The visiting hockey club prepares to face the Mammoth at 9 p.m. ET, looking to rebound from a recent road loss. The upcoming matchup brings together two teams holding matching 7-4-0 records, though both squads are navigating notable roster adjustments and injury concerns as game time approaches.
The visitors enter the contest following a 6-3 defeat against the Colorado Avalanche on Friday. Opting against a morning skate ahead of Saturday’s game, the team’s coaching staff faces immediate lineup questions, particularly surrounding veteran defenseman Victor Hedman. Hedman departed Friday’s game at the 5:56 mark of the second period due to an undisclosed injury and did not return. As of Saturday, team leadership had provided no immediate update on his availability.
Projected forward combinations for the visitors feature Brandon Hagel centering alongside Anthony Cirelli and Nikita Kucherov on the top line. The second unit pairs Gage Goncalves with Brayden Point and Jake Guentzel, while the third line lists Ilya Mikheyev, Zemgus Girgensons, and Pontus Holmberg. Conor Geekie and Dominic James round out the forward corps.
On the blue line, the projected pairings feature J.J. Moser skating with John Carlson, Ryan McDonagh paired alongside Erik Cernak, and Victor Hedman listed with Max Crozier alongside Charle-Edouard D’Astous. Dennis Hildeby and Andrei Vasilevskiy provide options in goal. Meanwhile, forward Yanni Gourde remains sidelined with a hip injury, and Scott Sabourin, Emil Lilleberg, and Jeffrey Viel are listed as scratched.
The hosts enter the contest also holding a 7-4-0 record and dealing with their own set of roster management challenges. Mammoth coach Andre Tourigny provided updates on the team’s injury list prior to the game, noting that defenseman John Marino is currently week to week with an injury. Forward Michael Carcone participated in Saturday’s session wearing a non-contact jersey but is not expected to suit up for the game, while Maveric Lamoureux remains out of the lineup with a shoulder injury.
The hosts’ projected forward lines feature Clayton Keller centering Vincent Trocheck and Dylan Guenther on the top unit. Logan Cooley anchors the second line between Nick Schmaltz and Lawson Crouse, with Anders Lee, Barrett Hayton, and Kailer Yamamoto forming the third combination. The fourth line lists Jack McBain, Kevin Stenlund, and Daniil But.
Defensively, the Mammoth expect to deploy Mikhail Sergachev alongside Mackenzie Weegar on the top pairing, followed by Nate Schmidt with Andrew Peeke, and Dmitri Simashev paired with Nick DeSimone. Karel Vejmelka and Sebastian Cossa represent the goaltending options for the hosts, with Liam O’Brien and Artem Duda designated as scratches.
