NHL Hockey Player News

Sekera will miss his second straight game with an illness. With Sekera out, Matt Benning will remain in the lineup against the Canucks. Sekera is day-to-day.

Raffl missed Wednesday's game with an undisclosed injury, but will be back in the lineup tonight vs. the Sharks. Raffl will likely take his spot on the top line back from Taylor Leier. He comes in with seven goals and two assists (nine points) in 27 games this season.

Mason allowed five goals on 24 shots in the Flyers’ loss in St. Louis on Wednesday. It was a rough outing for Mason, who has lost four of his last five games while posting a 2.70 GAA and .906 SV%. Tonight he will face a Flyers team that has won seven of their last eight contests.

Rau, 24, has played in 24 games with the Panthers this season, registering just two goals and one assist. He will swap places with Greg McKegg and heads back to Springfield, where he has no points in two games.

McKegg, 24, has registered four points (2G / 2A) in seven games with Springfield this season. In the 19 games he’s played with the Panthers, the former third round pick has two assists.

Maatta missed the last two games with an illness, but is set to return to the lineup tomorrow vs. the Canadiens. Once heralded as one of the next great young defenseman, Maatta has struggled to produce offensively, picking up just two assists in 35 games this season.

Sharp has missed the last 12 games with a concussion, but has been cleared to play on Saturday. Sharp has had a difficult season with injuries and has picked up just two points (1G / 1A) in 11 games.

Schlemko has been a healthy scratch for the last three games, but will be back in the lineup for Dylan DeMelo tonight vs. the Flyers. Schlemko has registered eight points (1G / 7A) in 28 games this season and will return to his usual spot on the third pairing and second power play unit.

Miller stopped 36 of 37 shots in the Canucks’ win over the Kings on Wednesday. It was a great outing for Miller, who had previously allowed 16 goals in his four previous games combined (4.00 GA/PG). Tonight will be his third start of the season vs. Anaheim—he has gone 0-2-0 with a 3.58 GAA and .885 SV% in the first two meetings.

Dell allowed three goals on 33 shots in the Sharks’ win over the Hurricanes on December 10th. Martin Jones has started the last seven games, but Dell will start the first game of the back-to-back tonight vs. the Flyers. The Sharks’ backup has gone 3-1-0 with a 2.16 GAA and .926 SV% in four starts and one relief appearance this season.

Copp was sent down on Wednesday but did not get into a game with the Moose. With Marko Dano getting hurt last night and being placed on IR this afternoon, Copp is back with the Jets, where he has four goals and three assists (seven points) in 25 games this season.

Jets’ head coach Paul Maurice indicated on Thursday that Dano would likely miss a few weeks with a lower-body injury that he suffered last night. With his move to IR, the Jets used that roster spot to call-up Andrew Copp, who was just sent down.

Barkov left Wednesday’s game against the Maple Leafs with an undisclosed injury and missed Thursday’s contest vs. the Canadiens. The Panthers have moved him to IR and head coach Tom Rowe said that Barkov is expected to miss 2-3 weeks.

The Islanders came into 2016-17 with three goalies on the roster and after a superb performance at the World Cup of hockey, Halak struggled in the Isles’ crease. The 31-year-old made 20 starts and went 6-8-5 with a 3.23 GAA and .904 SV%. It was a big drop-off from his numbers over the last two seasons in Brooklyn and has landed him on waivers. A team in-need of help in net like Ottawa or Los Angeles may claim him, but his $4.5M cap-hit may scare some teams off. We could see Halak heading to Bridgeport (AHL) at this time tomorrow.

Dano left Thursday’s game with a lower-body injury and did not return. Head coach Paul Maurice said post-game that Dano will undergo tests on Friday but isn’t optimistic. Dano will likely miss some time and if that’s the case expect them to recall a forward before Saturday’s game.

Backes played 3:10 TOI before he left yesterday’s game in Buffalo. The Bruins did not have any update on Backes’ status post-game, so expect an update prior to tomorrow’s game vs. the Sabres. If he can’t play,, expect Jimmy Hayes to draw into the lineup.

Hamilton missed Thursday’s game with an illness and is considered questionable for Saturday’s game vs. the Coyotes. Hamilton was a late scratch yesterday, but you should get a good idea if he is playing during Saturday’s morning skate.

Neal played 7:48 TOI before leaving Thursday’s game with an upper-body injury and not returning. With the Predators back in action on Friday, Neal should be considered questionable. Monitor his status prior to their game in St. Louis.

Carrier played just 1:23 TOI before retiring to the dressing room following a fight with Adam McQuaid. The Sabres have recalled Justin Bailey this morning, which suggests that Carrier will not be available for Saturday’s game vs. the Bruins.

Bailey, 21, has no points in two games with the Sabres, but has scored 13 goals with nine assists (22 points) in 31 AHL contests. Will Carrier was hurt on Thursday, so Bailey has been recalled and will likely draw into the lineup on Saturday.