Sundqvist had no points, a minus-2 rating and three shots on goal while averaging 12:52 TOI in the first two games of the season. The Blues will replace him with Ivan Barbashev this afternoon.
Megan served as a healthy scratch in the first two games of the season, but will replace Chris Thorburn this afternoon. Megan will centre the fourth line, which drains most of his fantasy appeal, but this is a player with offensive upside. Megan had 33 goals and 33 assists (66 points) in 73 AHL games a season ago and score one goal in three NHL games.
Barbashev unsurprisingly cracked the Blues roster, but was surprisingly scratched in the first two contests. This afternoon he will replace Oskar Sundqvist as the third-line centre and will look to build off of the 12 points (5G / 7A) he had in 30 games with the Blues last season.
Allen made 38 saves on 40 shots in the Blues’ win over the Stars on Saturday. Allen moved to 2-0-0 on the season, having stopped 67 of 73 shots (.918 SV%) against two of the most potent offences in the NHL. Allen will look to extend his winning streak to three against an Islanders team that is 1-1-0 to start the season.
Schmaltz collected two goals and one assist while playing on a line with Patrick Kane in the season opener, but lasted just one shift vs. the Blue Jackets on Saturday. With Schmaltz out, Artem Anisimov will re-claim his spot as the second-line centre and Tanner Kero will draw back into the lineup.
Grubauer has been one of the most reliable backups in the NHL over the years and comes into 2017-18 having gone 13-6-2 with a 2.04 GAA, .926 SV% and three shutouts last season. Grubauer’s first start will come against a Tampa Bay team that is playing for the third time in four days and had two totally different results in their first two contests.
Forsberg was acquired along with Brandon Saad in the trade that sent Artemi Panarin to the Blue Jackets this summer. Tonight will be his Blackhawks debut and he has had a hard time in his young NHL career. In 10 career appearances, Forsberg has a 4.02 GAA and .879 SV%, but was an impressive 27-17-2 with a 2.28 GAA and .926 SV% in the AHL last year.
Halak gave up three goals on 29 shots in the Islanders win over the Sabres on Saturday. Thomas Greiss got the nod on Monday, so they’ll come back to Halak tonight in Anaheim. In one start and one relief appearance so far this season, Halak has stopped 37 of 40 shots (.925 SV%). Tonight he’ll take on a Ducks team that is 1-1-1 with 2.33 goals for per game so far.
Vasilevskiy allowed four goals on 48 shots in the Lightning’s loss in Florida on Saturday. Vasilevskiy was absolutely peppered by the Panthers and has now faced 84 shots through two games—stopping 76 of them (.905 SV%). Thing won’t get any easier for the first-year starter, who will meet a Washington team that has 11 goals in their first two contests.
Howard turned aside 37 of 38 shots in the Red Wings’ shootout win in Ottawa on Saturday. It was another spectacular start for the veteran netminder, who has now stopped 74 of 77 shots (.961 SV%) to start the season 2-0-0. It looks like he will make his third straight start in Dallas—the Stars are 0-2-0 with three goals to start the season.
Grzelcyk cracked the opening night roster thanks to a Torey Krug preseason injury, but with Krug set to return on Monday, Grzelcyk was sent back to the AHL. The 23-year-old was a plus-1 with two shots on goal in 12:11 TOI in the season opener. He returns to Providence where he had 32 points (6G / 26A) in 70 games during his first professional campaign.
With David Backes and Noel Acciari out, Czarnik is expected to make his season debut on Monday after missing the season opener with an illness. The 24-year-old centre had just 13 points (5G / 8A) in 49 games with the Bruins last year, but was over point-per-game in 22 AHL contests.
Krug missed the Bruins’ season opener with a jaw injury that he suffered in the preseason but he will get back into the lineup this afternoon vs. the Avalanche. Krug is expected to skate with Adam McQuaid at even-strength and should quarterback the top power-play.
Backes was diagnosed with diverticulitis and is expected to miss 3-to-4 weeks, so moving him to IR was a no-brainer for the Bruins who needed to open up a roster spot to activate Torey Krug for Monday’s game. Look for Backes to be back in late-October/early-November.
Clutterbuck came out of the lineup on Saturday because of a lower-body injury that he suffered on opening night. Clutterbuck will sit for a second straight game, which means the Islanders will go with the same lineup today vs. the Blues.
Matheson, 23, was the No.23 pick in 2012 and has become a big part of the Panthers’ blueline, averaging over 21 minutes per game last year and through the first two games of this season. He has some offensive ability to his game and should be able to top his 17 points (7G / 10A) from last season.
Vasilevskiy allowed four goals on 48 shots in the Lightning’s loss in Florida on Saturday. Vasilevskiy was absolutely peppered by the Panthers and has now faced 84 shots through two games—stopping 76 of them (.905 SV%). Thing won’t get any easier for the first-year starter, who will meet a Washington team that has 11 goals in their first two contests.
Greiss was given the hook after giving up five goals on 26 shots in the Islanders’ season opener in Columbus. Despite the rough outing and Halak getting the ‘W’ on Saturday, the Islanders will go back to Greiss vs. the Blues this afternoon. The 31-year-old was 13-8-2 with a 2.57 GAA, .913 SV% and one shutout on home-ice last season.
Andersen surrendered five goals on 35 shots in the Maple Leafs’ 8-5 win over the Rangers on Saturday. It wasn’t a great statistical outing for Andersen, who has now posted a 3.50 GAA and .903 SV% in two starts, but he has received a whopping 15 goals in support so far. Toronto like to play an up-tempo, free-wheeling game so Andersen may be under siege a lot this season, but should walk away victorious more often than not.
Harpur left the Senators game vs. Detroit with an upper-body injury and did not return. It was a tough season debut for the 22-year-old defenseman, who is expected to miss some time after the Senators recalled Thomas Chabot and Christian Jaros for their upcoming road-trip.
