Hughes, who was banged up late in the Boston game, will miss his second straight game with an upper-body injury. He remains day-to-day, so monitor his status heading into Tuesday's meeting with the Islanders.
Bratt suffered an undisclosed injury vs. the Islanders on Thursday and will be unavailable for Saturday's game vs. the Avalanche. With Bratt out, Pavel Zacha will be elevated to the top line and Ben Street, who was called up from the AHL will draw in on the third line.
Bernier stopped all 34 shots that he faced in Red Wings shutout win over the Sharks on Tuesday. Bernier has gone 3-2-0 with a 1.78 GAA, .951 SV% and one shutout in his last six starts. He's been terrific but it's hard to warrant starting him behind the league's worst offence. Especially in Dallas, where the starts are 12-3-1 while scoring 3.19 goals per game in their last 16.
Mrazek allowed one goal on 30 shots in the Hurricanes win over the Canadiens on Tuesday. Mrazek won his final two games of December, finishing the month at 5-2-1 with a 2.65 GAA and .907 SV%. One of those wins came against the Capitals, allowing four goals on 29 shots in a 6-4 win last Saturday.
Di Pauli has not appeared in an NHL game since being drafted in the fourth round in 2012 but has six goals and is assists (12 points) in 22 AHL games this season--his fourth AHL season.
DeSmith is not expected to play over the weekend. With a 5:00 pm game on Sunday, Tristan Jarry will remain in Pittsburgh, so DeSmtih will back up Matt Murray in Montreal and Jarry will start the Sunday game.
Carrier was a fourth-round pick in 2015 who has spent most of his career in Milwaukee and has 25 points (4G / 21A) in 34 games this season. The 23-year-old hasn't played in the NHL since 2016-17 but could make his debut this weekend with Ryan Ellis (upper-body) going on IR.
Ellis was knocked out of the Winter Classic after being elbowed in the face by Corey Perry early in the first period. The Predators are still calling it an "upper-body injury" but it sure looked like a concussion. The Predators used the roster spot to call-up, Alexandre Carrier, from Milwaukee (AHL).
Green missed Tuesday's game while attending to a family matter but is expected to play tonight in Dallas. Green has no points in his last six games and has just seven points (2G / 5A) and a minus-24 rating in 32 games this season.
Olofsson had to be helped off of the ice on Thursday and it looked like he could miss a few weeks. The Sabres confirmed that it will be 5-to-6 weeks, which sidelines him until at least mid-February. This is a huge blow for the Sabres and Olofsson's rookie of the year chances. The 24-year-old is second on the team in goals (16) and points (35) this season.
Kiviranta was called up from the AHL on Thursday and will replace Corey Perry in the lineup vs. the Red Wings. Perry is facing a suspension for his hit on Ryan Ellis in the Winter Classic, opening the door for Kiviranta's debut on the Stars fourth line.
Fedun has been a healthy scratch for the last four games but will replace John Klingberg, who is out with a lower-body injury, on Friday vs. the Red Wings. Fedun has two goals and seven assists (nine points) in 23 games this season.
