Allen and his wife are expecting a baby, so he will sit out of Monday's game vs. the Penguins. With Allen unavailable, Cayden Primeau was recalled from Laval (AHL) to serve as Sam Montembeault's backup.
Kallgren will likely serve as the Leafs backup tonight after Matt Murray left the morning skate with an injury.
Hischier missed the season opener in Philadelphia but will play Saturday vs. the Red Wings. Prior to Thursday's game, Hischier centred the top line with Yegor Sharangovich and Jesper Bratt, so expect him to skate there tonight.
Meier was listed as questionable after getting nicked up in Wednesday's practice, but he was on the ice for Friday's morning skate and is good to go vs. the Hurricanes. Meier has one assist and 11 shots on goal in two games this season.
Allen will get his second start of the 2022-23 season as Montreal heads to Detroit Friday. The Canadiens netminder will hope to keep his undefeated streak alive after playing a big part in Montreal's opening night victory over rival Toronto stopping 29 of 32 shots. He faces off against another Original Six rival playing their first game of the young season.
Markstrom missed Wednesday's practice due to illness but will still take the crease as the Flames take on the Avalanche who are playing their second game in as many nights. Markstrom is coming off an incredible 2021-22 season finishing second in Vezina voting after finishing fourth in wins (37), third in save percentage (.922), and third in GAA (2.22) across the entire NHL. He takes on the hefty task of containing last year's Stanley Cup Champions a night after they put five goals on the board against Chicago.
Hischier was on the ice for the morning skate but will sit out for the season opener. Hischier said he's “not where I want to be," so monitor his status heading into Saturday's home opener.
Calgary has announced that their prized starter is out with an illness and will not practice Thursday morning. Markstrom is coming off a massive 2021-22 season which saw him finish second in Vezina voting behind only Igor Shesterkin. The 32-year-old netminder finished fourth in wins (37), third in save percentage (.922), and third in GAA (2.22) across the entire NHL. The Flames will hope to have their all-start goaltender back as soon as possible with Dan Vladar manning the crease in the meantime.
Jake Allen will get the daunting task of taking on the high-scoring Maple Leafs Wednesday night. Allen has struggled in his two seasons since signing in Montreal as he has a 3.01 GAA and .906 SV% across 62 starts while only winning 20 games. He will look to get the Canadiens out on the right foot as they try to improve on their league-worst record from 2021-22.
The Devils' captain remains questionable for their opening game Thursday in Philadelphia as he returned to practice Tuesday for the first time since September 26th, 2022. Hischier enjoyed his most successful season in 2021-22 finishing with 21 goals and 60 points in 70 games placing him second on the Devils in scoring. The 23-year-old should find himself a lock in New Jersey's top-six and atop their first powerplay unit.
Kovacevic was a third-round pick in 2017 and appeared in four NHL games with the Jets last season. He spent most of the season in Manitoba (AHL), where he had 11 goals and 19 assists (30 points) in 62 games.
Hischier suffered the injury on Thursday and will be re-evaluated a few days before the Devils' season starts. This would be a huge loss for the Devils to open the season, and it would thrust either Erik Haula or Dawson Mercer into an elevated role.
During his two seasons in Montreal, Allen has gone 20-23-9 with a 3.01 GAA and .906 SV% in 64 games (62 starts). With Carey Price's uncertain future, Allen gets a two-year deal to help stabilize the Canadiens' crease during their rebuild.
The Devils selected Nemec with the No.2 overall pick in this summer's NHL Draft. The 18-year-old Slovakian defenseman had 26 points (1G / 25A) in 39 games with Nitra MHC (Slovak Extraliga) last season. He also represented Slovakia at the 2022 World Juniors (one assist in two games) and the 2022 Olympics (one assist in seven games).
