Projected lineups, starting goalies for today
Latest line combinations, defense pairs, injury news from NHL.com writers
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NHL.com @NHLdotcom
JETS (18-8-0) at SABRES (11-12-2)
7 p.m. ET; MSG-B, TSN3
Jets projected lineup
Kyle Connor -- Mark Scheifele -- Gabriel Vilardi
Vladislav Namestnikov -- Brad Lambert -- Cole Perfetti
Nino Niederreiter -- Adam Lowry -- Mason Appleton
Morgan Barron -- Rasmus Kupari -- Alex Iafallo
Josh Morrissey -- Neal Pionk
Haydn Fleury -- Dylan DeMelo
Logan Stanley -- Ville Heinola
Connor Hellebuyck
Eric Comrie
Scratched: Dylan Coghlan, Colin Miller
Injured: David Gustafsson (lower body), Nikolaj Ehlers (lower body)
Sabres projected lineup
Jason Zucker -- Tage Thompson -- Alex Tuch
Zach Benson -- Dylan Cozens -- JJ Peterka
Ryan McLeod -- Jiri Kulich -- Tyson Kozak
Beck Malenstyn -- Peyton Krebs -- Nicolas Aube-Kubel
Jacob Bryson -- Bowen Byram
Owen Power -- Henri Jokiharju
Dennis Gilbert -- Connor Clifton
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen
James Reimer
Scratched: Jack Quinn, Ryan Johnson
Injured: Rasmus Dahlin (back spasms), Sam Lafferty (lower body), Jordan Greenway (middle body), Mattias Samuelsson (lower body)
Status report
The Jets are not expected to make any lineup changes. … Dahlin, who a 5-4 loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday after one shift in the third period, was not on the ice for the morning skate. The Sabres are hopeful the defenseman's absence is short term. ... Kozak could make his NHL debut in place of Quinn, who was the last forward off the ice after the morning skate. … Samuelsson, a defenseman, and Greenway, a forward, skated with the Sabres for the first time since each was injured, each in a no-contact jersey.
PREDATORS (7-13-6) at CANADIENS (9-13-3)
7 p.m. ET; RDS, TSN2, FDSNSO
Predators projected lineup
Filip Forsberg -- Ryan O'Reilly -- Gustav Nyquist
Steven Stamkos -- Tommy Novak -- Jonathan Marchessault
Mark Jankowski -- Fedor Svechkov -- Luke Evangelista
Zachary L'Heureux -- Colton Sissons -- Cole Smith
Roman Josi – Alexandre Carrier
Brady Skjei -- Nick Blankenburg
Adam Wilsby -- Luke Schenn
Justus Annunen
Juuse Saros
Scratched: Juuso Parssinen, Marc Del Gaizo
Injured: Michael McCarron (upper body), Jeremy Lauzon (lower body)
Canadiens projected lineup
Cole Caufield -- Nick Suzuki -- Alex Newhook
Juraj Slafkovsky -- Kirby Dach -- Patrik Laine
Josh Anderson -- Christian Dvorak -- Brendan Gallagher
Emil Heineman -- Jake Evans -- Joel Armia
Kaiden Guhle -- Mike Matheson
Lane Hutson -- Jayden Struble
Arber Xhekaj -- David Savard
Sam Montembeault
Cayden Primeau
Scratched: Justin Barron, Michael Pezzetta
Injured: None
Status report
The Predators did not hold a morning skate following a 3-2 loss at the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday. … Annunen could make his first start since he was acquired in a trade with the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday after Saros made 25 saves in his ninth straight start Wednesday. … The Canadiens will use the same lineup from a 2-1 overtime victory against the New York Islanders on Tuesday.
