The Blues will start Joel Hofer against the Red Wings tonight, according to the morning skate lineup posted by St. Louis beat writer jprutherford.
Hofer has played 12 games this season to Jordan Binnington's 5, and Binnington stays on the bench while trade noise follows him around. St. Louis is 7-8-2, 26th in the NHL, and has lost three straight.
| Forwards |
| Holloway – Thomas – Snuggerud |
| Neighbours – McTavish – Berggren |
| Dvorsky – McMichael – Buchnevich |
| Toropchenko – Suter – Johnston |
| Defense |
| Broberg – Mailloux |
| Barron – Parayko |
| Fowler – Carlo |
| Goalies |
| Hofer |
jprutherford put Hofer in the starter's net in the Blues' morning skate lineup.
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The most interesting name on the blue line is Logan Mailloux. The 23-year-old defenseman has no games played this season, and he's skating with Philip Broberg on the first pair.
Up front, the top line leans on Jimmy Snuggerud, who has 9 goals in 17 games. Mason McTavish has 7 goals, including 3 game-winners, on the second line.
For fans who don't follow St. Louis closely, Hofer is a 26-year-old, 6'5 Winnipeg native taken in the fourth round of the 2018 draft by the Blues. He has 127 career NHL games.
Five games is a thin shop window for Binnington, a 33-year-old with 381 career games and 49 in the playoffs. If teams are calling, Jim Montgomery's choice tonight makes Hofer look like the clear number one in St. Louis.
Who starts in net for the Red Wings?
Detroit hasn't announced its starter yet. The options are John Gibson with 11 games played, Daniil Tarasov with 8, and Michal Postava with 2.
Gibson is listed as day-to-day with a lower-body injury, according to the latest injury report. We covered John Gibson's lower-body injury in Tampa Bay earlier this month, and his status is worth watching before puck drop.
The Red Wings are 7-8-3 and 24th in the NHL, and they arrive on a three-game losing streak. Saturday's 0-4 loss at Colorado was their last outing.
Beyond the standings, there's the Larkin situation. Dylan Larkin's standoff with the Red Wings has been hanging over the team all week.
Two teams in the bottom third of the league, both on three-game skids, meet in St. Louis tonight. We'll update once Detroit confirms who goes in at the other end.
Quick hits
GOALIE WATCH: Sam Ersson gets the start for the Senators against the Capitals tonight, even though Linus Ullmark was expected back. Surprise call.
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MINNESOTA WILD: Michael Russo reports that Jared Spurgeon comes off injured reserve and returns tonight in Montreal after missing five games. That's a welcome boost on the back end.
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LINEUP CHANGE: Brady Tkachuk and Matthew Tkachuk skated with Sam Bennett in the middle at the Panthers' morning skate in Columbus. Brothers on one line always gets attention.
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This article was written with the help of artificial intelligence, based on public reports and official sources.
Also read on Markerzone.com:
Chris Johnston sizes up Dylan Larkin's trade market
