Ballard re-entered the Canucks lineup on Tuesday but suffered a charley-horse that will cause him to miss tonight's game vs. Columbus. Andrew Alberts will enter the lineup for the injured Ballard.
Bieksa (groin) will miss his third straight game tonight when the Canucks play the Blue Jackets. Consider him day-to-day.
Richards has ruled out a concussion and says that he is just dealing with general body soreness. He will be out tonight when the Rangers face the Islanders. Consider Richards as day-to-day for now.
No surprise that Fleury is starting because he played well last time he faced Philadelphia. He stopped 26 out of 27 shots he faced in a winning effort, compared to the six goals Vokoun allowed in his start vs. the Flyers. It still is not an ideal matchup for Fleury but he has been great this season so it would be tough to bench him.
Markstrom will make his second consecutive start since Jose Theodore got hurt. He played very well in his last outing, allowing one goal on 31 shots vs. Winnipeg. He has a tougher test tonight against a Washington team that has won seven on their last 10 games.
Lindback has been great at home this season with six of his eight wins coming at Tampa Bay Times Forum. He has a good matchup against a Jets team starting their backup Al Montoya. Lindback should be able to record the win in this one.
Price has allowed 12 goals in his last two starts. It won't be an easy game tonight for Price as he will play the Carolina Hurricanes and their red-hot first line of Eric Staal, Alex Semin and Jiri Tlusty who have combined for nine goals and 15 assists in their last four games.
Schneider has been good on the road so far this season, posting a 3-1-1 record, 2.17 GAA and .926 SV%. He has a good chance to improve on those numbers tonight against a weak Blue Jackets team. Start Schneider with confidence.
Lundqvist is off to a good start in March with a 2-0-0, 1.92 GAA and .927 SV%. He faces an Islanders team tonight that he beat last time out, stopping 27 of 28 shots in the process. It is a good matchup for 'King Henrik' as he looks to move to 3-0-0 in March.
Enroth is 0-2-0 with a 4.74 GAA and .847 SV% this season. Those are not numbers that instill confidence to use him as a fantasy starter. However he has a good matchup vs. Johan Hedberg and the Devils who have lost six in a row.
This will be Montoya's first start since returning from injury. He is 2-0-0 with a 2.74 GAA and .889 SV% in two starts this season. He has a tough matchup vs. the Lightning who's 3.52 goals per game leads the NHL.
Read was expected to be out 5-6 weeks with torn rib cage muscles, but is has only been two weeks since he's suffered the injury. Read is way ahead of schedule but it appears as if he will be in the lineup tonight despite the discomfort he feels while shooting. However nothing has been confirmed so monitor his status throughout the afternoon.
Howard is off to a great start in March, he is 1-0-1 with a 0.96 GAA and .971 SV%, but could have had two shutouts in those two games but late third period breakdowns by the Red Wings ruined that for Howard's fantasy owners. Last time he faced Edmonton he stopped 23 of the 24 shots he faced in a 2-1 Wings win. Start Howie with confidence tonight.
Bryzgalov leads the league in starts and is tied for the lead with 11 wins, however he is also third in losses (10). Bryzgalov doesn't have great numbers this season, he is 25th in the NHL with a 2.68 GAA and his .903 SV% is 29th in the league. He has a tough matchup vs. Pittsburgh tonight. He is 1-1-0 with a 3.54 GAA and .879 SV% vs. the Penguins this season.
Nikitin missed one game with a neck injury but he will return to the lineup tonight when Columbus faces Vancouver. The Blue Jackets have been banged up all season so it is good news that Nikitin was able to make a quick recovery and didn't miss an extended period of time.
Dubinsky won't be in the lineup tonight but he is close to a return and could be back this weekend. Dubinsky has one goal and seven assists in 15 games this season.
Khudobin does not start often but when he does he takes advantage of the opportunity. He is 3-1-0 with a 2.52 GAA and .906 SV% in his four starts this season. He has a decent matchup vs. the Maple Leafs who are playing their third game in four days.
The Blues’ save percentage, No. 1 in the NHL last season at .929, has fallen to No. 30 (.870) this year. With the recent goalie struggles the Blues have turned to rookie Jake Allen to get them back on track. Allen started four games while Halak was hurt and Elliott was struggling going 3-1-0 with a 2.62 GAA and .895 SV%. He has a solid matchup vs. the Coyotes tonight.
The Rangers have said “the injury has improved significantly and both doctors are optimistic that Marc will make a full recovery. Staal will be sidelined indefinitely.”
Nabokov has won two straight and four of his last six starts while posting a 2.61 GAA and .917 SV%. He has a tough matchup vs. the Rangers tonight, but a win would bring the Islanders to a tie with the Rangers for the 8th spot in the Eastern Conference.
