Head coach Alain Vigneault said the Kreider is day-to-day. It doesn't sound like he will return tonight in a crucial game for the Rangers. Kreider has not played since March 24th because of a broken hand.
Orpik has missed the late five games with the lower-body ailment, but may be back in the Pens lineup tonight. If he is able to play, we will not find out until pre-game warmups, and we expect Robert Bortuzzo to come out of the lineup. Orpik has one goal, one assist and plus-5 rating in four games this postseason.
Fleury stopped all 35 shots that he faced in a 2-0 win in game 3. That marks back-to-back shutouts for the Pens netminder. He is the only goalie in Penguins' franchise history to post a shutout in two consecutive playoff games. He enters play tonight, 2-1 with a 0.96 GAA and a .964 SV% in the second round.
Rask allowed three goals on 28 shots in a 5-3 win over the Habs in game 2. The Bruins looked like they were going to go down 2-0 heading to Montreal, but they scored four unanswered in the final 10 minutes of the third period to send it back to Quebec knotted up a ones. Rask holds a 2-0 record with a 0.90 GAA and .967 SV% on the road this postseason. There was a lot of chirping between the Habs and Bruins prior to tonight, so game 3 should be a dandy.
Ballard has not played since March 17th, but judging by the morning skate, it looks like he will slide into the lineup for Prosser. Ballard had nine points (2G / 7A) and was a minus-7 in 45 games this season. Expect him to be paired with Clayton Stoner as the third pairing.
Bourque missed Monday's practice with the flu, but was on the ice for today's morning skate and head coach Michel Therrien confirmed that Bourque will be in the lineup for game 3 tonight. Bourque is expected to skate with Lars Eller and Brian Gionta and he leads the Habs in postseason goals with 4.
The Wild have not seen the offensive production they were expecting out of Moulson when they acquired him from Buffalo at the trade deadline. He had 13 points (6G / 7A) in 20 games in the regular season, but has registered just one goal and one assist in nine postseason games. Nino Niederreiter will take his spot on the top-line with Mikko Koivu and Charlie Coyle.
Niederreiter has had himself a strong postseason, and he will be rewarded tonight as he swaps places with Matt Moulson. Nino has two goals and two assists while averaging just 13:16 in the first nine games of the playoffs.
Price surrendered four goals on 34 shots in a the 5-3 loss in game 2. With 10 minutes left in the game the Habs were up 3-1, but three unanswered goals in 5:32 gave the Bruins a 4-3 edge, that they added an empty netter to. Despite the loss, Price played very well again, but the Habs were playing very conservatively in the third and it cost them. The series now shifts back to Montreal, where Price is 2-0 with a 2.50 GAA and .904 SV% this postseason.
Crawford stopped 18 of 19 shots in the Hawks' 4-1 win in game 2. Crawford was not nearly as busy as he was in game 1, resulting in a relatively easy win for the 29-year-old. He was won his last six straight starts, something that is not easy to do in the NHL playoffs. A seventh straight win tonight, would give Chicago a 3-0 stranglehold on the series, and I like their chances given they have outscored the Wild 9-3 so far.
Bryzgalov allowed three goals on 21 shots in a 4-1 loss in game 2. Tonight will mark Bryzgalov's first playoff start in Minnesota. His previous four starts were in Colorado and Chicago, so maybe coming home will help his ailing 3.89 GAA and .830 SV%. In five appearances with the Wild at Xcel Energy Centre, Bryz was 2-2-1 with a 2.89 GAA and .872 SV%. A loss tonight would put the Wild in an extremely deep hole. Down 3-0 to the defending Champs seems nearly impossible to come back from.
Lundqvist allowed two goals on 34 shots in a 3-0 loss in game 2 last night. Lundqivst played great, but looked exhausted towards the end of the game. The Rangers are averaging 1.75 goals in their last four games, so Lundqvist has been forced to be excellent. King Henrik has gone 3-1 with a 1.75 GAA and .924 SV% at Madison Square Garden in the playoffs.
Fleury stopped all 22 shots that he faced in last night's 3-0 win to knot the series up at 1-1. Fleury set a Penguins' franchise record with his seventh career playoff shutout. Fleury has gone 2-1 with a 3.28 GAA and .892 SV% in three postseason starts on the road. He will look to improve on those numbers tonight, and get the Penguins a 2-1 series lead.
Quick stopped 33 of 35 shots in the Kings 3-2 OT win in Game 1. The Kings were seven seconds away from being down 1-0, but Marian Gaborik played hero as he tied it up with just seconds left and also tallied the OT-winner. Quick has won five in a row and now carries a 2.89 GAA and .917 SV% in eight postseason starts. He will look to steal game 2 and head back to Los Angeles with a 2-0 series lead.
Schultz last NHL game was on March 31st, 2013. He spent the entire season with Manchester (AHL), where he had two goals and 11 assists (13 points) in 67 games. Schultz has one assist in 29 career playoff games. He will be paired with Slava Voynov.
Regehr left game 1 midway through the first period and did not return. Regehr was knocked into his own net by Ducks' forward Teemu Selanne and tried to stay in the game, but only lasted one more shift before retiring to the dressing room. Jeff Schultz will slide into the lineup and pair with Slava Voynov in game 2. There is no word on how serious Regehr's injury is.
Shaw will miss his second straight game after suffering a lower-body injury in game 1. Head coach Joel Quenneville said it is still possible for Shaw to join the team and play in game 4, but he should be considered questionable at this point.
Hiller allowed three goals on 36 shots in a 3-2 OT loss to the Kings in game 1. With eight seconds left the Ducks were up 2-1, but Marian Gaborik tied it up at 19:53 of the third and then finished it 12:07 into OT. Hiller played very well in his first 2014 postseason start, but he will need to make that a trend because L.A has one of the best goalies in the world in the other crease.
Prust skated as an extra in the Habs practice on Monday. It looks like the Canadiens will insert Ryan White into the lineup with Prust coming out. Prust has one assist and an EVEN rating in six games this postseason.
Bourque leads the Canadiens with four goals through the first six postseason games, but an illness could keep him out of the lineup for game 3 on Tuesday. Monitor his status during tomorrow's morning skate.
