The Coyotes sent Perlini to the AHL because they had five straight days off, but he is back and should be in the lineup on Friday. Perlini has four goals and one assist in 15 games with the Coyotes and 19 points (14G / 5A) in 17 games with Tucson.
Buchnevich had one goal and one assist in three games during his conditioning stint with Hartford. Buchnevich returns to the Rangers with eight points (4G / 4A) in 10 games this season.
Budaj allowed five goals on 22 shots in the Kings loss to the Stars on Monday. It was an ugly outing for Budaj, who saw his three-game winning streak snapped in the process. Tonight he will make his 36th appearance of the season and his second against the Blues. Budaj allowed one goal on 25 shots in a 1-0 loss in his first start against St. Louis.
Talbot allowed five goals on 28 shots in the Oilers’ loss to the Sharks on Tuesday. Talbot has gone 2-2-0 with a 3.01 GAA and .899 SV% in January and one of those wins game in New Jersey last Saturday. He’ll face the Devils again tonight, he stopped 19 of 20 shots in a 2-1 OT win one the weekend.
Varlamov served as Calvin Pickard’s backup last Friday, but tonight he makes his first start since January 22nd. Varlamov has struggled mightily this season, going 6-14-0 with a 3.33 GAA and .901 SV% in 21 games. The Avalanche are a terrible team, which is going to limit his upside in the second half.
Rask gave up three goals on 17 shots but still walked away with the win in St. Louis on Tuesday. Rask has won four of his last six games with a 2.01 GAA, .921 SV% and one shutout. Tonight he’ll face the Predators in Nashville—Rask has gone 13-4-3 with a 1.83 GAA and .934 SV% in 20 starts on the road in 2016-17.
Mrazek allowed four goals on 43 shots in the Red Wings’ overtime loss in Tuesday. Mrazek has lost five straight games while allowing a combined 16 goals on 124 shots (.871 SV%). In his first start vs. the Stars this season, Mrazek turned aside 34 of 35 shots in a 4-1 win back in late November.
Price gave up four goals on 39 shots in the Canadiens’ loss to Washington on Monday. Surprisingly enough, Price has given up three or more goals in five of his last six starts, going 2-2-2 with a 3.11 GAA and .903 SV%. It has been a tough stretch for Price, who will face the Wild for the second time this season—in the first meeting he allowed three goals on 26 shots in a 4-2 loss.
Miller allowed two goals on 26 shots in the Canucks’ overtime loss in Nashville on Tuesday. The loss snapped a five-game winning streak for Miller, who is now 2-6-1 with a 3.25 GAA and .903 SV% on the road this season. He draws a nice matchup tonight in Philadelphia—the Flyers come in having lost nine of their last 11 games (2-6-3).
Nilsson stopped 39 of 40 shots in the Sabres’ win over the Flyers on Tuesday. Nilsson has had some really good and really bad outings this season, but despite facing an average of 34 shots per game, Nilsson has posted a 2.37 GAA and .930 SV% in 13 games. The Lightning come in on a four-game losing streak.
Benn has missed the last four games with a foot injury, but will return to the lineup tonight vs. the Red Wings. Benn has scored 10 goals with 24 assists (34 points) in 38 games this season and will be looking for a stronger second half, starting tonight vs. Detroit.
Mason allowed three goals on 26 shots in the Flyers loss in Buffalo on Tuesday. Mason has struggled, losing seven consecutive starts, but will start again tonight. Mason is 10-5-3 with a 2.58 GAA and .913 SV% on home ice and tonight he faces a Canucks team that has gone 6-1-1 in their last eight games.
Niemi allowed two goals on 36 shots in the Stars’ loss in Anaheim on Tuesday. Niemi has had an up-and-down season, but Tuesday was one of his best performances of the season and it resulted in a loss. Tonight he faces a struggling Red Wings team on home ice, where he is 7-3-2 with a 2.15 GAA and .932 SV% on the year.
Gudas has had a mostly strong season, but has struggled recently, so he will sit tonight vs. the Canucks. Head coach Dave Hakstol said he is looking for more consistency out of Gudas. Nick Schultz will replace Gudas in the lineup.
Dubnyk allowed one goal on 24 shots in the Wild’s win in Anaheim on Sunday. Dubnyk has won 12 of his last 13 starts while posting a 1.98 GAA, .931 SV% and one shutout. One of those wins came against the Canadiens in late December. he stopped 32 of 34 shots in a 4-2 win and will go head-to-head with Carey Price again.
Boyle has missed the last four games with a lower-body injury, but could return to the lineup on Thursday. Boyle enters the Sabres game with 10 goals and three assists (13 points) in 36 games.
Coburn has missed the last two games with an upper-body injury, but could return to the lineup Thursday vs. the Sabres. Coburn has registered one goal and four assists (five points) in 40 games this season.
Bishop has missed the last nine games with a lower-body injury, but will return to the crease tonight vs. the Sabres. The 30-year-old has gone 9-10-2 with a 2.79 GAA and .907 SV% on the season and will be looking to improve in the second half. He stopped 32 of 33 shots in a 4-1 win in his first start against the Sabres this season.
