Loktionov wanted to be traded from Los Angeles so he could get a chance to play in the NHL... Well this is his shot he will play on the Devils top line with Kovalchuk and his former Windsor Spitfires teammate Adam Henrique. Loktionov has a goal and two assists in his last three games. He is a crafty player and could thrive on this top-line. Keep an eye on him a jump on him if he continues to play well.
Michalek already said he won't play tonight but he could return to the Senators lineup on Saturday afternoon vs. Philadelphia. Monitor his status prior to Saturday's game.
Anisimov made a quick recovery from what looked to be like a serious injury as he was taken off the ice on a stretcher last Thursday. Anisimov will play on a line with Calvert and Atkinson. He has four goals and two assists in 15 games this season.
With Kreider going back to the AHL this basically guarantees Rick Nash will be suiting up tonight.
Duchene will likely rejoin P.A. Parenteau and Jamie McGinn tonight. He is the Avs leading scorer so this is a big return for Colorado who take on Calgary tonight. Duchene only missed one game with a groin injury. He is playing 21+ minutes a game so he should have no problem getting on the stat sheet.
Niemi wasn't too busy in his last start stopping 25 of 27 in a shootout win over the Avalanche. Tonight the Sharks take on the Red Wings coming off of a crushing late loss to the Kings last night. This will mark Niemi's seventh straight start tonight however he's only won two of his last six. His 1.95 GAA and .930 SV% are great he just needs some help from the offense.
Backstrom has won two of his last with a 1.34 GAA and .947 SV%. Minnesota is a great defensive team and it helps Backstrom's fantasy value. He is a great #1 goalie fantasy option with Josh Harding out, and has a good matchup tonight vs. Phoenix. He will need to out play Mike Smith if he wants to record the win, both goalies are playing well right now.
Smith played well against a tough opponent stopping 29 of 31 in a winning effort against Vancouver on Tuesday. It looks at this point like Smith might start every game for the Coyotes. He is a workhorse and that is what you want as a fantasy owner, he has a tough matchup tonight vs. a strong defensive Wild team.
MacDonald has played well as a member of the Calgary Flames. He has won two of his last three with a 2.33 GAA and .920 SV%, the most important thing is he is giving the Flames a chance to win. He has a solid matchup tonight vs. Colorado however I'm sure he wishes Matt Duchene was not returning to the Avalanche lineup tonight.
Lehtonen will return to the Stars net tonight and will look to pick up where he left off before the injury. He was one of the NHL's hottest goalies at the time of the injury. He has a decent matchup tonight against an Edmonton team still trying to find their offense. However they have tons of skill and can pour it on at any time so be skeptical about Lehtonen tonight.
Niemi wasn't too busy in his last start stopping 25 of 27 in a shootout win over the Avalanche. Tonight the Sharks take on the Red Wings coming off of a crushing late loss to the Kings last night. This will mark Niemi's seventh straight start tonight however he's only won two of his last six. His 1.95 GAA and .930 SV% are great he just needs some help from the offense.
Reimer hasn't played since February 11th when he suffered a knee injury. He will be back between the pipes tonight when the Maple Leafs take on the Islanders. Reimer had been playing great before going down with the injury so he will look to pick up where he left off. This is a pretty good matchup for him as long as the Leafs can slow down New York's dynamic duo of John Tavares and Matt Moulson.
Varlamov played great stopping 39 of 41 shots he faced vs. San Jose on Tuesday but still lost in a shootout. He will face a weak Flames team tonight so he should make for a pretty good start. He sees a lot of rubber so his SV% will be good on most nights, it is his GAA that is worrisome.
Miller snapped his four game losing streak stopping 30 of 31 shots he faced vs. Tampa Bay. Miller has a good chance to make it two in a row tonight when the Sabres take on the Panthers. Millers numbers (2.83 GAA and .916 SV%) are solid he just needs his team to play better in front of him and the wins will come.
Ward has only won one of his last four starts. The Hurricanes have struggled to find offense lately, but get a big boost tonight having Jeff Skinner return to the lineup. They also have Jamie McBain and Tim Gleason returning to their blueline tonight which is a positive for Ward. He has a tough matchup tonight vs. the Penguins.
Hedberg has lost his last three starts and has not played well. In those three starts he's given up 14 goals resulting in a 4.75 GAA and .837 SV%. The Devils are a good team with Brodeur between the pipes but starting Hedberg in fantasy is risky.
Lehner was 18-10-2 with a 2.12 GAA and .938 SV% in the AHL this season and is 4-6-0 in his NHL career. This will be Lehner's first start this season and the matchup can't get any harder for the 21 year old. Ottawa takes on Tuukka Rask and the Bruins who are 12-2-2 this season. However Lehner did post a 32-save shutout vs. Boston last season.
This will be Pavelev's ninth consecutive start, and has won four of his last five starts. He will face the Devils tonight who he just beat on Sunday. Pavelec hasn't been a great fantasy option this season but the Jets are hot right now so he could be worth a start vs. a Devils team missing Martin Brodeur.
McDonagh will return to the Rangers blueline tonight after sitting out their last game. McDonagh has 32 points and was a +25 last season but has struggled to produce offensively this season. He only has two goals and three assists in 17 games this season. McDonagh will return to the Rangers top-pair with Daniel Girardi.
This would be huge for the Rangers who have struggled without Nash. The Rangers are 23rd in the NHL in scoring right now so Nash will need to step into the lineup and make an impact right away. He missed the Rangers last four games and had three goals and nine assists in 14 games before getting hurt.
