Milano will take a seat on Friday in order to make room for the return of Justin Sourdif (lower-body). Milano has four goals and two assists in 17 games this season.

Sourdif exited Wednesday's game in the third period due to a lower-body injury, but will be available for Friday's game against the Anaheim Ducks. The 23-year-old rookie has six points (3G / 3A) in 27 games this season.

Vejmelka will make his 22nd start of the season when the Mammoth travel to Vancouver on Friday. The 29-year-old netminder will be looking to stay hot after pitching a 27-save shutout in a 7-0 rout in Anaheim on Wednesday. Vejmelka brings an 11-7-2 record and .889 SV% into Friday night's matchup with the Canucks, where the Mammoth enter action at -130 on the money line.

It's unclear when Lindgren suffered the upper-body injury, and the Capitals did not indicate on how long they expect him to be sidelined. Washington signed amateur goaltender Parker Milner to a PTO to serve as Logan Thompson's backup on Friday.

The Sabres are coming off a 5-2 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers and hope to return to the win column on Friday, turning to Luukkonen to tend the twine against the Winnipeg Jets. The 26-year-old Luukkonen was terrific against the Jets on Monday, saving 23 of 24 shots in a 5-1 win. He has a 2.51 GAA and .899 SV% in eight games this season (4-3-1). The Sabres enter Friday's contest as +116 road underdogs against a struggling Jets team that has lost six of their last seven games (1-5-1).

Comrie and the Jets have struggled lately and lost 3-2 in a shootout against the Montreal Canadiens on Wednesday despite Comrie's best performance, saving 29 of 31 shots (.935 SV%), since Connor Hellebuyck (knee) has been sidelined. The 30-year-old Comrie has a 2.99 GAA and .897 SV% in 11 games (5-5-1) and will be desperate to return to the win column on Friday against his former team, the Buffalo Sabres. The Jets enter Friday's contest as -129 home favourites.

The Golden Knights will turn to Schmid between the pipes for the 14th time this season when they travel to New Jersey on Friday. Schmid struggled in his last outing, allowing three goals on 18 shots in a 4-1 loss to the Canadiens last Friday. The 25-year-old netminder owns a 9-2-4 record and .896 SV% on the season. Schmid and the Golden Knights enter action on Friday at -130 on the money line.

Hart apparently suffered an injury at practice on Thursday, and as a result will be unavailable on Friday. Jesper Vikman is expected to back up Akira Schmid.

The Red Wings have been bleeding defensively lately, allowing 34 goals (3.78 GA/GP) in their last nine games (2-4-3) and have not been helped by their offseason acquisition, John Gibson. The Red Wings brought Gibson in to solidify a shaky goaltending position, but have received more of the same unreliability, posting an ugly 3.62 GAA and .868 SV% in 14 games (5-7-1). He has allowed four or more goals in four straight games (1-2-1).

Barron has not played since November 16th, originally listed as day-to-day, has been downgraded to week-to-week. The 24-year-old defenseman is averaging 15:08 time-on-ice and has four assists in 19 games this season.

Wiesblatt suffered an upper-body injury in his first shift of Thursday's 2-1 win over the Florida Panthers, exiting the game after only 15 seconds of ice-time. The 23-year-old is averaging 10:38 time-on-ice and has four points (1G / 3A) in 24 games this season and will likely be sidelined until at least mid-January.

Teravainen has not missed a game this season, but has seemingly battled a nagging injury for several weeks, being a game-time decision on multiple occasions. The 31-year-old Finnish forward has 17 points (6G / 11A) in 27 games this season.

Sourdif exited Wednesday's game in the third period due to a lower-body injury, and his status is uncertain for Friday's game against the Anaheim Ducks. The 23-year-old rookie has six points (3G / 3A) in 27 games this season.

The Capitals are on a six-game winning streak and have skyrocketed to the top of the Eastern Conference with 36 points (17-9-2). The 28-year-old Thompson has continued his momentum from his terrific introductory season with the Capitals in 2024-25, boasting a stellar 2.02 GAA and .919 SV% through 19 games in 2025-26 (12-6-1). The Capitals enter Friday's contest as -136 road favorites against a Ducks team that has lost three of their last five (2-3-0).

With Jeff Skinner (lower body) returning from a multi-game absence, Ryan Reaves will be the odd man out of the lineup as a healthy scratch. The 38-year-old Reaves has two points (2G / 0A) in 24 games and 78 hits in 24 games this season.

Veteran defenseman Nick Leddy will draw back into San Jose's lineup on Friday against the Dallas Stars, sending Iorio back to the press box as a healthy scratch. The 23-year-old Iorio is still searching for his first point through eight games this season.

Skinner has not played in three weeks due to a lower-body injury, but will return to the lineup on Friday against the Dallas Stars. The 33-year-old Skinner, in his first season with the Sharks, has seven points (4G / 3A) in 17 games.

Moore will be a healthy scratch on Friday, as the Ducks return to the traditional formation after rostering seven defenseman in their previous game. The 23-year-old defenseman has four points (2G / 2A) in 17 games this season.

With Lukas Dostal (lower body) and Petr Mrazek (lower body) both sidelined, Husso remains the de facto starting netminder for the Ducks and will tend the twine on Friday against the Washington Capitals. The 30-year-old Husso was excellent in his first outing as the Ducks' temporary starting goalie, saving 21 of 22 shots (.955 SV%) in a 4-1 win over the St. Louis Blues, but followed that up by allowing four goals on 21 shots (.810 SV%) in a dreadful 7-0 loss to the Utah Mammoth. The Ducks enter Friday's contest as +123 home underdogs against a Capitals team outscoring their opposition 27-9 during a six-game winning streak.