RED WINGS (10-11-4) at SENATORS (10-12-2)
7 p.m. ET; RDSI, TSN5, FDSNDET
Red Wings projected lineup
Michael Rasmussen -- Dylan Larkin -- Lucas Raymond
Alex DeBrincat -- J.T. Compher -- Patrick Kane
Jonatan Berggren -- Marco Kasper -- Vladimir Tarasenko
Tyler Motte -- Andrew Copp -- Christian Fischer
Simon Edvinsson -- Moritz Seider
Ben Chiarot -- Justin Holl
Albert Johansson -- Jeff Petry
Ville Husso
Sebastian Cossa
Scratched: Joe Veleno, Erik Gustafsson
Injured: Cam Talbot (lower body), Alex Lyon (lower body)
Senators projected lineup
Brady Tkachuk -- Josh Norris -- Drake Batherson
Ridly Greig -- Tim Stutzle -- Claude Giroux
Nick Cousins -- Shane Pinto -- Michael Amadio
Noah Gregor -- Zack Ostapchuk -- Adam Gaudette
Jake Sanderson -- Travis Hamonic
Thomas Chabot -- Nick Jensen
Tyler Kleven -- Jacob Bernard-Docker
Linus Ullmark
Anton Forsberg
Scratched: Cole Reinhardt
Injured: Artem Zub (fractured foot), David Perron (upper body), Nikolas Matinpalo (flu)
Status report
Kane will return from an upper-body injury that kept him out five games. … Veleno, a forward, will be a healthy scratch for the first time in six games. … Johansson will take Gustafsson's spot on the third defense pair. … The Senators opted for an off-ice workout instead of a morning skate. Changes were made to all of Ottawa's forward lines in practice Wednesday, including demoting Gaudette, who has 12 goals in 23 games, to the fourth line. … Matinpalo, a defenseman, missed practice Wednesday with the flu and will not dress.
SHARKS (10-13-5) at LIGHTNING (12-9-2)
7 p.m. ET; FDSNSUN, NBCSCA
Sharks projected lineup
William Eklund -- Macklin Celebrini -- Fabian Zetterlund
Luke Kunin -- Alexander Wennberg -- Tyler Toffoli
Klim Kostin -- Mikael Granlund -- Will Smith
Carl Grundstrom -- Nico Sturm -- Ty Dellandrea
Jake Walman -- Cody Ceci
Mario Ferraro -- Timothy Liljegren
Henry Thrun -- Jan Rutta
Vitek Vanecek
Mackenzie Blackwood
Scratched: Givani Smith, Jack Thompson, Ethan Cardwell
Injured: Logan Couture (groin), Marc-Edouard Vlasic (upper body), Barclay Goodrow (upper body)
Lightning projected lineup
Jake Guentzel -- Brayden Point -- Gage Goncalves
Brandon Hagel -- Anthony Cirelli -- Nick Paul
Michael Eyssimont -- Conor Geekie -- Cam Atkinson
Zemgus Girgensons -- Luke Glendening
Victor Hedman -- J.J. Moser
Ryan McDonagh -- Erik Cernak
Emil Lilleberg -- Nick Perbix
Darren Raddysh
Andrei Vasilevskiy
Jonas Johansson
Scratched: None
Injured: Nikita Kucherov (undisclosed), Mitchell Chaffee (undisclosed)
Status report
Kucherov and Chaffee, both forwards, were limited in practice this week and will not play. Both are expected to return during the Lightning's upcoming road trip. ... With this exception of goalie, San Jose is expected to use the same lineup from a 2-1 overtime win at the Washington Capitals on Tuesday.
