Slepyshev returned to the Oilers lineup on Thursday after a two-game absence, scoring a goal, but only lasted 10:27 TOI. He heads to the IR to create roster spot to recall Jesse Puljujarvi from Bakersfield (AHL).
Weber was a late scratch on Thursday but was back on the ice this morning and could be back on Saturday. Weber remains a question mark, but at least it doesn’t appear to be a serious injury.
Ritchie has missed the last three games with an upper-body injury but will be back in tonight vs. the Islanders. Ritchie has had a slow start to the year, collecting one goal and one assist in 12 games.
Faksa missed Monday’s game vs. the Jets with a lower-body injury he suffered last Saturday vs. the Sabres. He is expected to replace Jason Dickinson on the fourth line and comes in with three goals and four assists (seven points) in 14 games.
Puljujarvi, who had eight points (1G / 7A) in 28 games with the Oilers last year. He opened the season with Bakersfield, where he collected five points (1G / 4A) in 10 games. The Oilers are desperate for offence from someone other than Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. Puljujarvi is expected to skate with Milan Lucic and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins.
Acciari has been sidelined since the season opener, but will return to the lineup tonight in Toronto. Acciari has six points (2G / 4A) in 49 career NHL games.
Marchand has missed the last two games with an upper-body injury, but will return tonight in Toronto. Marchand will be back on the top line with Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak and comes into play with eight goals and six assists (14 points) in 12 games this season.
Khudobin allowed one goal on 37 shots in the Bruins’ win over the Sharks on October 26th. Khudobin has sat for the last six games, mostly due to a minor lower-body injury but tonight he will start the first game of the Bruins’ home-and-home with the Maple Leafs. In for starts and one relief appearance, Khudobin has gone 3-0-1 with a 2.52 GAA and .926 SV%.
Ward allowed five goals on 27 shots in the Hurricanes loss in Colorado on November 2nd. With Scott Darling facing his former team tomorrow night, Ward will start the first game of the Hurricanes’ back-to-back tonight in Columbus. Ward has allowed a combined 10 goals on 102 shots (.911 SV%) in three appearances this season.
Murray stopped 24 of 25 shots in the Penguins win over the Coyotes on Tuesday. Murray has lost three of his last five starts while posting a 3.07 GAA and .893 SV%. It has been a sluggish start to the season for Murray, but he has no competition for starts so expect the Penguins to continue to ride him.
Bobrovsky allowed four goals on 25 shots in the Blue Jackets loss in New York on Monday. Bobrovsky has allowed at least three goals in each of his last four starts, posting a 3.37 GAA and .888 SV% and going 2-1-1 in the process. Tonight he is expected to face the Hurricanes for the second time this season—he stopped 37 of 38 shots in a 2-1 OT win.
Beaulieu has missed the last seven games with an upper-body injury, but will return tonight vs. the Panthers. Beaulieu is expected to skate on the third pairing with Viktor Antipin and should see some power-play time. He has just two assists in eight games so far this season.
Tanev suffered a thumb injury in Calgary on Wednesday and is expected to miss at least 14 days as a result, but avoided surgery and a much longer timetable. Luckily for the Canucks they got Alex Edler back on the blueline last night.
Pitlick suffered an injury vs. the Sabres last Saturday and was set to miss his second straight game tonight. His move to IR created a roster spot for Radek Faksa and Brett Ritchie to return to the lineup tonight.
Holtby allowed two goals on 26 shots in the Capitals win over the Coyotes on Monday. Philipp Grubauer got the nod on Tuesday, so they’ll come back to Holtby tonight vs. the Penguins. Holtby is riding a four-game winning streak while recording a 2.22 GAA and .934 SV%. He allowed three goals on 36 shots in a 3-2 loss in his first start against the Penguins this season.
Fucale, 22, has gone 4-1-0 despite posting a 3.46 GAA and .881 SV% in five games with Laval this season. Fucale will likely back up Charlie Lindgren on Saturday because both Carey Price and Al Montoya are injured right now.
Charlie Lindgren has started the last three games because he has been playing well, but apparently Montoya is dealing with an upper-body injury. With Montoya out, the Canadiens have recalled Zach Fucale and is expected to backup Lindgren on Saturday.
Luongo allowed two goals on 47 shots in the Panthers’ 3-1 loss in Carolina on Tuesday. Luongo has been under siege since returning to the crease, facing a whopping 91 shots through two games—stopping 84 of them (.923 SV%). Expect the barrage of shots to continue tonight as he has faced an average of 34.7 shots per game so far this season, making him an intriguing daily fantasy play tonight in Buffalo.
Andersen allowed two goals on 37 shots in the Maple Leafs win over the Wild on Wednesday. It looks like Andersen is starting to get back on track as he’s won three of his last four starts while posting a 2.97 GAA and .905 SV%. He makes for a solid start tonight with the banged up Bruins in town and Anton Khudobin expected to start in goal.
Matthews will miss his second straight game with an upper-body injury and it sounds like there is a good chance he won’t play tomorrow in Boston either. After Saturday the Maple Leafs are off until next Thursday, so it would be smart for them to get their franchise player back to 100 percent instead of rushing him.
