McElhinney surrendered four goals on 26 shots in the Blue Jackets 5-2 loss to the Habs on Thursday. It was a tough matchup for McElhinney, who has otherwise been excellent for the Jackets in Sergei Bobrovsky’s absence. It looks like he will get one more start before Bob is back and it is a juicy matchup. McElhinney takes on the Devils having gone 5-3-1 with a 2.32 GAA and .929 SV% in February.
Price allowed two goals on 27 shots in the Canadiens 5-2 win in Columbus on Thursday. He has won three in a row, posting a 1.67 GAA and .943 SV% in the process. Tonight he will face a Maple Leafs team he is 2-0-0 with a 1.93 GAA and .929 SV% against. You don’t need me to tell you that he is a must-start.
Dubinsky, who left Thursday’s game, was on the ice for yesterday’s practice. He said he felt fine, but then after the skate felt a lot worse. He was then diagnosed with a concussion, which will keep him out for the foreseeable future. With Dubinsky out, Alexander Wennberg will centre the second line.
Dubnyk allowed two goals on 29 shots in the Wild’s 4-2 win in Nashville on Thursday. He has gone 10-2-1 with a 1.69 GAA and .935 SV% in February. The move to Minnesota has not only resurrected his career, but he is one of the league’s top goalies right now. One of those February outings was an 18-save shutout against the Avalanche, who he will take on tonight.
After posting just 15 points (10 G / 5A) in 58 games this season and 26 points (15G / 11A) in 118 games with the Maple Leafs, Clarkson and his monstrous deal were shipped to Columbus this week. Tonight he will get a chance with Ryan Johansen and Nick Foligno on the Blue Jackets first line.
Gibbons, 27, has five assists in 21 games with the Blue Jackets. He has been recalled after posting three goals and six assists (9 points) in 10 games with Springfield. He will skate on the Blue Jackets third line with Artem Anisimov and Marko Dano tonight vs. the Devils.
The Blue Jackets announced on Friday that Calvert is out indefinitely with a concussion so they moved him to IR this morning to make room to recall Brian Gibbons from Springfield (AHL).
Mason allowed one goal on nine shots after replacing Rob Zepp in Thursday’s loss to the Maple Leafs. It wasn’t the way the Flyers wanted to work him back into the crease, but expect him to start tonight vs. the Rangers. Mason has gone 0-2-0 with a 2.59 GAA and .914 SV% in two starts against New York.
Timonen has not played yet this season because of blood-clots, but he was due to make his season debut on Saturday. The 39-year-old scored six goals with 29 assists (35 points) in 77 games a season ago. He is a solid veteran blue liner who can skate, move the puck and score.
Sekera was on the ice for the Kings optional morning skate, but the optional made it difficult to decipher whether or not he will play. However, you don’t trade for a player to sit him in the press box, so expect him to replace Jamie McBain in the lineup tonight.
Giordano was never expected to play, but he was on the ice for warmups so there was some speculation that he just might play. While he will not play, it is a great sign that he should not miss a ton of time.
Staal was listed as a game-time decision with an illness, but he was expected to play and he will. Tonight Alex Semin will be back on Staal's line for the first time in recent memory.
Jones will make his first start since January 14th. That night he was pulled after he allowed three goals on 13 shots in a loss to the Devils. He has gone 4-3-2 with a 2.20 GAA and .908 SV% this season. Tonight he will start in Anaheim against a very dangerous Ducks team.
The Flames announced that Giordano was out for tonight, but being on the ice for warmups, gives him a chance to be in the lineup. Stay tuned.
Svedberg was pulled after he allowed three goals on 10 shots in the Bruins loss to Dallas on February 10th. He posted a 14-save shutout in his first start vs. the Devils back on February 8th. He makes for a solid, cheap one-day option vs. the low-scoring Devils.
Darling allowed two goals on 35 shots in the Blackhawks shootout win over the Panthers on Tuesday. With Corey Crawford starting last night, it will be Darling tonight in Tampa Bay. Darling has gone 4-1-0 with a 2.33 GAA and .927 SV% on the road.
Elliott made 30 saves on 31 shots in the Blue Jackets win in Winnipeg on Thursday. After two bad outings in a row, it was good to see Elliott get back in the win column. Tonight he starts in Edmonton, where he will go for his 20th win on the season. Elliott has gone 9-4-1 with a 2.18 GAA and .924 SV% on the road this year.
It looks like Jones will make his first start since January 14th. That night he was pulled after he allowed three goals on 13 shots in a loss to the Devils. He has gone 4-3-2 with a 2.20 GAA and .908 SV% this season. Tonight he would start in Anaheim against a very dangerous Ducks team.
Pysyk had the look of an NHL defenseman in three games during his call-up. He registered one goal and one assist with a plus-4 rating. He heads back to Rochester for now, but expect to see him back soon.
Forbort, 22, never got into an NHL game, but was able to make some NHL coin for over two weeks. The former first round pick heads back to Manchester where he has 11 points (2G / 9A) in 46 games this season.