PANTHERS (15-9-2) at FLYERS (12-10-3)
7 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS, NBCSP, SNP
Panthers projected lineup
Evan Rodrigues -- Aleksander Barkov -- Sam Reinhart
Carter Verhaeghe -- Sam Bennett -- Matthew Tkachuk
Eetu Luostarinen -- Anton Lundell -- Jesper Boqvist
A.J. Greer -- Tomas Nosek -- Jonah Gadjovich
Gustav Forsling -- Aaron Ekblad
Niko Mikkola -- Nate Schmidt
Dmitry Kulikov -- Adam Boqvist
Spencer Knight
Chris Driedger
Scratched: Uvis Balinskis, Sergei Bobrovsky
Injured: None
Flyers projected lineup
Joel Farabee -- Sean Couturier -- Travis Konecny
Owen Tippett -- Morgan Frost -- Matvei Michkov
Tyson Foerster -- Noah Cates -- Bobby Brink
Scott Laughton -- Ryan Poehling -- Garnet Hathaway
Cam York -- Travis Sanheim
Emil Andrae -- Rasmus Ristolainen
Egor Zamula -- Nick Seeler
Ivan Fedotov
Aleksei Kolosov
Scratched: Nicolas Deslauriers, Erik Johnson
Injured: Jamie Drysdale (upper body), Samuel Ersson (lower body)
Status report
The Panthers held an optional morning skate. ... Bobrovsky, who is away from the team awaiting the birth of his child, could play against the San Jose Sharks on Saturday. The goalie will his third straight game Thursday. ... Ersson took part in the morning skate but the goalie will miss his 10th straight game.
AVALANCHE (14-12-0) at HURRICANES (16-8-1)
7 p.m. ET; FDSNSO, ALT
Avalanche projected lineup
Artturi Lehkonen -- Nathan MacKinnon -- Mikko Rantanen
Nikolai Kovalenko -- Casey Mittelstadt -- Valeri Nichushkin
Joel Kiviranta -- Ivan Ivan -- Logan O'Connor
Nikita Prishchepov -- Parker Kelly -- Chris Wagner
Devon Toews -- Cale Makar
Samuel Girard -- Sam Malinski
Calvin de Haan -- John Ludvig
Scott Wedgewood
Alexandar Georgiev
Scratched: Keaton Middleton
Injured: Josh Manson (upper body), Jonathan Drouin (upper body), Ross Colton (broken foot), Oliver Kylington (undisclosed), Gabriel Landeskog (knee), Tucker Poolman (head), Miles Wood (upper body)
Hurricanes projected lineup
Eric Robinson -- Sebastian Aho – Martin Necas
Andre Svechnikov-- Jack Drury -- Jack Roslovic
Seth Jarvis -- Jordan Staal -- Jordan Martinook
William Carrier -- Jesperi Kotkaniemi -- Jackson Blake
Jaccob Slavin -- Brent Burns
Dmitry Orlov -- Jalen Chatfield
Shayne Gostisbehere -- Sean Walker
Pyotr Kochetkov
Dustin Tokarski
Scratched: Ty Smith
Injured: Frederik Andersen (knee)
Status report
The Avalanche held an optional morning skate … Wedgewood, acquired in a trade with the Nashville Predators on Saturday, will make his first start for Colorado … The Hurricanes did not hold a morning skate. … Tokarski, signed by the Hurricanes on Monday, was recalled from Chicago of the American Hockey League on Wednesday.
KRAKEN (12-13-1) at ISLANDERS (9-10-7)
7:30 p.m. ET, HULU, ESPN+
Kraken projected lineup
Jared McCann -- Chandler Stephenson -- Brandon Tanev
Jaden Schwartz -- Matty Beniers -- Yanni Gourde
Eeli Tolvanen -- Shane Wright -- Oliver Bjorkstrand
Tye Kartye -- Mitchell Stephens -- Ryan Winterton
Jamie Oleksiak -- Brandon Montour
Vince Dunn-- Adam Larsson
Josh Mahura -- Will Borgen
Joey Daccord
Philipp Grubauer
Scratched: Daniel Sprong, Andre Burakovsky
Injured: Jordan Eberle (pelvis), Ryker Evans (hand)
Islanders projected lineup
Anders Lee -- Bo Horvat -- Simon Holmstrom
Pierre Engvall -- Brock Nelson -- Kyle Palmieri
Maxim Tsyplakov -- Jean-Gabriel Pageau -- Oliver Wahlstrom
Casey Cizikas -- Kyle MacLean -- Hudson Fasching
Alexander Romanov -- Noah Dobson
Isaiah George -- Ryan Pulock
Scott Mayfield -- Grant Hutton
Ilya Sorokin
Marcus Hogberg
Scratched: Dennis Cholowski, Matt Martin
Injured: Semyon Varlamov (lower body), Anthony Duclair (lower body), Mathew Barzal (upper body), Adam Pelech (upper body), Mike Reilly (heart surgery)
Status report
Varlamov, a goalie, is day to day. Hogberg was recalled from Bridgeport of the American Hockey League on an emergency basis. ... Pelech, a defenseman, skated for the first time since he took a puck to the face during New York's 4-3 win at the Buffalo Sabres on Nov. 1.
