Abdelkader was expected to be out at least three weeks anyways, so his move to IR is a formality to open up a roster spot. Look for Abdelkader to return in late-November/early-December.
Nemeth was believed to miss Tuesday's game with an illness so it's strange to see him landing on IR. With Nemeth out, veteran Jonathan Ericsson was called up from Grand Rapids to take his spot on the roster.
Hutton allowed five goals on 40 shots in the Sabres loss in Tampa Bay in the second game in Sweden last Saturday. He'll also get the first game back in Buffalo, where he is 4-1-1 with a 1.96 GAA, .927 SV% and one shutout. Carolina comes in having lost five in a row (0-4-1) on the road while averaging just 1.80 goals per game.
With Danny DeKeyser, Trevor Daley and now Patrik Nemeth injury, Ericsson makes his return to the NHL. Ericsson was assigned to the Griffins after clearing waivers on October 23rd and has picked up two assists in 10 AHL games. He may replace Dylan McIlrath or Alex Biega and make his season debut in Los Angeles.
Hutton allowed five goals on 40 shots in the Sabres loss in Tampa Bay in the second game in Sweden last Saturday. He'll also get the first game back in Buffalo, where he is 4-1-1 with a 1.96 GAA, .927 SV% and one shutout. Carolina comes in having lost five in a row (0-4-1) on the road while averaging just 1.80 goals per game.
Vasilevskiy allowed two goals on 22 shots in the Lightning's win over the Sabres in Sweden. It's been nearly one week since his last start, so Vasilskiy is well-rested coming into Thursday's matchup vs. the Rangers. New York has rarely played on the road early in the season but is 3-2-0 while scoring 2.80 goals per game outside of Madison Square Garden.
Boqvist scored one goal in six games while playing 14:27 ATOI with the Blackhawks. The 19-year-old defenseman returns to the AHL where he had one goal in six games before being called-up.
Crosby has been dealing with a nagging sports hernia and opted for surgery on Thursday. This is obviously a massive blow for the Penguins but Evgeni Malkin has often elevated his game when Crosby is out. Crosby was known as injury-prone early in his career but has become much more durable in recent years, so this is uncharted territory for this Pittsburgh team. In fact, Crosby has missed just 19 games over the last six seasons, appearing in 96.1 percent of regular-season games over that span. Expect Jared McCann to continue to skate as a top-6 centre while Crosby is out.
Lundqvist allowed four goals on 19 shots after replacing Alexandar Georgiev in the Rangers blow-out loss in Tampa Bay on Thursday. Dating back to the middle of October, Lundqvist has gone 3-2-1 with an ugly 3.45 GAA and .910 SV%. It doesn't get any easier in Florida, where the Panthers are averaging 3.71 goals per game.
Georgiev got back in the crease on Tuesday and stopped 30 of 32 shots in the Rangers overtime win over the Penguins. Georgiev has won three of his last four with a 2.48 GAA and .920 SV% but draws a terrible road matchup in Tampa Bay--the Lightning are 2-1-1 while scoring 3.00 goals per game in their four home games.
Varlamov allowed four goals on 39 shots in the Islanders' loss to the Penguins last Thursday. The loss snapped a five-game winning streak for Varlamov, who will make his ninth start of the season on Wednesday. The 31-year-old enters play at 3-2-1 with a 3.04 GAA and .904 SV% in six starts on home ice.
Anderson allowed four goals on 24 shots after replacing Anders Nilsson in the Senators blowout loss in Carolina on Monday. Anderson has allowed at least four goals in three straight outings, posting an .852 SV% in those games. Overall, he has an .891 SV% on the season and is a rough option vs a Devils team that has managed to score 3.63 goals per game on home ice.
Carpenter missed Sunday's game due to personal reasons but will replace Drake Caggiula (concussion protocol) in Vegas. Carpenter has just five assists in 16 games this season and will likely centre the fourth line on Wednesday.
Polak is set to miss his 18th straight game on Wednesday but he is "probable" to play Thursday in Vancouver. Polak had just nine points (1G / 8A) in 77 games with the Stars last year, so he brings little fantasy upside.
Crawford allowed two goals on 31 shots in the Blackhawks loss in Pittsburgh on Saturday. Robin Lehner faced an extremely heavy workload (57 shots) on Sunday, so they'll give him another night off on Wednesday. Crawford has played better lately but has lost four of his last five (1-2-2) with a 3.19 GAA and .908 SV%.
While the Stars are in Calgary, Hintz was back skating in Dallas and could be back in the lineup next week. Right now the Stars don't expect him to join them on the trip but believe he could be ready when they return to Dallas next Tuesday. So far the Stars are 1-0-1 and have scored six goals in two games without Hintz.
MacEwen comes up because Brandon Sutter was hurt early in Tuesday's win over the Predators. MacEwen has just one assist in four career NHL games and will likely make his season debut on Thursday. The 23-year-old has eight points (3G / 5A) in 13 games with Utica this season.
With Jay Beagle missing Tuesday's game, Graovac's call-up suggests that he will replace Beagle in the lineup on Thursday. Graovac, who has nine points (7G / 2A) in 62 career NHL games, has one goal in six AHL games this season.
Tuch missed the last four games with an upper-body injury that he suffered in his second game of the season (Nov.2) but will suit up vs. the Blackhawks. Tuch scored a goal in his season debut and will play on the same line tonight (with Cody Eakin and Cody Glass).
