Doherty is a 22-year-old defenseman who was selected in the second round (57th overall) in 2009. He is currently in his third full season with Worcester where he has eight points (3G / 5A) in 37 games. He has totalled four goals and 20 assists (24 points) in 140 games with Worcester. He was likely recalled as blueline insurance with Scott Hannan on IR.
Raanta stopped 18 of 20 shots in a win over the Oilers on January 12. The Blackhawks will be on the tail-end of a back-to-back on Thursday, so it looks like Raanta will get his 16th start of the season. In his previous 15 starts the rookie netminder is 12-1-3 with a 2.25 GAA and .911 SV%. Behind a strong Hawks offence, he is a solid spot-start option every time he is in the cage.
Despite missing the morning skate, Desharnais will be in the lineup tonight vs. the Penguins as the Habs make no changes up front.
Diaz has yet to record a goal in 46 games this season and has just one assist and a minus-5 rating in his last 16 games.
Emelin was a minus-2 on Saturday vs. the Maple Leafs and has just two assists, a minus-7 rating with 35 hits and 16 blocked shots in his last 10 games.
Byron left Monday's contest and did not return. He played just 6:16 and was a minus-1 before retiring to the dressing room for the evening. Byron is expected to be replaced by T.J Galiardi.
Ramo allowed three goals on 27 shots in Monday's loss to the Sharks. Ramo is currently 2-4-1 with a 2.71 GAA and .905 SV% in January, a month where he has started seven of 10 games for the Flames. Tonight he takes on the Coyotes who he faced in early December, he stopped 29 of 30 shots in a 4-1 win.
Lundqvist did not dress on Tuesday because he was under the weather, but his presence at practice today suggests that he should be good to go on Thursday. Expect Lundqvist to start on Thursday if he is feeling well enough, he has won five of his last six starts with a 1.34 GAA and .958 SV%.
Desharnais missed last Tuesday's contest with the flu and could be in danger of missing tonight's game in Pittsburgh. Desharnais has two goals and one assist in his last two games, so the Canadiens would love to have him in their lineup tonight. Monitor his status following the morning skate, he will likely be a game-time decision.
Fleury shockingly gave up five goals on 28 shots in a 5-1 blowout loss to the Panthers on Monday. The Penguins had four days off in between games, which likely had something to do with their poor play. Tonight Fleury faces a Habs team who have alternated win-loss in their last eight contests. Fleury stopped 26 of 29 shots in a 3-2 loss to Montreal on November 23.
Stajan has seven goals and 10 assists in 41 games this season. The 30-year-old centre from Mississauga, Ont., made his debut in 2002 with the Toronto Maple Leafs before being traded to Calgary in 2010. Stajan has 116 goals and 212 assists in 693 career games.
Datsyuk declared himself 100 per cent for the Olympics, so one would expect he will be back in the Red Wings lineup prior to the Olympic break. The Red Wings are sliding in the Eastern Conference standings and could certainly use Datsyuk's magic back in the lineup.
Kindl has just one assist with a minus-1 rating in his last 10 games. With Kindl coming out that likely means Danny DeKeyser moves to the top power-play alongside Niklas Kronwall, while Brendan Smith slides onto the the second unit.
Gustafsson had been recalled because Niklas Backstrom was sidelined for a couple of days after receiving a cortisone shot. Gustafsson returns to the AHL where he is 7-7-1 with a 2.75 GAA and .910 SV%.
Coach Peter Horachek said the injury isn't considered serious adding that Barkov was lifted from the game for precautionary reasons. Barkov, the second-overall pick of the 2013 draft, leads the Panthers in points with 24 in 50 games. Barkov is day-to-day and should be in the lineup on Friday vs. Colorado.
Weiss' original timetable was eight weeks after undergoing surgery on a sports hernia. His participation in the morning skate suggests that Weiss could return before the Olympic break opposed to after. The Red Wings are hoping that Weiss can find his Panthers-form because he has struggled mightily to this point.
Reimer allowed three goals on 30 shots in a shootout win over the Sabres on Wednesday. With the Leafs on the tail-end of a back-to-back and Bernier starting last night, the Leafs will turn to Reimer. He has a tough matchup in Colorado tonight. The Avalanche rank 6th in the NHL with 2.90 goals-per-game.
Lehtonen allowed four goals on 23 shots in a loss to the Predators on Monday. He has lost three straight while allowed 10 goals. Lehtonen is 1-6-1 with a 3.47 GAA and .888 SV% in January. Tonight he will face the Wild who he lost to 3-2 in OT on Saturday.
Jones will make his first start since January 2, he was yanked that evening after allowing two goals on 14 shots in the first 31 minutes. With Ben Scrivens getting traded, Jones becomes the permanent backup. He was 8-3-0 with a 1.41 GAA and .950 SV% so far this season. He will need to be at his best tonight as he goes head-to-head with the red-hot Sergei Bobrovsky.
Thomas missed Monday's start vs. the Penguins because he was under the weather. He is feeling better tonight and he get the call against the Sabres. In his last start he allowed three goals on 39 shots in a loss to the Hurricanes on Saturday. In his first start vs. the Sabres this season, he stopped 23 of 24 shots in a 2-1 shootout win.