The Coyotes are one of the last teams to get their 2016-17 season underway, but it will start tonight vs. a Flyers team on the tail-end of a back-to-back. To no one’s surprise, Smith will start their season opener and he is hoping for a much healthy season this year. Smith was limited to 32 starts last year and went 15-13-2 with a 2.63 GAA and .916 SV%.
The oft-injured Blue Jackets’ defenseman was injured while blocking a shot in the season opener and likely won’t play vs. the Sharks on Saturday. With Scott Harrington being sent on a conditioning stint, expect Dalton Prout to replace Murray in the lineup.
Griffith, 23, was a fifth round pick (131st overall) in 2012 and developed into a high-end AHLer scorer, but never found his way with Boston. Griffith is familiar with Maple Leafs’ assistant GM Mark Hunter from his time with the London Knights. Griffith had 77 points (24G / 53A) in 57 games with Providence (AHL) last season and has a chance to crack the Maple Leafs’ bottom-6 following this claim.
Lazar is recovering from mono and on Monday he was cleared for contact. The Senators believe the fastest way for him to get ready to play in the NHL is to go back to Binghamton. With Lazar going back, Tom Pyatt and Phil Varone will fill in on the third line.
Janmark is reportedly dealing with Osteochondritis dissecans and will undergo surgery on Friday afternoon. The Stars have been ravaged by injuries in training camp and this is a big loss for them. Janmark was expected to play an expanded role early in the season because Cody Eakin is currently sidelined with a knee injury of his own. Janmark may miss the entire season.
Pickard, 24, is likely the goalie of the future in Colorado and he signs a two-year “bridge” deal while Semyon Varlamov is still in town. The two-year deal will keep Pickard as a restricted free agent so the Avalanche have control of him when this contract expires. He was 7-6-1 with a 2.56 GAA and .922 SV% with the Avalanche last season and carries a career 2.46 GAA and .927 SV% in 26 career NHL starts.
Malone, 27, is an NHL fourth liner. He had just six points and 75 PIMS in 57 games last season and has just 30 points in 176 career NHL games. Malone will likely replace Michael Latta, who signed with the Kings.
Demers was acquired mid-season in 2014-15, so 2015-16 was his first full season with the Stars. He missed 20 games, but still picked up 23 points (7G / 16A) in 62 games. He is a solid two-way defenseman who solidifies the Panthers’ second pairing and should look good as the third best defenseman on the team behind Aaron Ekblad and Keith Yandle.
There is no word whether or not Lazar is battling an injury or if he is a healthy scratch. Lazar will be replaced by Phil Varone.
Kapanen has appeared in the last five games, but will return to the Marlies, so he can play on Friday. The 19 year old has not recorded a point in nine NHL games, but has 25 points (9G / 16A) in 41 AHL games.
Pickard stopped 23 of 24 shots after replacing Semyon Varlamov in Colorado’s loss to the Blues on Sunday. Pickard has only started 12 games this season, but has appeared in seven other games—overall he is 7-5-1 with a 2.53 GAA, .923 SV% and one shutout. He’ll be in tough against a Stars team that has won seven of their last nine while averaging 3.44 goals per game.
Pickard stopped 23 of 24 shots after replacing Semyon Varlamov in Colorado’s loss to the Blues on Sunday. Pickard has only started 12 games this season, but has appeared in seven other games—overall he is 7-5-1 with a 2.53 GAA, .923 SV% and one shutout. He’ll be in tough against a Stars team that has won seven of their last nine while averaging 3.44 goals per game.
Koekkoek played just 12:08 TOI on Tuesday and he swaps places with Matt Taormina, who will take his spot tonight. Koekkoek heads back to Syracuse where he has 15 points (5G / 10A) in 55 games.
Smith allowed five goals on 26 shots in the Coyotes loss in St. Louis on Monday. Louis Domingue started on Tuesday, but they’ll go back to Smith tonight in Nashville. Smith has gone 5-3-0 with a 1.78 GAA, .946 SV% and two shutouts in eight games since returning to the crease in mid-March. Tonight he faces a Predators team that has lost four of their last five games.
Griffith had just two shots on goal while averaging 8:13 TOI in two games during his call-up. The 23-year-old returns to Providence, where he is tied for second in the AHL in scoring with 67 points (22G / 45A) in 51 games. His return to the AHL means that Jimmy Hayes will get back into the lineup on Tuesday.
Smith stopped all 31 shots that he faced in the Coyotes’ shutout win over the Capitals on Saturday. Smith has won three of his last four starts while posting a 1.50 GAA, .953 SV% and one shutout. In his first start against the Blues, Smith allowed three goals on 21 shots in a 4-1 loss. St. Louis has won five of their last six.
