Pickard, 22, was the Avs second round pick (49th overall) in 2010. He has never made and NHL appearance but has 94 games of AHL experience. He is 1-1-0 with a 1.52 GAA and .952 SV% in two starts with Lake Erie this season.
Skinner skated for the second straight day, but will not play tonight vs. the Rangers. After tonight, the Hurricanes are of until Tuesday, so they are electing to give their young star four extra days to rest before he returns to the lineup.
Typically a player who is available for the evening's game will take part in line rushes with the line that he will play with that night, with Skinner not taking part, it suggests he is not ready to return to the lineup on Thursday. Expect an update following the morning skate.
Nugent-Hopkins skated on Tuesday but missed yesterday's game against the Kings and will not play tonight vs. the Coyotes. However, it is a positive sign that he has skated two days in a row, so consider him day-to-day.
Murray is nearing his season debut, but head coach Todd Richards said that penciling him for Friday might be "premature". Richards said he has his fingers crossed for Murray to be ready sooner than later, but “it might be pushing it” to suggest Friday as a possibility. Regardless, Murray continues to make progress and it is a long season. If not Friday, Murray could be back Saturday.
Skinner was a full participant in Hurricanes practice this morning and skated on the third line with Brad Malone and Patrick Brown. He will probably take part in the morning skate and the Hurricanes will see how he feels before deciding whether or not he will play against the Rangers.
Skinner is a full participant in Hurricanes practice on Wednesday, which means he should be available to play on Thursday against the Rangers. Monitor his status later this afternoon or tomorrow during the morning skate for confirmation that he will play.
Smith gave up six goals on 27 shots to the Jets in the season opener. He took a seat while Devan Dubnyk won against the Kings on Saturday, but the Coyotes will turn to Smith tonight vs. the Oilers. The Oilers have yet to get into the win column and are on the tail-end of a back-to-back, so Smith should be able to bounce-back tonight.
Nurse, 19, was the seventh overall pick in the 2013 NHL Draft. He will replace Jeff Petry in the Oilers lineup tonight and likely skate with Andrew Ference. He had 13 goals and 37 assists (50 points) in 64 games in the OHL last season.
Nugent-Hopkins was reportedly injured on a hit in the Vancouver game on Saturday. He won't play tonight and should be considered questionable for tomorrow's game. Mark Arcobello will centre the top line with RNH out.
RNH missed practice on Monday with an undisclosed and is not practicing on any particular line this morning, which would suggest he is not playing tonight. Mark Arcobello is skating in his spot on the top-line, so if RNH can't go expect that the be the case tonight. We will get an update following the skate.
This is the first time that Skinner has joined his teammates for a practice since suffering a concussion in the preseason. He will not play tonight, but is targeting Thursday for a return. Monitor his status leading up to Thursday's contest.
Skinner has not played this season, but the Hurricanes expect him to be on the ice with the team on Tuesday and possibly make his season debut on Thursday. Eric Staal was injured over the weekend, so getting Skinner back in the lineup will be huge for the Hurricanes.
Murray has yet to play this season, but he has practiced everyday for the last week, which is a great sign that he is nearing his season debut. Murray is a tremendous offensive talent and will help bolster a Blue Jackets power-play that is working at 12.5% through two games.
Griffith, 21, was a fifth round pick (131st overall) in 2012. He had 50 points (20G / 30A) in 69 games with Providence last year. Expect him to suit up on the Bruins fourth line on Monday.
The Jets originally announced that he will miss at least two games, but now they will reevaluate him in two weeks and see where he is at. Head coach Paul Maurice felt like this was good news considering how serious they thought the injury originally was. Expect Dustin Byfuglien to continue to play a bigger role in Kane's absence.
Smith allowed six goals on 27 shots in a 6-2 loss to the Jets on opening night. It was not a great start for Smith and it will not be easy for him to get back on track tonight against a Sharks team coming off of a huge opening night win over the Kings.
Kane was injured in his third shift on Thursday night after a collision with linemate Mark Scheifele. Kane underwent an MRI today, but there is no report as to exactly how long he will be out. The fact that they are only ruling him out for two games is an encouraging sign that the injury is not crazy serious, but expect the Jets to release a timetable over the weekend--they likely need to see how his knee responds, before they have a true idea of the severity.
Murray still remains without a target date for his return, but says he feels like he is getting closer and closer with each passing day. Murray is a dynamic offensive talent on the blueline and will bolster a Blue Jackets powerplay that went 1/4 on Thursday.
Kane last just thee shifts in the Jets season opener vs. the Coyotes. He totalled just 1:24 of ice-time before retiring to the dressing room for the night. Kane missed 18 games with a variety of injuries last season; one of which was a hand infection that cost him six games. Winnipeg is back in action on Saturday, expect an update on Kane on Friday morning.
