Dallas Stars
Centre Matt Duchene (22G, 33A) is considered day-to-day for the Dallas Stars ahead of their meeting with the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday, February 20 (7:00 p.m. ET).
He was unable to play in the 4-3 shootout defeat to the Boston Bruins on Monday due to a lower-body injury. The Stars will be happy they managed to still pick up a point despite the loss.
Dallas also played without a trio of defensemen in Miro Heiskanen (personal reasons), Jani Hakanpää (upper body) and Nils Lundkvist (upper body). Their limited roster makes the point against the Bruins even more impressive.
Florida Panthers
Aaron Ekblad looks set to return to the ice for the Florida Panthers as they welcome the Ottawa Senators to Amerant Bank Arena, Sunrise on Tuesday (7:00 p.m. ET).
The defenseman has recovered from a lower-body injury and is likely to feature. All-Star Goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky will also start against the Senators. He is 6-0-0 over his last six games.
William Lockwood is in doubt due to concussion. He hasn’t played since January 19th, but has been practicing this week. The Panthers are currently on a five-game winning streak in the NHL and are just one point behind Eastern Conference leaders the Bruins.
The Panthers impressed in a 9-2 road win against the Tampa Bay Lightning last Saturday, earning their ninth win in ten games. Matthew Tkachuk scored twice and he now has 64 points on the season.
Vancouver Canucks
The Vancouver Canucks will play in the second of a back-to-back on Tuesday (7:00 p.m. ET) as their three-game road stint continues against the Colorado Avalanche at Ball Arena.
Dakota Joshua (13G, 13A) is considered week-to-week due to an upper-body injury that has seen him miss the last three games. It seems unlikely he’ll play in the next game and his absence will continue to be felt.
The Canucks have lost two of three games without Joshua, and suffered a 10-7 defeat on the road to the Minnesota Wild on Monday. Carson Soucy, Guillaume Brisebois and Tucker Poolman all remain on injured reserve (IR).
Despite taking a three-goal lead in their clash with the Wild, Vancouver gave up six goals in six minutes en route to their deafening loss at Xcel Energy Center.
Winnipeg Jets
The Winnipeg Jets should have a full strength roster to choose from for their home matchup at Canada Life Centre with the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday (8:00 p.m. ET).
They will be looking for a response following a 6-3 loss to the Calgary Flames on Monday that ended a three-game winning streak. The Jets took a 3-1 lead in the first period, but failed to score in either the second or third, succumbing to a three-point game by Nazem Kadri.
Netminder Connor Hellebuyck will be disappointed after giving up five goals, despite making 28 saves. However, Sean Monahan will be looking to continue his strong run after earning his second career hat trick against the Flames.
Boston Bruins
Forward Matt Poitras has been placed on long-term injured reserve (LTIR) for the Boston Bruins ahead of their road game at Rogers Place with the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday (10:00 p.m. ET).
Further roster transactions were made by the Bruins with forward Oskar Steen assigned to Providence, and defenseman Mason Lohrei recalled from Providence.
Jakub Lauko (upper body) was unable to feature on Monday in the 4-3 shootout win over Dallas. Defenseman Hampus Lindholm had to leave the game in the third period due to injury so is questionable for the clash against the Oilers.
Goalie Jeremy Swayman impressed in the victory over the Stars, making eight saves on nine attempts during the shootout to ensure the win and end a four-game skid.
Colorado Avalanche
The Colorado Avalanche will be gearing up for their crucial Western Conference battle at home to the Canucks on Tuesday (7:00 p.m. ET).
Winger Logan O’Connor (13G, 12A) is considered day-to-day due to a lower-body injury. He missed Sunday’s 4-3 triumph at home to the Arizona Coyotes, but is nearing a return.
The Avalanche are already dealing with a plethora of injury issues at the moment. Valeri Nichushkin, Gabriel Landeskog and Pavel Francouz are all currently on IR.
Key player Nathan MacKinnon added his 33rd goal of the season against the Coyotes, taking his points tally to 91 for the campaign.
Toronto Maple Leafs
John Tavares will be available once again for the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday in their road trip to Arizona as they square off against the Coyotes at Mullet Area, Tempe (10:00 p.m. ET).
He was considered questionable for the 4-2 win away to the St. Louis Blues on Monday, but was able to feature. However, Matt Murray, John Klingberg, Jake Muzzin, Joseph Woll, Calle Jarnkrok and Connor Timmins all remain on IR.
Defenseman William Lagesson was also absent for Monday’s victory over the Blues and so remains day-to-day ahead of the game with the Coyotes.
The Maple Leafs are looking to extend a four-game winning streak and improve upon their third-placed ranking in the Atlantic Division. They have been without star defenseman Morgan Reilly, too, due to a five-game suspension. He will serve the final game of his ban against Arizona.
