Bieksa participated in the Canucks gameday skate and said that he "felt good" but will "see how things are this afternoon". So, Bieksa is still listed as a gametime decision, but it seems like there is a good chance that he will be in the lineup tonight. With only four games tonight you can put him in your daily lineups without getting burned if he doesn't play.
Howard had an excellent preseason posting a 1.90 GAA and .943 SV% in three outings. He has said that he is feeling as good as he ever has to start and that is great news for the Red Wings, who will need Howie to bounce-back from a disappointing 2013-14. The Red Wings are a young team, but Mike Babcock has them playing a puck possession style that limits chances at the Red Wings' net--thus helping Howard.
Varlamov went 1-2 with a 2.31 GAA and .913 SV% in three preseason outings. Despite some legal troubles last season, Varly turned-in a great season in his first under head coach Patrick Roy. He led the NHL in wins (41) and finished with the league's third highest SV% (.927) and 20th GAA (2.41). The Avalanche appear ready to make another playoff push and they will lean heavily on Varlamov to get them there.
Versteeg suffered the injury in practice on Tuesday and will be out until November. Ben Smith will fill in for Versteeg on the Blackhawks third line with Brad Richards and Bryan Bickell.
There was no report of an injury to Muzzin until this morning. If he plays he will line up in his usual spot with Drew Doughty, but if he is unable to play, Doughty will play with Brayden McNabb. With only a few games tonight you won't get burned by having him in your lineup in daily leagues.
Quick was excellent last season posting a 2.07 GAA and .915 SV% in the regular season and a 2.58 / .911 in the postseason en route to his second Stanley Cup. Tonight he will start against the Sharks, a team he was 2-0 with a 1.47 GAA and .930 SV% against a season ago. He is a stud and should be in your lineup every time he draws the start.
Fowler had been skating on his own after missing the final preseason game with a leg injury. His status for Thursday's season opener is still unknown, but participating in full practice this morning is a good sign that he should be ready for the clash with Penguins. Expect an update after practice.
Pouliot missed Tuesday's practice but is back today and should be ready to go for Thursday's season opener. He has been working on the Oilers second line with Leon Draisaitl and Nail Yakupov, so expect him to make his Oilers debut with the two first round picks.
Bobrovsky saw a ton of rubber in the preseason. He faced 134 shots, more than any other netminder and posted a 3-1 record with a 1.92 GAA and .948 SV%. The Blue Jackets will need him to be that sharp to start the season because their lineup is really depleted due to injuries, but Goalie Bob should be up for the task. He draws a nice matchup for Game 1 vs. the Sabres.
Kuemper went 2-0 with a 2.20 GAA and .916 SV% in three preseason outings. With Josh Harding out, Kuemper had to battle Niklas Backstrom to earn the right to start and evidently he won. This is still expected to be a fluid situation with the starting goalie being determined as a game-to-game decision, but at least for now it looks like Kuemper has the upper-hand.
After a terrible debut season with the Red Wings due to injuries, it looks like 2014-15 will start on a sour note. Weiss will take a seat while the younger players like Andrej Nestrasil will get a look. The Red Wings are expected to be patient with Weiss as he continues to work his way back from sports hernia surgery.
Nestrasil, 23, was selected by the Red Wings in the third round (75th overall) in 2009. He scored 16 goals and 20 assists (36 points) in 70 games with the Red Wings last season and had a great preseason. The 6-foot-2, 210 lbs. forward will start on a line with Darren Helm and Gustav Nyquist, but will need to make a strong first impression if he wants to stay with the team after Pavel Datsyuk returns from his shoulder injury.
Simmonds will open the season on a line with Sean Couturier and Matt Read as he looks to build off of his career-year from a season ago. Simmonds had 29 goals and 31 assists and played a huge role on the Flyers PP, scoring 15 of his goals with the extra man. Despite starting on the third line, there is no doubt that he will be on the top PP unit.
Fisher ruptured his Achillies in a training session this Summer. His original timetable was four-to-six months and next month will mark the four month mark. The Predators added a lot of veteran help at centre, so don't expect Fisher to rush back.
Versteeg left practice early yesterday after suffering a lower-body injury. He is coming off of knee surgery, but it was said on Tuesday that the injury was not related to the surgically repaired knee. Monitor his status on Thursday, but it does not look like he will be in the lineup for the season opener. Expect Jeremy Morin to fill his spot with Brad Richards and Bryan Bickell.
Johansen joined the Blue Jackets for his first practice of the season on Wednesday morning and he reportedly did not look sharp at certain point of the skate. That is to be expected from a player who missed the entire preseason, but with all the injuries in Columbus right now, it would be surprising to not see Johansen in the lineup. Even a Ryan Johansen at 75% is likely still their top centre right now.
Well there you go, first year head coach Mike Johnston all but guarenteed that Malkin will return from his lower-body injury and play the right wing on the Penguins second line with Pascal Dupuis and Brandon Sutter.
Maatta missed the preseason while recovering from offseason shoulder surgery. The 20-year-old D-man had a strong rookie campaign posted 29 points (9G / 20A) and a plus-8 rating. He will take on a bigger role this season now that Brooks Orpik and Matt Niskanen are in Washington. You can expect solid offensive totals with a strong plus/minus rating.
Monahan is sick and will not practice this morning, so the Flames will see how he is feeling later before making a decision whether or not to get him in the lineup tonight in the Flames' season opener vs. Vancouver. Monahan was set to centre the Flames top line with Curtis Glencross and Jiri Hudler on his wings.
It was originally announced that Datsyuk would miss the first two weeks of the regular season with a second-degree separated shoulder, but now he seems much closer to returning than that. Datsyuk remains on injured reserve but can be activated whenever he is healthy. With Dats out, Andrej Nestrasil remains with the team and should make his NHL debut tomorrow. Monitor Datsyuk's status prior to Saturday's clash with Anaheim.
