Paul was hurt midway through Tuesday's game in Washington and did not accompany the team to Detroit. With Paul out, Connor Brown is back in the Senators top-6 and Rudlofs Balcers will see some power-play time.
Vasilevskiy allowed two goals on 23 shots in the Lightning's win over the Canucks on Tuesday. Vasilevskiy extended his winning streak to six games, posting a 2.17 GAA and .932 SV% in the process. Tonight he takes on a Coyotes team with their third-string netminder but also riding a four-game winning streak.
McDonagh will miss both games on the Lightning's short home-stand and is listed as "out indefinitely." Brayden Coburn is expected to remain in the lineup while McDonagh is sidelined.
Vasilevskiy allowed one goal on 29 shots in the Lightning's 3-1 win in Carolina on Sunday. Vasilevskiy has won five consecutive games while posting a 2.20 GAA and .935 SV%. The entire team is playing great hockey right now, making Vasilevskiy a great option vs. the Canucks. They've won seven in a row but have lost seven of their last 11 road games.
Elliott allowed two goals on nine shots after replacing Carter Hart in the Flyers 6-2 loss in Arizona on Saturday. Neither goalie had any success against the Coyotes but they'll go back to the veteran tonight in Carolina. Elliott is 7-4-0 with a 3.19 GAA and .898 SV% on the road and gave up three goals on 36 shots in a 5-3 win in his first start in Carolina (Nov.21).
McDonagh was hurt last night in Ottawa and will not be available for tonight's game in Carolina. With McDonagh out, Brayden Coburn will draw back into the Lightning lineup.
Vasilevskiy struggled in his last outing, allowing four goals on 28 shots but still left Buffalo with his 17th win of the season. It's the second time in a row he's won while along four goals and the fifth time in his last six starts that he's allowed at least three goals. He has played well against the Canadiens this year though, going 2-0-0 with a 2.50 GAA and .935 SV% and tonight they'll be without Brendan Gallagher.
Elliott allowed one goal on 28 shots in the Flyers win in Anaheim on Sunday. Elliott has won his last two starts and is 7-3-0 with a 2.95 GAA and .909 SV% in 13 road appearances (10 starts) this season. Tonight he faces a Kings team that has lost four of their last seven (3-3-1) home games while averaging just 2.29 goals per game.
Vasilevskiy allowed four goals on 43 shots in the Lightning's win over the Canadiens on Saturday. Vasilevskiy has won six of his last eight starts while posting a 2.48 GAA and .920 SV%. The 25-year-old is 2-0-0 with a 2.00 GAA and .923 SV% in his first two starts against the Sabres this season.
Guentzel injured his shoulder while falling awkwardly into the boards after scoring his 20th goal of the season and will miss at least four months. The Penguins have battled injuries all season-long and have managed to go 24-11-4 (2nd in the Metro) but this is a huge blow to their top-6.
Vasilevskiy allowed one goal on 30 shots in the Lightning's 6-1 win over the Panthers on Monday. Vasilevskiy has won five of his last seven starts (5-1-1) while posting a 2.26 GAA and .922 SV% and gets set to face the Canadiens for the second time this season. He stopped 33 of 34 shots in a 3-1 win in Montreal in the first meeting back in mid-October.
Atkinson was hurt vs. the Kings on December 19th and missed the final two games before the Christmas break. This is a tough time for Atkinson to get hurt because he was finally heating up--scoring five goals with two assists in his previous nine games. With Atkinson, among others, sidelined newcomers like Kevin Stenlund and Eric Robinson have been tasked with playing top-6 roles for Columbus.
This is new territory for Seabrook, who has missed only 19 games since becoming a full-time NHLer in 2006-07. While his play has fallen off a bit in recent years, Seabrook is still an integral part of the Blackhawks blueline, playing 18:09 ATOI this season. IN addition to the right shoulder surgery, Seabrook is also scheduled to have surgery n his right hip in early-January and his left hip in early-February, paving a long road to recovery for the 34-year-old defenseman. The one bit of positive news is his move to LTIR frees up $6.875M in cap-space for Chicago to work with this season.
Atkinson suffered a lower-body injury on Thursday and will be out through the Christmas break. That means Atkinson will not play Saturday or Monday, which makes him questionable in Washington coming out of the break.
Vasilevskiy allowed three goals on 28 shots in the Lightning's overtime win over the Senators on Tuesday. Vasilevskiy has won four of his last five starts while posting a 2.18 GAA and .929 SV%. Vasilevskiy and the Lightning are turning things around and tonight they face a Stars team that has lost three of their last four road games while scoring just seven goals (1.75 GF/gm).
With Duncan Keith returning to the lineup after missing nine games with a groin injury, Seabrook will be scratched vs. the Avalanche. Seabrook has been held pointless with a minus-4 rating in his last 12 games.
