Last game before the Christmas break, with the roster freeze already in place. Carolina hosts the defending Champs in a rematch of a ... umm ... memorable game on Friday night. You know the details, because this is about as familiar an opponent as you could ask for.
Canes update ... they've shut down Slavin and Jarvis through the break and both Martinook and Carrier are dinged up and it sounds like Marty will miss this one as well. Young Bradley Nadeau is up to fill a forward slot, and they've recalled Nystrom to round out the D. So, a bit of a garage sale lineup tonight. You'd expect Bussi in net, since Kooch took the last start and didn't exactly overwhelm with greatness. No notes from the morning time so we might get more lineup notes this afternoon.
For Florida ... most of their issues seem to be the long term stuff as they've got a pretty long list of guys out, most notably Barkov and Tkachuk. Gadjovic and Kulikov are regulars who are also out though. Tarasov started their last game and barfed up 6 goals against the Blues, so it will probably be Bob in net again.
This is a grudge match in a grudge series. Expect angst and a lot of chippiness (and maybe a few guys trying to ring Marchand's jingle bells), which is exactly what you want for Christmas. Wear your Santa hats and enjoy.
Canes update ... they've shut down Slavin and Jarvis through the break and both Martinook and Carrier are dinged up and it sounds like Marty will miss this one as well. Young Bradley Nadeau is up to fill a forward slot, and they've recalled Nystrom to round out the D. So, a bit of a garage sale lineup tonight. You'd expect Bussi in net, since Kooch took the last start and didn't exactly overwhelm with greatness. No notes from the morning time so we might get more lineup notes this afternoon.
For Florida ... most of their issues seem to be the long term stuff as they've got a pretty long list of guys out, most notably Barkov and Tkachuk. Gadjovic and Kulikov are regulars who are also out though. Tarasov started their last game and barfed up 6 goals against the Blues, so it will probably be Bob in net again.
This is a grudge match in a grudge series. Expect angst and a lot of chippiness (and maybe a few guys trying to ring Marchand's jingle bells), which is exactly what you want for Christmas. Wear your Santa hats and enjoy.
