Smith suffered what appeared to be a left-leg injury in the third period of Tuesday’s loss in Ottawa. Smith was trying to scramble across the net to make a save before getting all tangled up in the cage. The severity of Smith’s injury has yet to be determined, but lengthy injuries are nothing new to the Yotes’ netminder. Expect an update within the next 24 hours.
Smith gave up three goals on 30 shots in the Coyotes’ overtime win over the Flyers in their season opener. It was a good start to the year for Smith, who is expected to start again tonight in Ottawa. Smith has a very young team in front of him so there will be rough nights, but tonight he faces a Senators team that is giving up 4.00 goals per game to start the season.
Smith gave up three goals on 30 shots in the Coyotes’ overtime win over the Flyers in their season opener. It was a good start to the year for Smith, who is expected to start again tonight in Ottawa. Smith has a very young team in front of him so there will be rough nights, but tonight he faces a Senators team that is giving up 4.00 goals per game to start the season.
Semyon Varlamov started Colorado’s season opener on Saturday, but they will turn to Pickard tonight in the first game of a back-to-back set. Pickard was 7-6-1 with a 2.56 GAA and .922 SV% in 13 starts and seven relief appearances last year. The 24-year-old will be a strong spot-start option throughout the season, but is a risky option tonight in Pittsburgh.
Kulak, 22, sat out of the first two games of the season, but will be in the lineup for Dennis Wideman on Saturday. Kulak had 17 points (3G / 14A) in 59 games with Stockton (AHL) a season ago. He has no points in nine career NHL games.
The Coyotes are one of the last teams to get their 2016-17 season underway, but it will start tonight vs. a Flyers team on the tail-end of a back-to-back. To no one’s surprise, Smith will start their season opener and he is hoping for a much healthy season this year. Smith was limited to 32 starts last year and went 15-13-2 with a 2.63 GAA and .916 SV%.
The oft-injured Blue Jackets’ defenseman was injured while blocking a shot in the season opener and likely won’t play vs. the Sharks on Saturday. With Scott Harrington being sent on a conditioning stint, expect Dalton Prout to replace Murray in the lineup.
Griffith, 23, was a fifth round pick (131st overall) in 2012 and developed into a high-end AHLer scorer, but never found his way with Boston. Griffith is familiar with Maple Leafs’ assistant GM Mark Hunter from his time with the London Knights. Griffith had 77 points (24G / 53A) in 57 games with Providence (AHL) last season and has a chance to crack the Maple Leafs’ bottom-6 following this claim.
Janmark is reportedly dealing with Osteochondritis dissecans and will undergo surgery on Friday afternoon. The Stars have been ravaged by injuries in training camp and this is a big loss for them. Janmark was expected to play an expanded role early in the season because Cody Eakin is currently sidelined with a knee injury of his own. Janmark may miss the entire season.
Pickard, 24, is likely the goalie of the future in Colorado and he signs a two-year “bridge” deal while Semyon Varlamov is still in town. The two-year deal will keep Pickard as a restricted free agent so the Avalanche have control of him when this contract expires. He was 7-6-1 with a 2.56 GAA and .922 SV% with the Avalanche last season and carries a career 2.46 GAA and .927 SV% in 26 career NHL starts.
Malone, 27, is an NHL fourth liner. He had just six points and 75 PIMS in 57 games last season and has just 30 points in 176 career NHL games. Malone will likely replace Michael Latta, who signed with the Kings.
Demers was acquired mid-season in 2014-15, so 2015-16 was his first full season with the Stars. He missed 20 games, but still picked up 23 points (7G / 16A) in 62 games. He is a solid two-way defenseman who solidifies the Panthers’ second pairing and should look good as the third best defenseman on the team behind Aaron Ekblad and Keith Yandle.
Kapanen has appeared in the last five games, but will return to the Marlies, so he can play on Friday. The 19 year old has not recorded a point in nine NHL games, but has 25 points (9G / 16A) in 41 AHL games.
Pickard stopped 23 of 24 shots after replacing Semyon Varlamov in Colorado’s loss to the Blues on Sunday. Pickard has only started 12 games this season, but has appeared in seven other games—overall he is 7-5-1 with a 2.53 GAA, .923 SV% and one shutout. He’ll be in tough against a Stars team that has won seven of their last nine while averaging 3.44 goals per game.
Pickard stopped 23 of 24 shots after replacing Semyon Varlamov in Colorado’s loss to the Blues on Sunday. Pickard has only started 12 games this season, but has appeared in seven other games—overall he is 7-5-1 with a 2.53 GAA, .923 SV% and one shutout. He’ll be in tough against a Stars team that has won seven of their last nine while averaging 3.44 goals per game.
Koekkoek played just 12:08 TOI on Tuesday and he swaps places with Matt Taormina, who will take his spot tonight. Koekkoek heads back to Syracuse where he has 15 points (5G / 10A) in 55 games.
Smith allowed five goals on 26 shots in the Coyotes loss in St. Louis on Monday. Louis Domingue started on Tuesday, but they’ll go back to Smith tonight in Nashville. Smith has gone 5-3-0 with a 1.78 GAA, .946 SV% and two shutouts in eight games since returning to the crease in mid-March. Tonight he faces a Predators team that has lost four of their last five games.
