Crawford was originally expected to miss three weeks, and it has only been nine days. Resuming skating this week will be a positive sign in his return from his lower-body injury. Expect Crawford to be back in late December or early in 2014.
Gaunce, 23, has skated in 28 games for Texas this season, earning seven points (1G / 6A) and 25 penalty minutes. The 6-foot-1, 210-pound defenseman has played 11 career NHL games, all with the Colorado Avalanche, collecting one goal and 16 penalty minutes. Originally selected by Colorado in the second-round (50th overall) in the 2008 NHL Draft, Gaunce was acquired by Dallas via trade from Colorado in exchange for forward Tomas Vincour on April 2, 2013.
Fiddler will miss his fifth consecutive game tonight. The 33-year-old veteran has a career high of 32 points ('07-'08) and has just eight points in 28 games this season, he is not fantasy relevant.
If all goes well and Hedman continues to skate, he could return to the lineup on Thursday. Tonight's game will be the sixth straight that Hedman has missed after suffering a lower-body injury on December 5. Monitor his status as the week progresses.
The Blues did not hold a morning skate because of the back-to-back, so we will likely have to wait until 6 p.m EST when they arrive at the rink to see if Sobotka will play.
The Blues did not hold a morning skate because of the back-to-back, so we will likely have to wait until 6 p.m EST when they arrive at the rink to see if Schwartz will play.
A woozy Backes appeared to struggle with his equilibrium as he went straight to the locker room. Backes has missed only three games in the past six seasons, but he was listed as day-to-day after the game and the Blues are waiting to see if his absence will be extended.
Halak allowed three goals on 33 shots but walked away victorious in a 4-3 OT win over the Blue Jackets on Saturday. He gets the nod tonight when the Blues welcome the Sharks. The last time St. Louis took on San Jose, Brian Elliott was pulled and Halak stopped 18 of 19 shots in a relief.
Raanta stopped 21 of 22 shots in a win over the Kings in Chicago on Sunday. It was a great bounce-back game for Raanta who was shelled by the Maple Leafs on Saturday. He will get the start tonight in Nashville. He is 3-1-0 with a 2.93 GAA and .897 SV% on the road.
Harding stopped 26 of 27 shots in Saturday's shootout victory against the Avalanche. Harding continues to dominate the NHL - he has won four of his last five starts with a 1.38 GAA and .949 SV%. Harding has a tough matchup with the Canucks in town, but his 13-1-0, 1.25 GAA and .945 SV% at home says he is a must-start.
Bickell missed nearly one month after being injured on November 19. He appeared in 22 games before getting hurt, he recorded five goals and one assist. He will skate on the third line with Andrew Shaw and Brandon Saad.
Silfverberg has been out since October 25 with a broken right hand, but will play tonight. In his first season with the Ducks, Silfverberg scored four goals and three assists with a plus-5 rating in his first 11 games.
Hurricanes head coach Kirk Muller says they are going to sit down with Lindholm to make a final decision, but it appears as if it is a guarantee that Lindholm will join the Swedish National team on December 22. He has three goals and four assists in 21 games with Carolina.
Smith did not appear in a game during his call-up. His assignment to the AHL means that Curtis McElhinney is good to return after missing the last two games.
Skille, 26, has tallied two goals, two penalty minutes and a plus-2 rating in seven appearances with Columbus. He has also recorded two goals and one assist and a plus-1 rating in six games with Springfield.
Huberdeau missed Sunday's game against the Canadiens and is questionable to play tonight in Toronto. Huberdeau has only two goals and two assists in his last 12 games. Expect Krys Barch to stay in the lineup if Huberdeau can't play.
Harding stopped 26 of 27 shots in Saturday's shootout victory against the Avalanche. Harding continues to dominate the NHL - he has won four of his last five starts with a 1.38 GAA and .949 SV%. Harding has a tough matchup with the Canucks in town, but his 13-1-0, 1.25 GAA and .945 SV% at home says he is a must-start.
Jones stopped 37 of 39 shots in a win over the Senators on Saturday afternoon. It was an easy outing for Jones who was given a 2-0 cushion in less than five minutes and was up 3-0 after one period. He is expected to go tonight with the Oilers coming to town. He will look to start his NHL career 6-0-0 after winning the first five with a 0.99 GAA and .967 SV%.
Raanta stopped 21 of 22 shots in a win over the Kings in Chicago on Sunday. It was a great bounce-back game for Raanta who was shelled by the Maple Leafs on Saturday. He is expected to get the start tonight in Nashville. He is 3-1-0 with a 2.93 GAA and .897 SV% on the road.
Stempniak has failed to record a point and is a minus-5 in his last five games. Stempniak is an ugly minus-17 in 26 games and will likely sake a seat tonight against the Bruins.
