The 21-year-old Lessio has appeared in three games with the Coyotes this season, totaling two penalty minutes (PIM). The 6-foot-1, 212-pound forward has recorded 5-3-8 and 14 PIM in 14 games with the Pirates this season.
Mason gave up two goals on 22 shots in 4-2 win over the Blue Jackets on Saturday. The W snapped a short two-game losing skid for Mason, who has won four of his last six with a 2.20 GAA and .936 SV%. Tonight he will go head-to-head with the red-hot Jaroslav Halak.
Backstrom allowed three goals on 22 shots in a loss to the Jets last Sunday. He has seen limited action through the first quarter of the season—the 36-year-old is 2-2-0 with 2.55 GAA and .890 SV%. He makes for a good spot-start against a Panthers team with the 28th ranked offence and 22nd power-play.
Krejci will miss his third straight game and it is the seventh of the last eight games he has missed. Bruins head coach Claude Julien said that Krejci suffered a setback last week but “it’s not something that we’re going to have to manage all year.” That is positive news, but at this point it doesn’t sound like Krejci is close to playing.
The Bruins’ head coach Claude Julien said that Kelly’s injury is “not a 3-4 week situation” but he will not play tonight vs. Pittsburgh. Consider him day-to-day but expect him to miss at least one week.
Marchand has missed the last three games with an undisclosed injury, but he could return tonight vs. the Penguins. He skated on the Bruins top line with Patrice Bergeron and Reilly Smith in practice this morning, which is a good sign he’ll be back in tonight. Monitor his status during pre-game warmups.
Tonight will be Weiss’ second game of the season and just the 28th game that he has played in the last two seasons with Detroit. He had a successful conditioning stint and the Wings’ are hoping he will be able to stay healthy for an extended period of time. The former four-time 20-plus goal scorer will play on the third line with Darren Helm and Tomas Jurco as well as on the second power-play.
Datsyuk said his groin is feeling better, but that he needs more practice time. He does not want to risk re-injuring his groin and hopes to be back later this week.
Luongo stopped 48 of 50 shots in the Panthers 3-2 shootout loss to the Predators on Saturday. Bobby Lu was the only reason the Panthers came away with a point, while setting a new season-high in saves. Tonight, he faces a loaded Wild team who rank 11th in scoring with 2.79 goals per game.
Howard surrounded three goals on 27 shots in a 4-1 loss to the Maple Leafs on Saturday. The Wings’ hung Howie out to dry on a couple of breakaways, but it was an otherwise strong night for the 30-year-old net minder. He is 3-3-2 with a 2.10 GAA and .915 SV% in November.
Rask allowed two goals on 23 shots in a 2-0 loss to the Bruins on Saturday. He struggles vs. the Habs continued and things don’t get any easier with the Penguins in town. We are nearing the end of November and so far Rask is 6-2-0 with a 1.89 GAA and .933 SV% this month.
Halak stopped 27 of 28 shots in the Islanders 4-1 win over the Penguins on Friday. Halak has been on fire lately, winning his last six starts with a 1.31 GAA, .952 SV% and two shutouts. He has a tough matchup vs. the Flyers sixth ranked offence, but he is sizzling right now and should be started in all formats.
Green suffered an upper-body injury on Saturday and could be in danger of missing Wednesday’s game against the Islanders. He has 12 points (3G /9A) in 19 games.
Holzer, 26, has two goals one nine games with the Marlies this season. Roman Polak is expected to miss an extended period of time with a knee injury, so Holzer will get the first chance.
Booth is expected to make his NHL debut on Wednesday. He had a strong conditioning stint, scoring one goal with 10 shots in two games.
Pirri has been out since October 30th with a concussion but should be back in the Panthers lineup soon. Florida will take on the Wild tonight, Pirri could be back in the lineup.
Bergenheim has been sidelined since October 30th with a lower-body injury. Bergenheim is really close to a return and it could come as soon as tonight vs. Minnesota.
Upshall has missed the last two games with a lower-body injury, but with Rocco Grimaldi being sent back to the AHL on Sunday, expect Upshall to be back in the lineup tonight vs. Minnesota. He has seven points (3G / 4A) in 16 games this season.
Hedman was on the ice for the Lightning’s morning skate, but remains in a no-contact jersey and is around 7-10 days away from returning to the lineup.
Chara was on the ice in Boston for the first time since tearing his PCL on October 23rd. He was given a 4-6 week timetable and today marks the four-week point, so Chara will likely need to skate for another week before he ramps it up in practice.
