This article is part of our The Daily Puck series.
Around the Rink
Since I'm deathly ill (okay, maybe I'm exaggerating, but I don't feel awesome right now), I hope you guys will forgive me for not offering any of my glorious insights in this space this week and moving right along to Tuesday's action.
Projected Goalie Starters (all times Eastern)
Blackhawks (Scott Darling) at Devils (Cory Schneider), 7:00
Flyers (Steve Mason) at Blue Jackets (Sergei Bobrovsky), 7:00
Kings (Jonathan Quick) at Sabres (Jhonas Enroth), 7:30
Flames (Jonas Hiller) at Maple Leafs (Jonathan Bernier), 7:30
Canucks (Ryan Miller) at Canadiens (Carey Price), 7:30
Capitals (Braden Holtby) at Lightning (Ben Bishop), 7:30
Islanders (Jaroslav Halak) at Wild (Niklas Backstrom), 8:00
Jets (Michael Hutchinson) at Stars (Kari Lehtonen), 8:30
Predators (Pekka Rinne) at Avalanche (Semyon Varlamov), 9:00
Oilers (Viktor Fasth) at Sharks (Antti Niemi), 10:30
For updates on the projected goalies later in the day, check out our Projected Goalies Grid.
Injury News For Teams Playing Tuesday
Chicago Blackhawks
Patrick Sharp, LW (leg) – Expected back Tuesday
Corey Crawford, G (foot) – Out a matter of weeks
Trevor van Riemsdyk, D (knee) – Remains out into next year following surgery
New Jersey Devils
Travis Zajac, C (lower body) – Lingering on IR with no updates
Ryane Clowe, LW (head) – Remains out indefinitely
Adam Larsson, D (illness) – Not traveling with team for Monday
Michael Cammalleri, LW (lower body) – Also not traveling for Monday's game
Patrik Elias, LW (groin) – Another one not joining the team in Carolina on Monday
Bryce Salvador, D (lower body) – Has been on IR for three weeks; no word on status
Philadelphia Flyers
Ryan White, RW (chest) – Looking at late-December or early-January return
Columbus Blue Jackets
Artem Anisimov, C (triceps) – Out 2-3 months
Cody Goloubef, D (leg) – Feeling good; nearing return
Mark Letestu, C (groin/abdomen) – Out about another five weeks
Ryan Murray, D (knee) – Lingering on IR for a while now with no updates
Fedor Tyutin, D (knee) – About 1-3 weeks away
Los Angeles Kings
Marian Gaborik, RW (upper body) – On top line in practice Sunday, so likely back Tuesday
Kyle Clifford, LW (illness) – Has the flu; check back for Tuesday status
Slava Voynov, D (suspension) – Remains suspended indefinitely
Buffalo Sabres
Andrej Meszaros, D (concussion) – Practicing without contact
Calgary Flames
Sam Bennett, LW (shoulder) – Hoping to resume skating at some point in January
Mikael Backlund, C (abdomen) – Week-to-week after late-November surgery
Joe Colborne, C (wrist) – Will skate Tuesday and travel with the team
Mason Raymond, LW (upper body) – Expected to return Tuesday after long absence
Toronto Maple Leafs
Roman Polak, D (knee) – Finally hit IR over weekend; out at least another couple weeks
Carter Ashton, RW (suspension) – Tuesday marks 15th game of 20-game ban
Leo Komarov, LW (concussion) – Didn't practice Monday; likely out again Tuesday
Vancouver Canucks
Dan Hamhuis, D (lower body) – Not with team on current road trip
Shawn Matthias, C (head) – Didn't go Sunday; questionable for Tuesday
Zack Kassian, RW (finger) – Out about another week or so
Montreal Canadiens
Lars Eller, C (upper body) – Didn't practice Monday; unlikely for Tuesday
Mike Weaver, D (concussion) – Doubtful for Tuesday; expected length of absence unknown
Bryan Allen, D (illness) – Didn't practice Monday, so unlikely for Tuesday
Washington Capitals
John Erskine, D (neck) – Remains out indefinitely
Mike Green, D (upper body) – Won't play Tuesday
Tampa Bay Lightning
None
New York Islanders
Matt Carkner, D (back) – Out for the year
Josh Bailey, LW (foot) – Has missed two straight; no word on return
Travis Hamonic, D (upper body) – Hit IR last week; out long-term
Casey Cizikas, C (face) – Day-to-day after stick to face Saturday
Lubomir Visnovsky, D (upper body) – Back at practice Friday
Johnny Boychuk, D (upper body) – Out indefinitely
Minnesota Wild
Josh Harding, G (illness) – Had his MS act up again in AHL; out indefinitely
Mikko Koivu, C (undisclosed) – Practiced Monday; expected to play TUesday
Matt Cooke, LW (hip) – Still a couple weeks away
Charlie Coyle, RW (illness) – Has stomach issue; check back for Tuesday status
Winnipeg Jets
