Nick Blankenburg will be a healthy scratch on Thursday, allowing Jiricek to return to the lineup after not playing on Tuesday. Tuesday was Jiricek's first time out of the lineup in 17 games. He has three points (0G / 3A) while averaging under 15 minutes of time-on-ice in his last two games.
Zuccarello has not played the last two games for Minnesota due to an upper-body injury and has been placed on the injured reserve, meaning he will be out of the lineup until after the Christmas break. Before his injury, Zuccarello had only one point (0G / 1A) in his last five games despite averaging nearly 18 minutes of ice time per game, receiving top-line and top powerplay deployment.
Hinostroza was reassigned to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the AHL on Tuesday but was immediately recalled on Wednesday. He played three consecutive games for Pittsburgh last week, averaging over 13 minutes per night, but was held off the score sheet. He has four points (2G / 2A) in five games this season with Wilkes-Barre Scranton.
Zuccarello missed the Wilds' game Monday vs. Pittsburgh and will remain out Tuesday against Boston as he is week-to-week with an upper-body injury. It is a massive loss for the Wild as the 36-year-old veteran right-winger has six goals, 22 assists, 74 SOG, 10 PIMs and a -3 plus/minus in 28 games prior to his injury.
Petersen has a 4-6-1 record, .898 SV% and 3.20 GAA in 11 games with Lehigh Valley (AHL) this season and has been recalled to Philadelphia for a second time this season. The 29-year-old veteran of six years struggled in his previous call up, with his 1-1-0 record, .896 SV% and 3.50 GAA and will back up Samuel Ersson Tuesday while Carter Hart (illness) continues to recover.
Hinostroza played three consecutive games for Pittsburgh, averaging over 13 minutes per night, but was held off the score sheet and has been reassigned to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the AHL. He has four points (2G / 2A) in five games this season with Wilkes-Barre Scranton.
Zuccarello's absence on Monday night was a surprise with the team not giving any indication he would miss the game in Pittsburgh prior to warmups. The 36-year-old is averaging a point-per-game this season, registering six goals and 22 assists across 28 games.
Tarasenko was a late scratch on Friday and subsequently did not play on Sunday as he tended to family matters away from the team. He was back at practice on Monday and will likely return to the lineup on Tuesday against the Arizona Coyotes. After averaging only 1.4 shot per game during a seven-game stretch with three points (0G / 3A), Tarasenko has been more involved lately, seeing his ice-time increase by 97 seconds per game, scoring six points (3G / 3A) and averaging 3.1 shots in seven games.
Minnesota will turn to Fleury on the back end of a back-to-back when they face off against the Boston Bruins. The veteran netminder and future half-of-famer has only played one of the last seven games for Minnesota as Filip Gustavsson has demanded the crease with exceptional play lately. Fleury has a 3.29 GAA and .887 SV% through 11 games this season (4-5-2) while posting a quality start rate of only 45.5%, the lowest total of his career.
Gustavsson will start for the fourth straight game on Monday and look for his fourth straight victory in the process. The Swedish goaltender's turnaround this season has been remarkable. Gustavsson has followed up a 10-game stretch (1-6-2) where he posted a .864 SV%, with an astounding .954 SV% in his seven games since (6-1-0). Minnesota is a slight +101 road underdog on Monday against the Pittsburgh Penguins, who will be playing desperately after being embarrassed by the Toronto Maple Leafs in their last contest, a 7-0 blowout loss.
Sturm suffered a mid-body injury vs. the Jets on Thursday and is considered week-to-week. The Sharks said that Sturm will be re-evaluated in one week, but for now, he'll be replaced by Jack Studnicka, who was acquired from the Canucks this week.
Sturm suffered a mid-body injury on Tuesday that limited him to only 8:44 time-on-ice. The 28-year-old German has only registered on the score sheet once in the last nine games, a two-goal performance on December 7th against the Detroit Red Wings.
Tarasenko was a late scratch on Friday with the Senators announcing his absence shortly after 6:00 pm ET. The 32-year-old winger has six goals and 13 assists in his first 24 games as a Senator. Rourke Chartier will take Tarasenko's spot in the lineup on Friday.
Hinostroza played three consecutive games for the Penguins, averaging over 13 minutes per night, but was held off the score sheet and has been placed on unconditional waivers. Assuming he clears, he will report to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the AHL, where he has four points (2G / 2A) in five games this season.
Foligno exited Thursday's matchup against the Calgary Flames with an undisclosed injury after playing only 10:20 time-on-ice but appears to be no worse for wear as he is expected to return to the lineup on Saturday. Foligno has been held off the scoresheet in four straight games, recording only two shots and nine hits.