BLUES (12-12-2) at FLAMES (13-9-4)
9 p.m. ET; SN1, FDSNMW
Blues projected lineup
Brandon Saad -- Robert Thomas -- Jake Neighbours
Dylan Holloway -- Brayden Schenn -- Jordan Kyrou
Mathieu Joseph -- Oskar Sundqvist -- Zack Bolduc
Alexey Toropchenko -- Radek Faksa -- Nathan Walker
Philip Broberg -- Colton Parayko
Ryan Suter -- Matthew Kessel
Pierre-Olivier Joseph -- Scott Perunovich
Jordan Binnington
Joel Hofer
Scratched: Alexandre Texier
Injured: Pavel Buchnevich (lower body), Nick Leddy (lower body), Justin Faulk (upper body)
Flames projected lineup
Jonathan Huberdeau -- Nazem Kadri -- Martin Pospisil
Yegor Sharangovich -- Mikael Backlund -- Matt Coronato
Blake Coleman -- Connor Zary -- Walker Duehr
Jakob Pelletier -- Kevin Rooney -- Ryan Lomberg
Kevin Bahl -- Rasmus Andersson
MacKenzie Weegar -- Daniil Miromanov
Jake Bean -- Brayden Pachal
Dan Vladar
Dustin Wolf
Scratched: Andrei Kuzmenko, Tyson Barrie, Joel Hanley
Injured: Justin Kirkland (lower body)
Status report
The Blues and Flames each held an optional morning skate. ... Buchnevich, a forward who has missed two games, and Faulk, a defenseman who did not play in a 4-1 win at the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday, both skated Thursday morning. Blues coach Jim Montgomery said he'd know more about their availability in the afternoon. ... Kuzmenko, a forward, will be a healthy scratch for a second consecutive game. ... Kirkland underwent season-ending ACL surgery, the Flames announced Wednesday. The center was injured in the first period of a 5-2 loss at the Columbus Blue Jackets last Friday.
BLUE JACKETS (11-10-3) at OILERS (13-10-2)
9 p.m. SNW, FDSNOH
Blue Jackets projected lineup
Dmitri Voronkov -- Sean Monahan -- Kirill Marchenko
Cole Sillinger -- Adam Fantilli -- Kent Johnson
Mikael Pyyhtia -- Sean Kuraly -- Kevin Lablanc
Zach Werenski -- Dante Fabbro
Ivan Provorov -- Damon Severson
Jake Christiansen -- Jordan Harris
Daniil Tarasov
Elvis Merzlikins
Scratched: Jack Johnson, James Van Riemsdyk
Injured: Yegor Chinakhov (upper body)
Oilers projected lineup
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins -- Connor McDavid -- Zach Hyman
Vasily Podkolzin -- Leon Draisaitl -- Kasperi Kapanen
Jeff Skinner -- Adam Henrique -- Mattias Janmark
Corey Perry -- Derek Ryan -- Connor Brown
Mattias Ekholm -- Evan Bouchard
Darnell Nurse -- Troy Stecher
Brett Kulak -- Ty Emberson
Calvin Pickard
Stuart Skinner
Scratched: Travis Dermott
Injured: None
Status report
Pyyhtia enters the lineup for Van Riemsdyk, a forward ... Hyman returns to the Oilers top line after missing the past five games with an undisclosed injury. That bumps Kapanen down to the second line and Brown down to the fourth. … Drake Caggiula, a forward, was loaned to Bakersfield of the American Hockey League.
