Projected lineups, starting goalies for today
Latest line combinations, defense pairs, injury news from NHL.com writers

CAPITALS (21-14-5) at SENATORS (18-15-5)
1 p.m. ET; RDS, TSN5, MNMT
Capitals projected lineup
Connor McMichael -- Justin Sourdif -- Alex Ovechkin
Aliaksei Protas -- Dylan Strome -- Tom Wilson
Justin Leonard -- Nic Dowd -- Ethen Frank
Brandon Duhaime -- Hendrix Lapierre -- Anthony Beauvillier
Martin Fehervary -- John Carlson
Jakob Chychrun -- Matt Roy
Rasmus Sandin -- Dylan McIlrath
Logan Thompson
Charlie Lindgren
Scratched: Declan Chisholm, Sonny Milano, Trevor van Riemsdyk
Injured: Pierre-Luc Dubois (lower body)
Senators projected lineup
Brady Tkachuk -- Tim Stutzle -- Fabian Zetterlund
David Perron -- Dylan Cozens -- Drake Batherson
Michael Amadio -- Shane Pinto -- Claude Giroux
Ridly Greig -- Stephen Halliday -- Nick Cousins
Jake Sanderson -- Artem Zub
Thomas Chabot -- Nick Jensen
Tyler Kleven -- Jordan Spence
Leevi Merilainen
Hunter Shepard
Scratched: Kurtis MacDermid, Nikolas Matinpalo
Injured: Lars Eller (broken foot)
Status report
Thompson is expected to start after Lindgren made 22 saves in a 6-3 win against the New York Rangers on Wednesday. … Jensen will return to the lineup after being a healthy scratch for the first time this season on Monday.
MAMMOTH (18-19-3) at ISLANDERS (22-14-4)
3 p.m. ET; Utah 16, MSGSN, NHLN, SN
Mammoth projected lineup
Clayton Keller -- Nick Schmaltz -- JJ Peterka
Lawson Crouse -- Barrett Hayton -- Dylan Guenther
Michael Carcone -- Jack McBain -- Daniil But
Liam O’Brien -- Kevin Stenlund -- Alexander Kerfoot
Mikhail Sergachev -- Sean Durzi
Nate Schmidt -- John Marino
Ian Cole -- Nick DeSimone
Karel Vejmelka
Vitek Vanecek
Scratched: Olli Maatta, Brandon Tanev, Kailer Yamamoto
Injured: Logan Cooley (lower body)
Islanders projected lineup
Jonathan Drouin -- Bo Horvat -- Emil Heineman
Anders Lee -- Mathew Barzal -- Jean-Gabriel Pageau
Maxim Shabanov -- Calum Ritchie -- Simon Holmstrom
Kyle MacLean -- Casey Cizikas -- Maxim Tsyplakov
Matthew Schaefer -- Ryan Pulock
Adam Pelech -- Tony DeAngelo
Marshall Warren -- Scott Mayfield
David Rittich
Marcus Hogberg
Scratched: Anthony Duclair, Adam Boqvist, Marc Gatcomb
Injured: Ilya Sorokin (lower body), Kyle Palmieri (ACL), Alexander Romanov (upper body), Semyon Varlamov (knee), Ethan Bear (upper body)
Status report
Vejmelka, a goalie, could return after missing the past two games. He was removed from injured reserve Thursday, and goalie Matt Villalta was reassigned to Tucson of the American Hockey League. ... Sorokin, a goalie, could return after missing the past four games.
