This article is part of our The Daily Puck series.
Around the Rink
I really think they're never going to get Ryan Miller to leave St. Louis. In four games since being dealt to the Blues, Miller's allowed all of six goals with a .933 save mark and collected four wins. This must be quite the golden feeling for him, especially considering the fact that he hasn't been over .500 since 2011-12. With that exceptionally strong Blues team in front of him, Miller's got to be feeling like the king of the world since being traded out of the Buffalo gulag.
Rich Peverley freaked out the hockey world – and especially his Stars teammates – by collapsing on the bench during the first period of Monday's game against Columbus. Fortunately, Peverley – who underwent surgery for an irregular heartbeat before the season started – made it to the hospital alright and is in good condition now. The league responded by postponing the remainder of the game, which the Blue Jackets lead 1-0 even as you read this. Peverley had just been heating up with the Stars, having collected two assists in the last three games while seeing ice time with Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn, so this incident represents a major setback to his career advancement as well as his health.
Finally, because it's just not a day of nice news, my heart goes out to Matt Stajan and his family for the tragic loss of their new son just after childbirth. This is one of those moments that grabs you by the collar and shakes you until you remember that life is so much bigger than this – or any – game. I don't know how anyone goes back to work after a tragedy like that; it's truly life-altering.
Projected Goalie Starters (all times Eastern)
For updates on the projected goalies later in the day, check our Projected Goalies Grid.
Predators (Carter Hutton) at Sabres (Jhonas Enroth), 7:00 PM
Devils (Martin Brodeur) at Flyers (Steve Mason), 7:00 PM
Rangers (Henrik Lundqvist) at Hurricanes (Anton Khudobin), 7:00 PM
Red Wings (Jimmy Howard) at Blue Jackets (Sergei Bobrovsky), 7:00 PM
Coyotes (Mike Smith) at Panthers (Roberto Luongo), 7:30 PM
Capitals (Braden Holtby) at Penguins (Marc-Andre Fleury), 7:30 PM
Stars (Tim Thomas) at Blues (Ryan Miller), 8:00 PM
Oilers (Ben Scrivens) at Wild (Darcy Kuemper), 8:00 PM
Maple Leafs (James Reimer) at Sharks (Antti Niemi), 10:30 PM
Injury News for Teams Playing Tuesday
Buffalo Sabres
Chris Stewart, RW (ankle) – Out at least another week
Patrick Kaleta, RW (knee) – Skating, but still likely out for the year
Torrey Mitchell, C (foot) – Also out at least another week
Alexander Sulzer, D (lower body) – Hurt Friday; out one-to-two weeks
Zemgus Girgensons, C (lower body) – Another one out at least a week
Philadelphia Flyers
Ray Emery, G (groin) – Doubtful for Tuesday
Carolina Hurricanes
John-Michael Liles, D (upper body) – Won't go Tuesday
Eric Staal, C (illness) – Missed Monday's practice
Justin Faulk, D (upper body) – Could return later this week
Detroit Red Wings
Dan Cleary, RW (knee) – Should be nearing a return
Stephen Weiss, C (sports hernia) – Had a setback
Pavel Datsyuk, C (knee) – Out for about the next 2.5 weeks
Henrik Zetterberg, LW (back) – Optimism he'll return this year
Mikael Samuelsson, RW (shoulder) – On IR
Joakim Andersson, C (foot) – Out at least a couple weeks
Darren Helm, C (concussion) – Out at least another week
Jonas Gustavsson, G (groin) – Has sore groin; day-to-day
Alexey Marchenko, D (ankle) – Out for the year
Columbus Blue Jackets
Ryan Murray, D (knee) – Had surgery; out 4-6 weeks, which is pretty much the season
Jared Boll, RW (ankle) – Says he's "very close" to returning
Fedor Tyutin, D (ankle) – Skating, but still not playing
Phoenix Coyotes
Martin Hanzal, C (lower body) – Sat Monday
David Schlemko, D (lower body) – Expected to miss remainder of road trip
Florida Panthers
Erik Gudbranson, D (knee) – Status clarified from lower-body to knee injury
Aleksander Barkov, C (knee) – Out indefinitely
Tomas Kopecky, RW (concussion) – Indefinitely out
Washington Capitals
Mikhail Grabovski, C (ankle) – Placed on IR
John Erskine, D (head) – Has passed concussion protocol, so should return soon
Aaron Volpatti, LW (shoulder) – Still not practicing
Pittsburgh Penguins
Beau Bennett, RW (wrist) – Hopes to return by mid-late March
Brian Gibbons, C (lower body) – Didn't go Monday
Robert Bortuzzo, D (upper body) – Couldn't go Monday
Pascal Dupuis, RW (knee) – Out into April
Paul Martin, D (hand) – On IR; out about another four weeks
Kris Letang, D (illness) – On IR; out indefinitely
Chris Conner, RW (wrist) – Broke his foot Sundayl out 4-6 weeks
Tomas Vokoun, G (pelvis) – Skating with the team, but still no word on pending return
Dallas Stars
