is clicking early on, now they need to lock it down defensively.
Quick allowed four goals on 22 shots in the Kings’ loss to the Coyotes last Friday. Quick has had a dreadful start to the season, having allowed nine goals on 54 shots (.833 SV%). Tonight he will take on a Canucks team who is 2-0-1 to start this season—Vancouver has averaged 2.67 goals per game so far.
Hall was listed as a game-time decision because of an illness, but whatever was bothering him this morning didn’t keep him out of tonight’s game. Rob Klinkhammer continues to sit with Hall now playing.
Ovechkin did not take part in the Capitals morning skate and was listed as a game-time decision. With Ovechkin out of the lineup, Stanislav Galiev will make his season debut.
Antti Niemi started the Stars’ first two games of the season, but it looks like they will give Lehtonen the nod tonight vs. the Oilers. Lehtonen was 34-17-10 with a 2.94 GAA and .903 SV% last year but he will need to improve on those splits if he doesn’t want to become a backup. He draws a strong matchup vs. an Oilers team who has just one goal so far.
Miller stopped 28 of 29 shots in the Canucks shootout win over the Ducks last night. Miller has had a strong start to the season, going 2-0-1 with a 1.60 GAA and .948 SV% through three starts. Miller will take on a Kings team who has had a terrible start of the season, giving up seven more goals than they’ve scored through two games.
