Backes left Tuesday’s game after being hit by Nick Ritchie but was back on the ice this morning, which suggests that he’ll be ready to go on Thursday. Backes has cooled off considerably recently, picking up just two assists in his last eight games.
Vrana has not scored a goal in 16 games, picking up just three assists over that span, so he will sit as a healthy scratch on Wednesday. The Capitals are looking for more out of their young forward—he had 10 goals and four assists (14 points) in his first 32 games of the season.
Zaitsev has been sidelined since December 15th, but will be back in tonight vs. the Islanders. Zaitsev will skate with Travis Dermott on the Maple Leafs’ second pairing and comes in with 10 points (4G / 6A) in 34 games this season.
MacKinnon was hurt in Tuesday’s overtime loss in Vancouver and won’t play in Edmonton. This is a horrible loss for the Avalanche, who have been absolutely carried by MacKinnon since the Matt Duchene trade. Since then, MacKinnon leads the NHL with 49 points (21G / 28A) in 36 games. It sounds like he is more day-to-day than long-term so monitor his status heading into the weekend.
Holtby allowed two goals on 34 shots in the Capitals win in Florida last Thursday. The win snapped a three-game losing streak for Holtby, who will make his 37th start of the season tonight. Holtby allowed two goals on 23 shots in a 2-1 OT loss to the Flyers 10 days ago and he will face them again tonight. Holtby is 15-5-1 with a 2.13 GAA and .932 SV% on home-ice this season.
The Bruins lost both David Backes and Anders Bjork in Tuesday’s game vs. the Ducks, so Cehlarik comes up to fill their void at forward. It sounds like Bjork will be out longer than Backes so look for Cehlarik, who has 13 points (6G / 7A) in 17 games with Providence, to replace him on Thursday.
Andersen allowed two goals on 36 shots in the Maple Leafs win in Chicago last Wednesday. Curtis McElhinney started the next night, so it has been one week since Andersen started. Tonight he faces an Islanders on the tail-end of a back-to-back—Andersen is 11-7-2 with a 2.71 GAA and .920 SV% on home-ice this year.
Price surrendered six goals on 29 shots in the Canadiens loss to the Hurricanes last Thursday. Price has lost five of his last six starts while posting a 3.64 GAA and .869 SV%. The Canadiens’ All-Star representative doesn’t need any rest as it looks like he’ll start tonight in St. Louis. He allowed four goals on 30 shots in a 4-3 loss in his first start vs. the Blues.
Saros surrendered four goals on 31 shots in the Predators loss to the Lightning last Tuesday. Saros has been incredibly impressive as of late, erasing his slow start and giving up a 2.35 GAA, .926 SV% and three shutouts through 12 starts. Tonight he will face the Blackhawks at Bridgestone Arena, where he is 2-1-1 with a 2.03 GAA and .934 SV% on the season.
Kuemper allowed one goal on 31 shots in the Kings win in Calgary last Wednesday. With Jonathan Quick on IR, Kuemper will start again tonight with Quick likely being activated from IR for Thursday’s game. Kuemper has gone 3-0-2 with a 1.82 GAA and .944 SV% on the road so far this season, but the Stars are one of the best home teams in the NHL
Ward allowed five goals on 31 shots but still walked away with the win last Thursday in Montreal. It wasn’t the prettiest outing for Ward, who has given up at least three gaols in four of his last six starts and sits at 3-4-1 with a 3.46 GAA and .879 SV% in January. Despite the poor numbers, he’s an intriguing option tonight with the Senators in town at eight games below .500.
Dubnyk allowed four goals on 21 shots in the Wild’s loss in Pittsburgh last Thursday. It was a rough outing for Dubnyk, who has gone 5-2-1 with a 2.72 GAA and .912 SV% in eight January starts. In his first start vs. the Blue Jackets, Dubnyk allowed five goals on 35 shots in a 5-4 OT loss early in the campaign.
Sergachev was a healthy scratch for the last two games but based on the morning skate he should re-enter the lineup on Tuesday and play with Anton Stralman. He might be back on the second power-play unit as well as it looks like Victor Hedman will also be back in the lineup and take his spot back on the top unit.
Mrazek stopped 17 of 18 shots after replacing Jimmy Howard in the Red Wings loss to the Blackhawks last Thursday. Mrazek has played extremely well recently, stopping 109 of the last 113 shots (.965 SV%) that he has faced. Tonight he will take on a Sharks team that has lost three straight and will be without Joe Thornton for the third consecutive game.
Forsberg practiced on Monday and took part in Tuesday’s morning skate but he stayed on late which suggests he may not return to the lineup quite yet. However, the Predators did not rule him out either so Forsberg’s status remains in question. Consider him a game-time decision.
Barrie was listed as questionable after participating in Monday’s practice but he will be back in the Avalanche lineup tonight in Vancouver. Barrie has had a really nice season, collecting 27 points (4G / 23A) in 34 games, but might not re-claim his spot on the top PP right away. Barrie does however return with the Avs playing their best hockey of the season and should help to keep them rolling.
