Johnson missed Monday’s practice with the undisclosed injury that he suffered in Saturday’s preseason game, but head coach Jon Cooper is “hopeful” that he will play on Thursday. Monitor Johnson’s status over the next few days, but the sudden return of Brayden Point decreases Johnson’s fantasy value.
Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy said that Rask is pencilled in for 50-to-55 starts this season and that will start in Dallas on Thursday. Rask was 27-13-5 with a 2.48 GAA, .912 SV% and four shutouts in 46 games last season, including going 1-0-1 with a 0.95 GAA and .968 SV% in two games vs. Dallas.
Krejci suffered a lower-body injury in last Monday’s preseason game but skated lightly on Saturday. It was a step in the right direction for the veteran centre and head coach Bruce Cassidy believes Krejci will be good to go for Opening Night (Thursday @ Dallas). Krejci is set to centre the Bruins second-line with Jake DeBrusk and Karson Kuhlman on his wings.
Krejci left Monday’s preseason game following a collision with Shayne Gostisbehere and did not return or practice on Tuesday. Head coach Bruce Cassidy said that he will be “re-evaluated on Wednesday” and added that they are going to “take [their] time with it.” With the Bruins season set to start in just over one week, Krejci’s status for the season-opener is in jeopardy.
Pitlick recently joined Flyers practice in a non-contact capacity but his status for the season opener remains cloudy. If Pitlick is out, look for Carsen Twarnyski to make the team and start the year on the Flyers fourth-line.
Through two seasons, McAvoy’s production has been solid, averaging 10 goals and 32 assists per 82-games—the issue is that he’s played in just 71.3 percent of the games. McAvoy is somewhat limited because of Torey Krug’s role on the top PP-unit, but he has 40-point upside if he can stay healthy in 2020.
Zacha set a new career-high in goals (13) while matching his career-high in points (25) while playing just 61 games last season. Zacha is a player that the Devils use in all situations. He was third among New Jersey forwards in SH TOI/gm (2:11), ninth in PP TOI/gm (1:41) and 11th in EV TOI/gm (12:13).
Lettieri spent most of the 2019 season in the AHL, ranking fourth among Hartford skaters with 48 points (23G / 25A) in 48 games. He played sparingly with the Rangers, picking up just three points (1G / 2A) in 27 games. The Rangers added some big names up front this offseason, likely pushing Lettieri back to the AHL to start 2020.
With Sergei Bobrovsky likely heading to Florida, Korpisalo becomes the No.1 netminder in Columbus with Elvis Merzilkins likely serving as his backup. Korpisalo will need to be better than he was in 2018-19, when he ranked 38th in the NHL in GAA (2.95) and tied for 48th in SV% (.897).
Pitlick has one-year left on his three-year contract that carries a $1.0M cap-hit. During his second season with the Stars, Pitlick scored eight goals with four assists (12 points) in 47 games. He will replace Hartman in the Flyers’ bottom-6.
Rask allowed two goals on 29 shots in the Bruins 7-2 win over the Blues in Game 3. Rask made some big stops early in the game to allow the Bruins to take an early lead and they poured it on from there. Rask has now won nine of his last 10 playoffs starts while posting a sparkling 1.59 GAA, .949 SV% and two shutouts.
McAvoy was visibly in pain after blocking a shot with a few minutes left in Game 3 but head coach Bruce Cassidy said his top-pairing defenseman is “fine” and will be in the lineup for Game 4. The 21-year-old has one goal on four shots in the series and has tallied eight points (2G / 6A) in 19 postseason games.
Viel was an undrafted free-agent who spent the season with the San Jose Barracuda (AHL), where he had 11 goals and 11 assists (22 points) in 68 games. Viel spent five years in the QMJHL, where he had 115 goals and 81 assists (196 points) in 259 games.
Rask stopped all 24 shots that he faced to complete the sweep of the Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Finals and finished the series allowing just five goals on 114 shots (.956 SV%). Entering the Stanley Cup Finals, Rask has posted a stellar .942 SV% in the postseason and is 6-3 with a 2.01 GAA and .931 SV% at the TD Garden. The 32-year-old was 1-0-1 with a 1.44 GAA and .949 SV% in two games vs. the Blues in the regular season.
