Rittich allowed two goals on 26 shots in the Flames win in Colorado last Saturday. Rittich played very well in his first start of the season and will look to build off of that tonight in New York. The Rangers have started the season at 2-4-1 while averaging just 2.43 goals for per game (25th in the NHL).
Allen allowed three goals on 23 shots in the blues 3-2 loss in Montreal on Wednesday. It has been a tough couple of weeks for Allen, who has just one win in five games while posting an ugly 3.91 GAA and .877 SV%. A tough start and a brutal matchup in Toronto makes Allen a below average option on Saturday night.
Hellebuyck surrendered five goals on 35 shots as the Jets blew a 4-1 lead to lose 5-4 to Edmonton on Tuesday. Hellebuyck was a favourite to win the Vezina in the preseason, but he’s off to a rough start to the season—posting a 2.99 GAA and .906 SV% in his first five starts.
Allen surrendered four goals on 50 shots in the Blues loss in Chicago on Saturday. Allen has just one win in his first four starts and has allowed at least three goals in every outing. Overall, he has a 4.13 GAA and .878 SV% on the season, but has a decent road matchup tonight in Montreal.
Bratt is a week and a half into a 2-3 week timetable with a fractured jaw. Bratt will return to the ice on Thursday and should re-join his teammates for practice this weekend or early next week.
Hischier left Monday’s practice with a lower-body issue that he suffered while blocking a shot in their last game. Hischier is good-to-go vs. the Stars and comes into play with two assists in three games.
Hellebuyck allowed three goals on 30 shots in the Jets loss in Nashville last Thursday. Hellebuyck was given his first night off on Sunday, so he will be back between the pipes tonight vs. the Oilers. Hellebuyck has had a mixed bag of results early in the season, but you can trust him vs. a struggling Oilers team—he was 3-0-0 with a 1.67 GAA, .949 SV% and one shutout against Edmonton last year.
Rittich stopped all eight shots that he has faced in relief this season but struggled to a 2.92 GAA and .904 SV% in 21 appearances with the Flames last year. Rittich will have some spot-start value through the season, but he will be in tough tonight. The Avalanche, particularly their top-line is absolutely dominant on home-ice.
Allen allowed three goals on 34 shots in the Blues win over the Flames on Thursday. Allen will start the front-end of the Blues’ back-to-back tonight in Chicago. The Blackhawks lit him up for five goals on 30 shots in St. Louis last Saturday, making Allen a risky option during his fourth start of the season.
Hellebuyck allowed one goal on just 17 shots in the Jets win over the Kings on Tuesday. Hellebuyck mixed a bad start in on Saturday, but is 2-1-0 with a 2.34 GAA and .926 SV% to start the season. Hellebuyck was 2-2-0 with a 3.91 GAA and .882 SV% against the Predators last season, so be wary tonight.
Allen allowed five goals on 30 shots in the Blues overtime loss to the Blackhawks last Saturday. Allen has had a terrible start to the season, allowing 10 goals on 55 shots (.818 SV%) in his first two starts. Tonight he faces a Flames team that is scoring 4.00 goals for per game so far.
Hellebuyck allowed five goals on 35 shots in the Jets 5-1 loss in Dallas on Saturday. It was a completely different result from his first start of the season, when he stopped 41 of 42 shots in a win in St. Louis. Tonight he will make his first start on home-ice, where he was 30-5-2 with a 2.31 GAA, .921 SV% and four shutouts last year.
Lammikko, 22, was a third round pick (No.65 overall) in 2014 and has spent the last two seasons with the Thunderbirds. Lammikko has just 14 goals and 25 assists (39 points) in 108 career AHL games. He is expected to make his NHL debut on Thursday with Derek MacKenzie dealing with an upper-body injury.
Allen allowed five goals on 25 shots in the Blues loss to the Jets on Thursday. It was a rough start to the season for Allen, who draws an easier matchup tonight with the Blackhawks in town. The 28-year-old was 2-1-0 with a 3.28 GAA and .875 SV% vs. Chicago last season.
Hellebuyck was brilliant in his season debut, stopping 41 of 42 shots in the Jets 5-1 blowout win in St. Louis. Hellebuyck is viewed as a favourite to win the Vezina Trophy this season and that is a great first step. Tonight he faces a Stars team that he was 3-0-0 with a 1.67 GAA and .943 SV% against last season.
Bratt suffered a fractured jaw after he was hit in the face by a puck that deflected off of the crossbar during Thursday’s practice. With Bratt out, the team signed veteran winger Drew Stafford to a one-year deal after playing on a PTO during training camp. Stefan Noesen is expected to move up into the top-6 in the Devils’ season opener with Bratt sidelined.
Hellebuyck has quickly become one of the best goalies in the NHL, leading the league in games played (67) and wins (44) last year while posting a rock-solid 2.36 GAA, .924 SV% and six shutouts. Hellebuyck could very well lead the NHL in wins again this season with a high-powered Jets offence playing in front of him.
Over the last two seasons, Allen has averaged 60 starts per season while posting a 2.75 GAA (14th) and .906 SV% (21st). Allen looks like a pretty average netminder, but he plays behind a defensively sound team that scores a lot of goals, so he’ll rack up the wins this year. He draws a brutal matchup tonight with the Jets in town—he was 1-2-0 with a 3.34 GAA and .890 SV% against them last season.
Allen was sidelined with back spasms during the start of training camp, but has been cleared for game action on Tuesday. This is great news for the Blues, who kick-off the regular season next Thursday (Oct. 4th). Allen had one of his worst seasons in 2017-18, going 27-25-3 with a 2.75 GAA, .906 SV% and one shutout. He had a negative (-10.34) goals saved above average for the first time since 2015.