Kari Lehtonen, G (concussion) – No timetable for return
Rich Peverley, RW (chest) – Treated successfully at hospital after scary collapse Monday
St. Louis Blues
Vladimir Sobotka, C (knee) – Practicing; expected back relatively soon
Jordan Leopold, D (ankle) – Out about another week
Edmonton Oilers
Anton Belov, D (oblique) – On IR; out a few weeks
Minnesota Wild
Josh Harding, G (multiple sclerosis) – No updates; not looking good
Niklas Backstrom, G (abdomen) – Will require surgery; likely out for the season
Jason Zucker, LW (lower body) – Lingering on IR with no updates
Brett Bulmer, LW (aknle/knee) – Should be nearing a return, but no updates
Toronto Maple Leafs
Colton Orr, RW (undisclosed) – Didn't return as he was expected to Monday
Dave Bolland, C (ankle) – Seeing a specialist
San Jose Sharks
Tomas Hertl, C (knee) – Skating and progressing, but still a ways away
Brad Stuart, D (upper body) – Not close to returning
Martin Havlat, RW (pelvis) – Still feeling effects from offseason surgery
Hot
Adam Henrique, C, NJ – What in the dickens has gotten into this guy? Since the Olympics, Henrique and the Devils have played six games. Henrique's scored a goal in each and every one of 'em – nine in total – and dished out a couple assists as well, because why not. He's been the league's best fantasy asset since the resumption of play. After totaling a quite meager 14 goals and 13 assists in his first 59 games, Henrique suddenly looks like a superstar. I don't get this game sometimes. And I do think he'll fall back to normality. That said, don't forget this run in next year's drafts.
Ryan McDonagh, D, NYR – McDonagh was expected to break out and score big last year, but it never materialized. This season, though, he's flashing the results to go with his potential. Already a top-flight defender, McD's set new career highs in goals (11) and points (35), padding those stats in a recent four-game burst that's seen him rattle off three goals and two assists. Already one of the Rangers' most-used skaters, he's seeing more consistent time on the power play recently, and he's producing shorthanded points as well. Ride him down the stretch in comfort and style.
Jhonas Enroth, G, BUF – Okay, so playing for Buffalo does him no favors, but Enroth's rattled off four straight high-quality outings, posting at least a .923 in each game and allowing just eight goals in that span. He has just two wins to show for that fine work, but Enroth's currently offering a degree of stability in the Buffalo nets that at least approaches what Ryan Miller was doing for them before the trade.
Cold
Eddie Lack, G, VAN – With Roberto Luongo sent back to whence he came (that is, Florida), Lack received a golden opportunity to take over the No. 1 goaltending job for the Canucks, and things were going relatively well at first. Not so much anymore. Lack's last three games have been a near-total disaster, with a rare win against lowly Calgary failing to make up for a five-goal pounding in Dallas and a six-goal catastrophe Monday against the Islanders. He's gonna keep getting most of the starts for the Canucks, but look for Jacob Markstrom to start working his way in more often.
Cory Schneider, G, NJ – Post-Olympic life has not been good to Schneider, who hasn't cleared a .900 save mark in any of his three starts since the break – and worse, he's yielded three starts to Martin Brodeur since the Olympics as well. Schneider was lit up for seven goals in Detroit on Friday, and he'll sit out his second straight on Tuesday as Brodeur gets another start despite his own poor play.
Jacob Trouba, D, WPG – Trouba killed it in December and January – a sparkling 19 points and plus-14 in 24 games over those two months – only to see things dry up suddenly come February and March, two months in which he's totaled all of two assists in 10 games while going minus-3. Of course, ups and downs are to be expected from any 20-year-old defenseman, even one with the pure skills that Trouba possesses. Despite this recent slump, his season numbers (nearly a half-point per game and a plus-7 rating) would make nearly any other rookie defenseman green with envy.
Recommended Pickup
Evgeni Kuznetsov, C, WAS – Despite the fact that Kuznetsov is a big-time prospect and a former first-round pick (26th in 2010 due to the Russian factor), fantasy owners have thus far been slow to catch on to his arrival stateside. And though he skated just 10:22 with no points in his NHL debut, Kuznetsov was noticeable out there. He took two shots on goal and saw some power-play time with Nicklas Backstrom and Alex Ovechkin, which can only bode well for his future results. There's probably a guy on the back of you roster with far less upside than the 21-year-old rookie.