Toby Enstrom, D (lower body) – Out at least three more weeks
Zach Bogosian, D (lower body) – Out 4-6 weeks
Grant Clitsome, D (undisclosed) – Out about another week and a half
Evander Kane, LW (suspension) – First of two-game ban Tuesday
Dallas Stars
Valeri Nichushkin, LW (hip) – Remains out into March
Shawn Horcoff, C (illness) – Tuesday status in doubt
Patrick Eaves, RW (ankle) – Out 4-6 weeks with broken ankle
Nashville Predators
Anton Volchenkov, D (lower body) – Didn't play Saturday; game-time call for Tuesday
Derek Roy, C (upper body) – Has missed four straight; no timetable
Paul Gaustad, C (lower body) – Expected return unknown
Colorado Avalanche
Ben Street, C (hand) – Should be close to a return, but no word from team
Marc-Andre Cliche, C (oblique) – Out about another week
Semyon Varlamov, G (groin) – Reinjured himself at Monday's practice
Jamie McGinn, LW (back) – Having back surgery; could be done for the year
John Mitchell, C (leg) – Has missed six of last seven; return date unknown
Brad Stuart, D (hamstring) – Has been "day-to-day" for more than two weeks
Edmonton Oilers
Benoit Pouliot, LW (foot) – Expected out into January
Matt Hendricks, LW (leg) – Has missed four straight; Tuesday status uncertain
Nikita Nikitin, D (back) – Placed on IR Monday, but could be a short absence
San Jose Sharks
Matthew Nieto, LW (lower body) – Out two straight; no word on Tuesday
Troy Grosenick, G (upper body) – Length of expected absence unknown
Tyler Kennedy, LW (arm) – Out indefinitely
Raffi Torres, LW (knee) – Remains out with no updates
Hot
Jacob Trouba, D, WPG – The 20-year-old Trouba's had his struggles at times in his sophomore year, but he's gotten things going lately, racking up a pair of goals, six assists and a plus-4 rating in his last six contests. Half of those points have come on the power play, where Trouba's been getting plenty of time of late despite the fact that he recorded zero man-advantage points in his first 22 contests of the season. If he stays healthy, 40 points should be well within his capabilities.
Pavel Datsyuk, C, DET – For a period of time there, Datsyuk was cold and injured. I hope you bought low, as he's been absolutely en fuego since returning to the ice, notching five multi-point games in seven contests. That adds up to seven goals and four assists in those seven games for The Magician, who's also gone a stunning plus-10 in that span. Finally healthy, he's on one of the better scoring paces of his career.
Cold
Andrej Sekera, D, CAR – On the heels of last season's stunning and unforeseen 11-goal, 44-point breakout, Sekera has turned in a brutal 2014-15 so far. He owns just eight points (all assists) and a minus-10 rating for the season, and a lot of that non-production has come lately. Sekera's without a point in his last six games, and he's accumulated a minus-8 with just five shots on goal in that span. It was easy to expect him to fall back to his typical mediocrity, but I did not see this spectacular futility coming.
P.A. Parenteau, RW, MON – Parenteau's game declined a bit last year in Colorado, but he was still a useful player when he was on the ice. Not so this year. The 31-year-old Quebecois has been a disaster in his first season in Montreal, with just 11 points (six goals, five assists) to show for 29 games. He's been particularly poor of late, with no points in his last five games and just two points (a goal and an assist) to go with a minus-3 rating over his last 11. Unsurprisingly, he's been seeing his ice time wither – he's skated under 13 minutes in each of the last three games.
Recommended Pickup
Aaron Ekblad, D, FLA – Somehow, this year's No. 1 pick remains widely available (particularly on ESPN) despite his pedigree and his spectacular performances of late. That needs to change in a hurry. Not only has Ekblad been hot lately – six points in his last four contests – but he's simply been producing all year long, with four goals and 17 points in 25 games so far – not to mention a plus-6 rating, good for second-best on the team. The Panthers have been entrusting the 18-year-old with big minutes, including plenty of power-play time, and he's rewarded them by developing quickly. Ekblad's on a 55-point pace from the blue line; he should be owned in every single league out there.
