Here are the projected lineups for Wednesday night's game between the Phoenix Coyotes and the Edmonton Oilers. The Oilers practiced at a separate site than the Coyotes, so their lines are an estimate based off their game Monday against the Avalanche.
OILERS
Taylor Hall - Ryan Nugent-Hopkins - Jordan Eberle
Nail Yakupov - Sam Gagner - Ales Hemsky
Ryan Smyth - Shawn Horcoff - Lennart Petrell
Teemu Hartikainen - Eric Belanger - Magnus Paajarvi
Scratches: Darcy Hordichuk, Mark Fistric
COYOTES
Steve Sullivan - Antoine Vermette - Shane Doan
Mikkel Boedker - Alexandre Bolduc - Radim Vrbata
Lauri Korpikoski - Boyd Gordon - David Moss
Nick Johnson - Kyle Chipchura - Paul Bissonnette
Zbynek Michalek - Oliver Ekman-Larsson
David Schlemko - Michael Stone
Scratches: David Rundblad
Injuries: Mike Smith (lower body), Rostislav Klesla (lower body), Martin Hanzal (lower body)
Hanzal and Klesla, game-time decisions Monday against the Predators, were unable to go in that game and were not on the ice at all Wednesday.
On the other hand, Smith, who is recovering from a groin injury suffered in warm-ups prior to the Jan. 23 game against the Blue Jackets, was able to practice fully and even stayed on the ice late with goalie coach Sean Burke for extra work. There is optimism he will be able to start on Friday when the Coyotes open a home-and-home against the Stars.
Phoenix coach Dave Tippett will go with Chad Johnson again Wednesday after he picked up his first career shutout against Nashville. Tippett said one of the big reasons for sticking with Johnson over veteran Jason LaBarbera is the amount of work Johnson had in the AHL this season, getting himself into a good rhythm.
Tippett added that he would like to see more communication on the ice between his top defensive pair of Michalek and Ekman-Larsson. Expected to be the team's shutdown pairing, both players are known to be quiet in nature, and Tippett would like to see them be more vocal on the ice.
Also, suspended forward Raffi Torres will be eligible to return Saturday night against Dallas. Torres has been skating fully and is expected to play once he becomes eligible.
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