Rifai and Maxime Lajoie will sit on Thursday as Morgan Rielly and William Lagesson will draw back into the Leafs' lineup. Rifai is pointless through two games with the Leafs this season.

Reaves will take the place of Noah Gregor as the Leafs opt to get fresh legs in their lineup for the tail-end of their back-to-back. Reaves has two goals and no assists in 28 games this season.

Nylander was never able to secure a full-time role with the Penguins, making just 14 appearances for the team over the last two seasons. The former eighth-overall pick has played primarily with the AHL's Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins this season, scoring 17 goals and adding 15 assists in 43 games.

Rielly has finished serving his five-game suspension and will return to the Maple Leafs lineup on the road in Vegas on Thursday night. Before his suspension, Rielly was having a terrific season and was amid a season-best five-game point streak with six points (0G / 6A).

Noah Gregor will draw back into the lineup on Wednesday, making Reaves a healthy scratch for the second time in the last four games. Reaves has one goal and 24 hits in his last seven games.

Boris Katchouk will be a healthy scratch on Wednesday, allowing Johnson to re-enter the Blackhawks' lineup. Johnson has played only one of the last six games for the Blackhawks. He has three points (2G / 1A), 42 shots, and 96 hits in 34 games this season.

Woll has not played since December 7th due to an ankle injury and, after participating in practice the last two weeks, will join the Marlies (AHL) for a conditioning stint. When the 25-year-old returns to the lineup, he will be looking to build off his strong start to the season and add to his 8-5-1 record, 2.80 GAA, and .916 SV%.

Mermis had been a regular in the lineup for six weeks before being a healthy scratch in the last two games. The 30-year-old Mermis has seven points (2G / 5A) in 37 games this season while primarily playing on a defensive pair with Jon Merrill, who will draw out of the lineup in favour of Mermis on Tuesday.

Tavares has missed two of the last three games, one with an illness and, most recently, an undisclosed injury, but will return to the lineup Monday afternoon. In his last outing, Tavares played 20:54 time-on-ice and recorded three shots on goal. The veteran forward is averaging an impressive 3.7 shots per game over his last 10.

Rifai has played the last two seasons with the Toronto Marlies and has 11 points (2G / 9A) in 34 games this season. He is expected to skate on the third defensive pair with Maxime Lajoie.

Derrick Pouliot and Alex Petrovic were recalled from the Texas Stars (AHL) on Monday morning. They will be drawn into the lineup for a Stars team without Hakanpaa and Miro Heiskanen (personal). Hakanpaa suffered an upper-body injury in Saturday's contest against the Edmonton Oilers and played only 11:47 on the ice.

Tavares has missed two of the last three games, one with an illness and most recently an undisclosed injury, but is trending toward a return to the lineup. In his last outing, Tavares played 20:54 time-on-ice and recorded three shots on goal. The veteran forward is averaging an impressive 3.7 shot per game over his last 10.

Mermis has been a regular in the lineup for the last six weeks but will be a healthy scratch on Saturday against the Buffalo Sabres. The 30-year-old Mermis has seven points (2G / 5A) in 37 games this season while primarily playing on a defensive pair with Jon Merrill.

Nylander, John Tavares, and Mitch Marner were all absent from practice on Wednesday due to illness but appears to be ready to go after returning to practice on Thursday. Nylander has five points (3G / 2A) in his last four games.