JETS (15-19-4) at MAPLE LEAFS (18-15-6)
7 p.m. ET; SNO, TSN3, NHLN
Jets projected lineup
Kyle Connor -- Mark Scheifele -- Gabriel Vilardi
Cole Perfetti -- Vladislav Namestnikov -- Alex Iafallo
Morgan Barron -- Adam Lowry -- Tanner Pearson
Nino Niederreiter -- Jonathan Toews -- Gustav Nyquist
Josh Morrissey -- Dylan DeMelo
Dylan Samberg -- Neal Pionk
Logan Stanley -- Luke Schenn
Eric Comrie
Connor Hellebuyck
Scratched: Colin Miller, Haydn Fleury, Cole Koepke
Injured: None
Maple Leafs projected lineup
Matias Maccelli -- John Tavares -- Bobby McMann
Mathew Knies -- Auston Matthews -- Max Domi
Steven Lorentz -- Scott Laughton -- Calle Jarnkrok
Easton Cowan -- Nicolas Roy -- Nicholas Robertson
Morgan Rielly -- Philippe Myers
Jake McCabe -- Oliver Ekman-Larsson
Simon Benoit -- Troy Stecher
Joseph Woll
Dennis Hildeby
Scratched: Matt Benning, Jacob Quillan
Injured: William Nylander (lower body), Anthony Stolarz (upper body), Chris Tanev (groin), Brandon Carlo (lower body), Dakota Mermis (lower body), Dakota Joshua (kidney)
Status report
The Jets did not hold a morning skate after a 2-1 loss to the Detroit Red Wings on Wednesday. ... Matthews will return after missing a 4-0 win against the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday with a lower-body injury... Nylander will miss his third straight game.
RED WINGS (24-14-3) at PENGUINS (17-12-9)
7 p.m. ET; FDSNDET, SN-PIT, SNP, SNW, SNE
Red Wings projected lineup
Emmitt Finnie -- Dylan Larkin -- Lucas Raymond
Alex DeBrincat -- Andrew Copp -- Patrick Kane
Michael Rasmussen -- J.T. Compher -- Mason Appleton
Marco Kasper -- Nate Danielson -- James van Riemsdyk
Simon Edvinsson -- Moritz Seider
Ben Chiarot -- Axel Sandin-Pellikka
Albert Johansson -- Jacob Bernard-Docker
Cam Talbot
John Gibson
Scratched: Travis Hamonic, Elmer Soderblom
Injured: None
Penguins projected lineup
Rickard Rakell -- Sidney Crosby -- Bryan Rust
Anthony Mantha -- Tommy Novak -- Justin Brazeau
Rutger McGroarty -- Ben Kindel -- Yegor Chinakhov
Connor Dewar -- Blake Lizotte -- Noel Acciari
Parker Wotherspoon -- Erik Karlsson
Brett Kulak -- Kris Letang
Ryan Shea -- Jack St. Ivany
Arturs Silovs
Stuart Skinner
Scratched: Kevin Hayes, Connor Clifton, Ville Koivunen
Injured: Evgeni Malkin (upper body), Caleb Jones (lower body), Filip Hallander (blood clot)
Status report
Talbot could start after Gibson made 23 saves in a 2-1 win against the Winnipeg Jets on Wednesday. ... Chinakhov will likely make his Penguins debut after being acquired in a trade with the Columbus Blue Jackets on Monday for forward Danton Heinen, a second-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft and a third-round pick in 2027. He would replace Koivunen at third-line right wing.
CANADIENS (21-12-6) at HURRICANES (24-12-3)
7 p.m. ET; FDSNSO, TSN2, RDS
Canadiens projected lineup
Cole Caufield -- Nick Suzuki -- Alexandre Texier
Juraj Slafkovsky -- Oliver Kapanen -- Ivan Demidov
Zack Bolduc -- Phillip Danault -- Josh Anderson
Sammy Blais -- Joe Veleno -- Brendan Gallagher
Mike Matheson -- Noah Dobson
Lane Hutson -- Alexandre Carrier
Arber Xhekaj -- Jayden Struble
Jakub Dobes
Jacob Fowler
Scratched: Owen Beck, Adam Engstrom, Sam Montembeault
Injured: Kirby Dach (broken foot), Alex Newhook (broken ankle), Kaiden Guhle (lower body), Patrik Laine (lower body), Jake Evans (lower body)
Hurricanes projected lineup
Nikolaj Ehlers -- Sebastian Aho -- Andrei Svechnikov
Eric Robinson -- Logan Stankoven -- Jackson Blake
William Carrier -- Jordan Staal -- Jordan Martinook
Taylor Hall -- Mark Jankowski -- Jesperi Kotkaniemi
Alexander Nikishin -- Sean Walker
K’Andre Miller -- Jalen Chatfield
Mike Reilly -- Joel Nystrom
Brandon Bussi
Frederik Andersen
Scratched: Gavin Bayreuther, Noah Philp
Injured: Seth Jarvis (upper body), Jaccob Slavin (upper body), Pyotr Kochetkov (lower body), Shayne Gostisbehere (undisclosed)
Status report
Struble will play after being scratched for the third time in five games for a 3-2 overtime win at the Florida Panthers on Tuesday. … Engstrom will be a healthy scratch for the third time in four games. … Bussi is expected to start after Andersen made 23 saves in a 5-1 loss at the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday.
