RALEIGH, N.C. -- Thursday's game between the Rangers and Hurricanes will be the first time Hurricanes forward Eric Staal and his brother, Rangers defensemen Marc Staal, have played against each other since Eric's big hit put Marc out of the lineup last February with a concussion.

"I enjoy competing against him," said Eric. "I enjoy the fact that I'm playing a game I love and he is, too. He wasn't (playing) last time (in New York), so that was difficult for me."

Then Staal quickly added with a laugh, "And the fact that I got booed every time I touched (the puck) -- that was different. It will be good to put this game behind us and focus on our teams."

RALEIGH, N.C. -- After sitting out deadline day, the Hurricanes will ice their regular lineup -- one that is still missing several injured players. But Cam Ward will return to the net for Carolina, after missing four starts with a lower-body injury.

The Hurricanes have filled out the roster with several of their American Hockey League prospects, including Zach Boychuk, who was called up Tuesday. Against Nashville, Kirk Muller will skate eight forwards who are 25 years old or younger.

"They're capable of beating anyone when they play a good, honest game," Muller said. "This is our group. There's no cavalry coming. This is who who we are, and we've got to push and see what happens from here on in."

The Predators, coming off Monday night's 2-1 win over Los Angeles, were unable to travel after the game due to foggy weather conditions. When they arrive on Tuesday, they will have two new deadline acquistions in the lineup. Andrei Kostitsyn -- the older brother of Nashville forward Sergei Kostitsyn -- joins the Predators from Montreal, while Paul Gaustad comes over from Buffalo.

HURRICANES
Jiri Tlusty - Eric Staal - Jerome Samson
Jussi Jokinen - Jeff Skinner - Zach Boychuk
Drayson Bowman - Brandon Sutter - Andreas Nodl
Anthony Stewart - Tim Brent - Derek Joslin

Tim Gleason - Bryan Allen
Jay Harrison - Justin Faulk
Jaroslav Spacek - Jamie McBain

Cam Ward
Justin Peters

The Florida Panthers had a bit of a new look Saturday morning after the Friday acquisition of forward Jerred Smithson, who came from Nashville in exchange for a 2012 sixth-round draft pick.

Smithson had spent the past seven seasons with the Predators. With 89 points in 527 NHL games, he brings a reputation as a strong faceoff man who finishes his checks.

"It's definitely a new experience for me. I've never been traded before," Smithson said. "It happened so fast I didn't get a chance to sit down and take it all in last night until I got to the hotel. But I'm excited. It was a long time in Nashville, but it will be good to get a fresh start."

As far as making the quick transition to a new team, Smithson wasn't worried.

"There's an easy part -- the guys are always good," he said. "I'll just go in there and do my thing and try to fit in."

Carolina will give Justin Peters his third straight start in goal. The Hurricanes had hoped to have Cam Ward back in the net Saturday night, but coach Kirk Muller insisted that Ward continues to make progress with his lower-body injury. Muller said the team is just being extra cautious.

Florida coach Kevin Dineen did not name a starting goaltender. He will make a game-time decision.

FLORIDA

Tomas Fleischmann – Stephan Weiss -– Kris Versteeg
Michael Samuelsson - Tomas Kopecky - Shawn Matthias
Michal Repik - Mike Santorelli – Jerrod Smithson
Krystofer Barch - Jon Matsumoto – Jack Skille

Brian Campbell – Erik Gudbranson
Ed Jovanovski - Jason Garrison
Keaton Ellerby – Mike Weaver

Jose Theodore
Scott Clemmensen

CAROLINA

Jiri Tlusty – Eric Staal – Jerome Samson
Jussi Jokinen – Jeff Skinner – Patrick Dwyer
Drayson Bowman – Brandon Sutter – Andreas Nodl
Anthony Stewart – Tim Brent – Derek Joslin

Tim Gleason – Bryan Allen
Jay Harrison – Justin Faulk
Jaroslav Spacek – Jamie McBain

Justin Peters
Mike Murphy

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Anaheim coach Bruce Boudreau is making his first trip to Carolina as the Ducks' bench boss, but the stop over in Raleigh is a familiar one from his days with Washington. So he knows a thing or two about the Hurricanes.

That's why he seemed genuinely concerned about facing goaltender Justin Peters, who has made 26 NHL appearances over three seasons. In his last outing, Peters recorded his first NHL shutout, a 5-0 effort against the Capitals.

"I'm always leery against guys like that," said Boudreau, whose Capitals faced Peters twice in previous seasons. "I've seen Justin a lot, and when he's on, he’s on. He's probably feeling pretty good about himself coming off his first shutout."

Peters has appeared in three straight games after a call-up from Charlotte. He won a 3-2 decision against San Jose last Friday, before replacing injured Cam Ward (lower body) in a Saturday loss to the New York Islanders. He stopped 17 shots to defeat Washington on Monday.

"I've seen it happen so many times, that you face guys that aren't used to being in the limelight -- and then for short periods of time, they can be superhuman," Boudreau said. "Then they end up coming back to earth with one game. There's a reason they're in the minors for so many years, but then they come in and stand on their head and they look as good as anybody. (Peters) is in one of those modes, and the team is in that mindset. It makes for a tough game."

