Blackwood surrendered four goals on 30 shots in the Devils' loss to the Golden Knights on Tuesday. In his last six outings, Blackwood has gone 1-4-0 while posting a horrible 4.12 GAA and. 878 SV%. Tonight he takes on a Blackhawks team that played last night and come in having lost six of their last eight (2-5-1) while scoring 2.13 goals per game.
O'Connor played in seven straight games, posting one goal on eight shots (12.5 SH%) with a plus-3 rating and two PIMS. HIs return to the AHL bodes well for Gabriel Landeskog, who is a game-time decision for Thursday's game.
Landeskog has been sidelined by a lower-body injury since October 26th but all signs are pointing towards him playing Thursday in Montreal. Landeskog, who had three goals and four assists in 11 games before getting hurt, will likely be back on the top-line with Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen.
Kamenev is day-to-day with an illness, which also makes him questionable to play Thursday in Montreal. Matt Calvert will return to the lineup on Wednesday and replace Kamenev.
The Avalanche announced that they expect Langeskog to return during their three-game road-trip but it won't be Wednesday. Landeskog was on the ice for the morning skate, so it's entirely possible he will play in the second-half of the back-to-back in Montreal.
Blackwood allowed two goals on 17 shots after replacing Louis Domingue in last night's blowout loss in Buffalo. On the tail-end of a back-to-back, Blackwood will make his 18th start of the season. The 22-year-old has gone 3-4-3 with a 2.74 GAA and .895 SV% on home-ice this season so it'd be wise to avoid him with the Golden Knights in town.
Roy was in the Golden Knights lineup last night but gets sent back to the AHL after the team acquired Chandler Stephenson from Washington.
Cody Eakin is expected to miss at least a couple of weeks with an upper-body injury, so Roy comes back up from the AHL. He has split his first two months between the two leagues, compiling six points (2G / 4A) in 11 AHL games and three points (1G / 2A) in six NHL contests. He is expected to centre the fourth line with Tomas Nosek and Ryan Reaves on his wings on Monday.
Kulak sat as a healthy scratch on Saturday but will draw in for the injured Victor Mete on Sunday. Kulak will likely skate with Victor Olofsson on the third-pairing.
Kulak played on Thursday but will be a healthy scratch for the third time in four games on Saturday. With Kulak out, Cale Fleury will draw back into the lineup.
Blackwood allowed four goals on 48 shots in the Devils' win in Montreal on Thursday. Blackwood has allowed three-plus goals in four straight starts and is now 6-4-1 with a 3.04 GAA and .911 SV% in November. In his first start against the Rangers, Blackwood stopped 29 of 31 shots in a 5-2 win (Oct.17).
Blackwood surrendered five goals on 28 shots in the Devils loss to the Bruins on Tuesday. Blackwood has gone 5-3-1 with a 2.73 GAA and .012 SV% in nine starts this month. Tonight he faces the Penguins for the second time this season--he stopped 38 of 39 shots in a 2-1 win in their first meeting.
Francouz has missed the last two games but will serve as Philipp Grubauer's backup on Tuesday. Colorado will get both of their goalies back tonight, but look for Francouz to start soon to ensure that Grubauer eases back into things.