LIGHTNING (23-13-3) at KINGS (16-13-9)
7 p.m. ET; The Spot, FDSNW
Lightning projected lineup
Gage Goncalves -- Brayden Point -- Nikita Kucherov
Brandon Hagel -- Anthony Cirelli -- Jake Guentzel
Zemgus Girgensons -- Yanni Gourde -- Pontus Holmberg
Nick Paul -- Jack Finley -- Oliver Bjorkstrand
J.J. Moser -- Darren Raddysh
Charle-Edouard D'Astous -- Erik Cernak
Declan Carlile -- Max Crozier
Jonas Johansson
Andrei Vasilevskiy
Scratched: Curtis Douglas, Dominic James
Injured: Ryan McDonagh (lower body), Victor Hedman (elbow), Emil Lilleberg (undisclosed), Scott Sabourin (undisclosed)
Kings projected lineup
Alex Laferriere -- Anze Kopitar -- Adrian Kempe
Warren Foegele -- Quinton Byfield -- Trevor Moore
Kevin Fiala -- Alex Turcotte -- Andrei Kuzmenko
Joel Armia -- Samuel Helenius -- Corey Perry
Mikey Anderson -- Drew Doughty
Joel Edmundson -- Brandt Clarke
Brian Dumoulin -- Cody Ceci
Darcy Kuemper
Anton Forsberg
Scratched: Jeff Malott, Jacob Moverare
Injured: None
Status report
The Lightning did not hold a morning skate following a 4-3 overtime win at the Anaheim Ducks on Wednesday. ... Kuemper was activated off injured reserve on Tuesday after being unavailable the past six games because of an upper-body injury and could start. Goalie Pheonix Copley was reassigned to Ontario of the American Hockey League on Wednesday.
STARS (25-8-7) at BLACKHAWKS (14-18-7)
8:30 p.m. ET; Victory+, CHSN, SN1
Stars projected lineup
Sam Steel -- Wyatt Johnston -- Mikko Rantanen
Jason Robertson -- Roope Hintz -- Mavrik Bourque
Justin Hryckowian -- Matt Duchene -- Jamie Benn
Oskar Back -- Radek Faksa -- Colin Blackwell
Esa Lindell -- Miro Heiskanen
Thomas Harley -- Nils Lundkvist
Ilya Lyubushkin -- Alexander Petrovic
Jake Oettinger
Casey DeSmith
Scratched: Kyle Capobianco, Adam Erne
Injured: Tyler Seguin (ACL), Lian Bichsel (lower body)
Blackhawks projected lineup
Tyler Bertuzzi -- Ryan Greene -- Andre Burakovsky
Teuvo Teravainen -- Oliver Moore – Nick Lardis
Ryan Donato -- Jason Dickinson -- Ilya Mikheyev
Nick Foligno -- Colton Dach -- Landon Slaggert
Alex Vlasic -- Louis Crevier
Wyatt Kaiser -- Artyom Levshunov
Matt Grzelcyk -- Connor Murphy
Spencer Knight
Arvid Soderblom
Scratched: Ethan Del Mastro, Sam Lafferty, Dominic Toninato
Injured: Connor Bedard (upper body), Frank Nazar (face)
Status report
The Stars did not hold a morning skate following their 4-1 home loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday. … Oettinger is expected to start after DeSmith made 27 saves against the Sabres. The rest of the lineup remains unchanged. … The Blackhawks recalled Toninato, a forward, from Rockford of the American Hockey League on Wednesday. Dickinson left a 3-2 shootout loss to the New York Islanders on Tuesday after the first period with an apparent injury but took part in the morning skate Thursday.
