Ward allowed two goals on 20 shots in the Hurricanes 5-2 win over the Sabres on Thursday. It looks like Ward will make his seventh start in the Hurricanes last eight games—he is 2-4-0 with a 2.03 GAA and .927 SV% in his last six.
Eriksson missed Thursday’s game with a hand injury that he suffered on Wednesday vs. the Penguins. He is back in the lineup on the Bruins third line with Chris Kelly and Carl Soderberg. He has six goals and six assists (12 points) in his last 15 games.
Rask gave up two goals on 39 shots in the Bruins 3-2 OT win over the Penguins on Wednesday. He was the backup on Thursday, but will play today in Philadelphia. Despite posting a 1.68 GAA and .945 SV%, Rask is only 1-0-3 in afternoon games this season.
Smith made 34 saves on 35 shots in the Coyotes win over the Jets on Thursday. It was Smith’s best game of the season and it earned him a fourth start start tonight with the Senators in town. Smith is 5-7-2 with a 3.48 GAA and .887 SV% at Gila River Arena this season.
Howard allowed two goals on 23 shots in the Red Wings win in Edmonton on Tuesday. He was given Wednesday night off, but he will be back between the pipes tonight in Washington. He has won three of five with a 2.19 GAA and .919 SV%.
Eriksson, who missed Thursday’s game with a hand injury, will take part in warmups and make a decision on whether he will be available prior to puck-drop. Monitor his status throughout warmups.
Clutterbuck missed Friday’s game, but will be back in the lineup tonight vs. the Blue Jackets. Clutterbuck will skate on the fourth line.
Grabovski left Friday’s games with a lower-body injury and did not return. Grabo had been skating on the Islanders top-line, but will be replaced by Josh Bailey on that line. Grabovski is listed as day-to-day.
Johnson allowed three goals on 21 shots in the Islanders loss to the Canadiens on December 23rd. Jaroslav Halak has started the last eight games, but Johnson will start tonight in Columbus. Johnson has gone 3-4-0 with a 3.64 GAA and .869 SV% in seven road starts.
Mason stopped 26 of 28 shots in the Flyers OT win over Capitals on Thursday. He has won each of his last two starts while stopping 67 of 70 shots (.957 SV%). Mason has gone 2-1-0 with a 1.67 GAA and .943 SV% in afternoon starts this season.
In advance of tonight’s game in Montreal, the Penguins moved Kunitz back onto the top-line with Sidney Crosby and David Perron. Kunitz has 12 goals and 13 assists (25 points) in 32 games this season.
Shore, 23, was a second round pick (44th overall) in 2009. Shore has recorded nine goals and 21 assists (30 points) in 35 games with San Antonio (AHL) this season. He will report to Adirondack.
Knight, 24, was a fifth round pick (135th overall) in 2009. He has registered eight goals and four assists (12 points) in 22 games with Adirondack. He heads the San Antonio (AHL) where he will play with former University of North Dakota teammate Rocco Grimaldi.
Schmidt, 23, registered three assists in a career-high 33 games with Washington this season. He had been a healthy scratch in five of the last six games.
Oleksy has skated in 33 games with the Hershey Bears (AHL) this season, earning nine points (four goals, five assists) and 80 penalty minutes. Oleksy has registered 19 points (three goals, 16 assists) and 86 penalty minutes in 61 career games with the Capitals.
Grigorenko had one goal and one assist in 12 games during his recall. He heads back to Rochester where he has seven goals and 15 assists (22 points) in 30 games.
Varone, 24, scored two goals on Thursday against the Hurricanes. Those were the only two points he registered in the three games during his recall.
Holtby gave up three goals on 33 shots in the Capitals overtime loss to the Flyers on Thursday. The loss snapped his three-game winning streak, but still wasn’t a bad outing for starting his second game in as many nights. In his first start vs. Detroit he allowed four goals on 24 shots in a 4-2 loss.
Anderson was pulled after allowing three goals on nine shots in the Senators 5-2 loss to Colorado on Thursday. It was a terrible outing for Andy, who will look to bounce back tonight in Arizona. He has gone 5-5-3 with a 2.84 GAA and .917 SV% in 13 starts against Western Conference teams this season.
Raanta made 11 saves on 12 shots after replacing Corey Crawford in the Blackhawks loss to the Jets on December 23rd. With Crawford making 42 saves last night and the easy matchup, the Hawks will give Raanta his first start since December 21st. He is 6-2-0 with a 1.73 GAA and .944 SV% and makes for a great spot-start tonight. But add him at your own risk, because he is not confirmed.