Tonight's game is the final outing in an eight-game road trip for the Ducks, in which they have posted a 4-1-2 mark.

DUCKS
Bobby Ryan - Ryan Getzlaf - Corey Perry
Matt Beleskey - Saku Koivu - Teemu Selanne
Jason Blake - Nick Bonino - Andrew Cogliano
Niklas Hagman - Rod Pelley - Devante Smith-Pelly

Cam Fowler - Francois Beauchemin
Luca Sbisa - Lubomir Visnovsky
Toni Lydman - Sheldon Brookbank

Jonas Hiller
Jeff Deslauriers

HURRICANES
Jiri Tlusty - Eric Staal - Jerome Samson
Jussi Jokinen - Jeff Skinner - Patrick Dwyer
Drayson Bowman - Brandon Sutter - Andreas Nodl
Anthony Stewart - Tim Brent - Derek Joslin

Tim Gleason - Bryan Allen
Jay Harrison - Justin Faulk
Jaroslav Spacek - Jamie McBain

Justin Peters
Mike Murphy

Defenseman Mike Green played his first game Saturday night since undergoing surgery to repair a sports hernia Jan. 17. By itself, the injury didn't knock him out of the lineup, but he could tell he wasn't the same player.

"For the longest time before the surgery, even though I wasn't sore, I didn't have my skating stride," Green said. "I couldn't skate as well as I used to."

He said he could feel the improvement immediately after the surgery. Green played 14:14 in a 2-1 loss Saturday to Tampa Bay. Now he wants more ice time.

"Fourteen minutes felt like four minutes for me," he said. "I told (coach Dale Hunter) I want to play more, that I feel good, so we'll see."

With Green back in the lineup, Hunter said he will consider dressing seven defenseman against Carolina.

Here are the projected lineups for tonight's game:

WASHINGTON

Alexander Ovechkin – Mathieu Perreault - Troy Brouwer
Matt Hendricks - Brooks Laich – Mike Knuble
Jason Chimera – Marcus Johansson – Alexander Semin
Jay Beagle – Jeff Halpern – Joel Ward

Karl Alzner – John Carlson
Jeff Schultz – Denis Wideman
Roman Hamrlik – Mike Green

Tomas Vokoun
Michal Neuvirth

CAROLINA

Justin Peters will get the start in goal for the Hurricanes, after Cam Ward tweaked a lower-body injury Saturday night and had to leave the game against the New York Islanders. Mike Murphy, who appeared in his first two NHL games in December, was called up from Charlotte to serve as the backup. Hurricanes coach Kirk Muller described Ward's status as day-to-day.

Jiri Tlusty – Eric Staal – Jerome Samson
Drayson Bowman – Jeff Skinner – Jussi Jokinen
Andres Nodl – Brandon Sutter – Patrick Dwyer
Anthony Stewart – Tim Brent – Derek Joslin

Tim Gleason – Bryan Allen
Jay Harrison – Justin Faulk
Jaroslav Spacek – Jamie McBain

Justin Peters
Mike Murphy

SHARKS

With unfavorable weather conditions in Raleigh on Thursday night, the Sharks were forced to fly in Friday morning for this evening's game. As a result, they did not have a morning skate.

Based on Thursday night's lineup in Tampa Bay, this a possible lineup for Friday night's game against Carolina. However, forward Dominic Moore, acquired from Tampa Bay before Thursday night's game, is likely to make his debut with the Sharks.
 
Patrick Marleau - Joe Thornton - Joe Pavelski
Ryan Clowe - Logan Couture - Tommy Wingels
John McCarthy - Andrew Desjardins - Brad Winchester
Jamie McGinn - Michal Handzus - Torrey Mitchell

Dan Boyle - Marc-Edouard Vlasic
Douglas Murray - Brent Burns
Colin White - Justin Braun

Thomas Greiss
Antti Niemi

HURRICANES

Justin Peters will start in goal for the Hurricanes, making his first start since losing at Nashville, 5-2, on Jan. 7. It will mark Peters' first home start of the season.

Hurricanes coach Kirk Muller said goaltender Cam Ward is getting an extra day off to rest a "tweak" -- but nothing more serious than that. Ward took the morning skate with Carolina and will serve as the backup.