PREDATORS (18-17-4) at KRAKEN (16-14-7)
10 p.m. ET; FDSNSO, KHN/Prime, KONG, SN
Predators projected lineup
Filip Forsberg -- Ryan O'Reilly -- Steven Stamkos
Michael Bunting -- Erik Haula -- Luke Evangelista
Tyson Jost -- Fedor Svechkov -- Matthew Wood
Reid Schaefer -- Michael McCarron -- Cole Smith
Roman Josi -- Nick Perbix
Brady Skjei -- Adam Wilsby
Nicolas Hague -- Nick Blankenburg
Juuse Saros
Justus Annunen
Scratched: None
Injured: Ozzy Wiesblatt (upper body), Justin Barron (lower body), Jonathan Marchessault (lower body)
Kraken projected lineup
Kaapo Kakko -- Matty Beniers -- Jordan Eberle
Eeli Tolvanen -- Chandler Stephenson -- Frederick Gaudreau
Berkly Catton -- Shane Wright -- Jared McCann
Ryan Winterton -- Ben Meyers -- Jacob Melanson
Vince Dunn -- Adam Larsson
Ryan Lindgren -- Cale Fleury
Ryker Evans -- Jamie Oleksiak
Philipp Grubauer
Joey Daccord
Scratched: Josh Mahura
Injured: Matt Murray (lower body), Jaden Schwartz (lower body), Brandon Montour (upper body)
Status report
Nashville did not hold a morning skate on Thursday after a 4-2 win at the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday. ... Seattle held an optional morning skate. … Larsson, a defenseman, will play after missing practice with an illness on Wednesday. … Schwartz, a forward, skated in a noncontact jersey Thursday for the first time since sustaining a lower-body injury in a 3-2 loss to the Dallas Stars on Nov. 26.
FRIDAY
GOLDEN KNIGHTS (17-10-11) at BLUES (15-18-8)
3 p.m. ET; KMOV-TV, Matrix-MW, FDSNMW, SCRIPPS, SNW, SN1, TVAS
Golden Knights projected lineup
Ivan Barbashev -- Mitch Marner -- Mark Stone
Pavel Dorofeyev -- Tomas Hertl -- Alexander Holtz
Reilly Smith -- Brett Howden -- Braeden Bowman
Brandon Saad -- Colton Sissons -- Keegan Kolesar
Brayden McNabb -- Kaedan Korczak
Noah Hanifin -- Ben Hutton
Jeremy Lauzon -- Zach Whitecloud
Carter Hart
Akira Schmid
Scratched: Cole Reinhardt
Injured: Jack Eichel (undisclosed), Adin Hill (lower body), William Karlsson (lower body), Shea Theodore (upper body)
Blues projected lineup
Jonatan Berggren -- Robert Thomas -- Pavel Buchnevich
Jake Neighbours -- Brayden Schenn -- Jimmy Snuggerud
Otto Stenberg-- Dalibor Dvorsky -- Jordan Kyrou
Alexey Toropchenko -- Oskar Sundqvist -- Robby Fabbri
Philip Broberg -- Colton Parayko
Tyler Tucker -- Justin Faulk
Cam Fowler -- Logan Mailloux
Joel Hofer
Jordan Binnington
Scratched: Mathieu Joseph, Matthew Kessel
Injured: Dylan Holloway (high ankle sprain), Pius Suter (high ankle sprain), Nathan Walker (upper body), Nick Bjugstad (upper body)
Status report
Neither team will hold a morning skate. … Eichel, a forward, could return at some point on Vegas' three-game road trip but it's unclear if it will be on Friday; he has missed the past seven games. … McNabb sustained an upper-body injury in the third period of a 4-2 loss to the Nashville Predators on Wednesday and may not play. … Hart could start after being pulled from a 5-2 loss to the Minnesota Wild on Monday. … Thomas (lower body) left late in the third period of a 6-1 loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday and is questionable.

















