NHL Hockey Player News

Smith has been sidelined since December 21st with a lower-body injury he suffered while blocking a shot. He'll replace Mark Jankowski, who is out week-to-week, on the Nashville fourth line.

The Predators are riding a three-game winning streak and will likely roll with Saros between the pipes on Tuesday against the San Jose Sharks. Saros was stellar in his most recent outing, saving 27 of 29 shots (.931 SV%) in a 6-2 win over the Minnesota Wild. The 29-year-old netminder has a 2.72 GAA and .904 SV% in 35 games this season (11-18-6). The Predators enter Tuesday's contest as humungous -372 home favorites against a Sharks squad outscored 14-5 during a three-game losing skid (0-3-0).

On the tail end of a back-to-back, a night after losing 5-3 to the Toronto Maple Leafs, Tampa Bay will likely switch to Vasilevskiy between the pipes. Vasilevskiy was tremendous in his most recent outing, saving 39 of 40 shots (.975 SV%) in a 5-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings. The 30-year-old netminder has a 2.35 GAA and .915 SV% in 35 games this season (20-13-2). Tampa Bay enters Tuesday's contest as -141 road favorites against a Montreal Canadiens squad with points in seven of their last eight games (6-1-1).

Thrun is battling an undisclosed ailment and his status for Tuesday's game against the Nashville Predators is up in the air. The 23-year-old defenseman has been a regular on San Jose's blue line this season, tallying eight points (0G / 8A) in 40 games this season.

Nikolai Kovalenko (upper body) will make his return from a five-game absence, resulting in Grundstrom being a healthy scratch. The 27-year-old Grundstrom has five points (1G / 4A) in 33 games this season.

Kovalenko has not played since suffering an upper-body injury on January 7th, missing five straight, but will re-enter the lineup on Tuesday against the Nashville Predators. The 25-year-old Kovalenko has 14 points (5G / 9A) in 40 games this season. Carl Grundstrom will be a healthy scratch to accommodate Kovalenko's return.

The Sharks have lost three straight and attempt to change their fortunes on Tuesday against the Nashville Predators, turning to Georgiev between the pipes. Georgiev allowed four goals on 31 shots (.871 SV%) in his most recent outing, a 4-1 loss to the New York Islanders. The 28-year-old netminder has a 3.56 GAA and .888 SV% in 10 games with the Sharks (2-8-0). The Sharks enter Tuesday's contest as significant +327 road underdogs against a Predators club riding a three-game winning streak.

Howden had an impressive outing in Monday's 5-4 shootout loss to the St. Louis Blues, recording one goal, five shots, and one hit in 13:29 time-on-ice, but is battling an illness, making his status uncertain for Thursday's rematch. The 26-year-old Howden is averaging 15:10 time-on-ice and has 22 points (16G / 6A) in 47 games.

Schwindt played only 6:13 time-on-ice in Saturday's 5-3 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks and has been sidelined since due to a lower-body injury. The 23-year-old has seven points (0G / 7A) in 38 games this season. Alexander Holtz drew into the lineup as Schwindt's replacement on Monday.

Zucker had a strong performance in yesterday's 6-4 loss to the Seattle Kraken, tallying two points (1G / 1A), but his status for Tuesday's match against the Vancouver Canucks is up in the air due to an illness. The 33-year-old Zucker has only topped 48 points once in his career, a 67-point campaign (33G / 31A) in the 2017-18 season as a member of the Minnesota Wild, but is well on pace to do so this season. He has 35 points (16G / 19A) in 46 games.

Luukkonen was battling an undisclosed injury that prevented him from suiting up in yesterday's 6-4 loss to the Seattle Kraken. Still, he will return to the crease on Tuesday against the Vancouver Canucks. The 25-year-old Luukkonen struggled in his most recent outing, allowing four goals on 18 shots (.778 SV%) in a 5-2 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins. He has a 3.02 GAA and .896 SV% in 33 appearances this season (14-14-4). The Sabres enter Tuesday's contest as +160 road underdogs against a Canucks squad coming off a 3-2 win over the Edmonton Oilers.

The Panthers shut out the Anaheim Ducks 3-0 with Spencer Knight between the pipes on Saturday, but the team will switch to Bobrovsky in a rematch on Tuesday. Bobrovsky has struggled lately, allowing four goals in three straight (0-2-1), posting an ugly .806 SV%. The 36-year-old netminder has a 2.86 GAA and .896 SV% in 31 games this season (18-11-2). The Panthers enter Tuesday's contest as sizeable -256 road favorites against a Ducks squad amid a three-game losing skid (0-2-1).

The Oilers' four-game winning streak snapped in their most recent outing when Skinner allowed three goals on 27 shots (.889 SV%) in a 3-2 loss to the Vancouver Canucks. The 26-year-old Skinner will likely return to the crease on Tuesday against the Washington Capitals, looking to build on his 2.70 GAA and .901 SV% through 31 games this season (18-10-3). The Oilers are without Connor McDavid (suspension) and enter Tuesday's contest as -147 home favorites against a red-hot Washington Capitals team outscoring their opposition 12-2 in their last four games (4-0-0).

Zegras has not played since December 4th, missing 22 straight games due to a knee injury and rehabilitation from meniscus surgery. Before his injury, he averaged 16:57 time-on-ice and had 10 points (4G / 6A) in 24 games. The 23-year-old will likely play on a line with Leo Carlsson and Alex Killorn.

With Tyler Myers serving the first game of his three-game suspension, Friedman will enter the lineup for the Canucks. Friedman has 91 games of NHL experience, including three games with Vancouver this season, but has primarily played at the AHL level the past several seasons. The 29-year-old defenseman has six points (1G / 5A) in 20 games with the Abbotsford Canucks (AHL) this season.

Brett Leason will re-enter the lineup on Tuesday against the Florida Panthers, sending Johnston to the press box as a healthy scratch. The 30-year-old Johnston is averaging 8:38 time-on-ice and has four points (1G / 3A) in 32 games this season.

Ross Johnston will be a healthy scratch on Tuesday against the Florida Panthers, allowing Leason to re-enter the lineup. The 25-year-old Leason is averaging 13:52 time-on-ice and has 12 points (5G / 7A) in 37 games this season.

The Ducks have been outscored 10-3 in their last three games (0-2-1) and will turn to Dostal between the pipes on Tuesday against the Florida Panthers. Dostal has played well lately, saving 67 of 72 shots (.931 SV%) in his last two games (1-0-1). The Czech netminder has a 2.88 GAA and .910 SV% in 27 games this season (11-12-4). The Ducks enter Tuesday's contest as +228 home underdogs against a Panthers squad that defeated them 3-0 on Saturday.