Here is tonight's lineup:

Jiri Tlusty - Eric Staal - Jerome Samson
Drayson Bowman - Jeff Skinner - Jussi Jokinen
Andres Nodl - Brandon Sutter - Patrick Dwyer
Anthony Stewart - Tim Brent - Derek Joslin

Tim Gleason - Bryan Allen
Jay Harrison - Justin Faulk
Jaroslav Spacek - Jamie McBain

Justin Peters
Cam Ward

Here are the projected lineups for Saturday night when the Los Angeles Kings visit RBC Center to take on the Carolina Hurricanes:

Kings
 
Dustin Brown – Anze Kopitar – Justin Williams
Kyle Clifford – Mike Richards – Dustin Penner
Brad Richardson – Jarret Stoll – Trevor Lewis
Trent Hunter – Colin Fraser – Kevin Westgarth
 
Rob Scuderi – Drew Doughty
Willie Mitchell – Slava Voynov
Jack Johnson – Matt Greene
 
Jonathan Quick
Jonathan Bernier
 
Hurricanes

Jiri Tlusty – Eric Staal – Tuomo Ruutu
Jussi Jokinen – Riley Nash – Jeff Skinner
Andreas Nodl – Brandon Sutter – Patrick Dwyer
Drayson Bowman – Tim Brent – Anthony Stewart
 
Tim Gleason – Bryan Allen
Jay Harrison – Justin Faulk
Jaroslav Spacek – Jamie McBain
 
Cam Ward
Justin Peters

The New York Islanders will have American Hockey League callup Kevin Poulin between the pipes against the Carolina Hurricanes when the teams meet Tuesday night at the RBC Center. Poulin, who made 51 saves in Bridgeport's 6-2 win over Adirondack Friday night, is making his third start of the season for the Islanders.

Here's how the lineups for both sides are projected to look:

ISLANDERS
Michael Grabner - Frans Nielsen - PA Parenteau
Matt Moulson - John Tavares - Kyle Okposo
Matt Martin - Josh Bailey - Rhett Rakhshani
Jay Pandolfo - Nino Niederreiter - Tim Wallace

Mark Eaton - Milan Jurcina
Mark Streit - Steve Staios
Travis Hamonic - Andrew MacDonald

Kevin Poulin
Evgeni Nabokov

HURRICANES
Jiri Tlusty - Eric Staal - Tuomo Ruutu
Jussi Jokinen - Jeff Skinner - Riley Nash
Patrick Dwyer - Brandon Sutter - Andreas Nodl
Anthony Stewart - Tim Brent - Chad LaRose

Tim Gleason - Bryan Allen
Jay Harrison - Justin Faulk
Derek Joslin - Jamie McBain

Cam Ward
Justin Peters

The Jets have had the Hurricanes' number this season, winning the first three games between the Southeast Division rivals. Winnipeg backup goaltender Chris Mason has been in the net for all of them, twice as the starter, once in relief. He has surrendered just four goals in the process.

"I don't really have an explanation," Mason said. "I haven't played against them a ton. I've had the three games against them this year and I've done pretty good. There's other teams I have played against a lot more and I don't have success against, even though I may have a better idea of what guys are going to do."

Given Mason's record against Carolina, Winnipeg coach Claude Noel didn't need to ponder the goaltending choice very long.
 
"If a guy has success against a team and feels comfortable, it's a pretty easy decision," he said. "But there's no guarantees in a game. Carolina's been going good. They've played a lot of low-scoring games. It's going to be all we can handle. Mason's going to have to be good."

Cam Ward will make his eighth straight start for Carolina. In his current stretch of seven consecutive starts, Ward has allowed no more than two goals in any game, good for a 3-2-2 mark.

JETS
Alexander Burmistrov - Bryan Little - Blake Wheeler
Andrew Ladd - Nik Antropov - Kyle Wellwood
Tanner Glass - Jim Slater - Chris Thorburn
Eric Fehr - Patrice Cormier - Antti Miettinen
 
Tobias Enstrom - Ron Hainsey
Johnny Oduya - Zach Bogosian
Mark Stuart - Randy Jones
 
Chris Mason
Ondrej Pavelec
 
HURRICANES
Jiri Tlusty - Eric Staal - Tuomo Ruutu
Jussi Jokinen - Jeff Skinner - Zac Dalpe
Patrick Dwyer - Brandon Sutter - Andreas Nodl
Anthony Stewart - Tim Brent - Chad LaRose
 
Tim Gleason - Bryan Allen
Jay Harrison - Justin Faulk
Derek Joslin - Jamie McBain
 
Cam Ward
Justin Peters

Here's how the lineups could look tonight when Southeast Division rivals Washington and Carolina face off at RBC Center:

CAPITALS
Alex Ovechkin - Marcus Johansson - Troy Brouwer
Alexander Semin - Brooks Laich - Jason Chimera
Matt Hendricks - Jeff Halpern - Mike Knuble
Cody Eakin - Mathieu Perreault - Joel Ward
 
Roman Hamrlik - John Carlson
Karl Alzner - Dennis Wideman
Dmitry Orlov - Tomas Kundratek
 
Tomas Vokoun will start in goal with Michal Neuvirth serving as the backup.
 
HURRICANES
Jiri Tlusty - Eric Staal - Tuomo Ruutu
Jussi Jokinen - Jeff Skinner - Zac Dalpe
Patrick Dwyer - Brandon Sutter - Andreas Nodl
Anthony Stewart - Tim Brent - Alexei Ponikarovsky
 
Tim Gleason - Bryan Allen
Jay Harrison - Justin Faulk
Derek Joslin - Jamie McBain
 
Cam Ward will start in goal, with Justin Peters serving as the backup.