This article is part of our The Daily Puck series.
Friday night's games had a couple slow ones in there, but there were some great goals being put that snapped slumps, set milestones and generally impressed, particularly some goals by two rookies forwards who stand 5-foot-8 and 5-foot-9.
Steven Stamkos snapped a 10-game goal slump, and took more than two shots in a game for the first time in December.
Rookie winger Conor Sheary was bumped up to Pittsburgh's top line with Sidney Crosby in just his second NHL game. He clicked with Crosby, grabbing his first NHL goal and assisting on Trevor Daley's first goal with the Penguins in a 6-2 loss.
The 5-foot-8 Sheary was overshadowed in the game with 5-foot-9 Bruins rookie Frank Vatrano putting in his first career hat trick.
Despite the goals being exciting, there was little fantasy value to be gleened from them Sheary might be worth watching, but Pittsburgh needs to start scoring more consistently before you're trusting anyone outside the usual suspects.
Stamkos is Stamkos. Even in a slump you aren't abandoning him.
Daley remains an interesting addition to Pittsburgh, but like with Sheary, you want to see it repeated before you buy in.
Vatrano? There were some pretty goals in there, but it only brings him to five goals in 17 games. He'll have to start putting up points more frequently to really place himself on the radar.
Projected Goalie Starters (all times Eastern)
For updates on the projected goalies later in the day, check our Projected Goalies Grid
Blackhawks (Corey Crawford) at Sabres (Chad Johnson), 1:00 PM
Flames (Karri Ramo) at Blues (Brian Elliott), 3:00 PM
Kings (Jonathan Quick) at Maple Leafs (Jonathan Bernier), 7:00 PM
Ducks (John Gibson) at Devils (Keith Kinkaid), 7:00 PM
Hurricanes (Eddie Lack) at Penguins (Matt Murray), 7:00 PM
Flyers (Steve Mason) at Blue Jackets (Curtis McElhinney), 7:00 PM
Canadiens (Mike Condon) at Stars (Antti Niemi), 7:00 PM
Wild (Devan Dubnyk) at Predators (Pekka Rinne), 8:00 PM
Islanders (Jaroslav Halak) at Coyotes (Anders Lindback), 9:00 PM
Oilers (Anders Nilsson) at Avalanche (Semyon Varlamov), 10:00 PM
Injury News For Teams Playing Saturday
Chicago Blackhawks
Marcus Kruger, C (wrist) - underwent surgery Friday and will miss four months
Buffalo Sabres
Marcus Foligno, LW (upper body) - did not play Thursday
Cody McCormick, C (blood clots) - has not yet played this season
Robin Lehner, G (ankle) - has returned to the ice, but doesn't appear ready to return
Mark Pysyk, D (lower body) - is considered week-to-week
Calgary Flames
Michael Frolik, LW (upper body) - is out "a few weeks"
Lance Bouma, C (lower leg) - isn't expected to play on the current road trip
St. Louis Blues
Jaden Schwartz, LW (ankle) - remains out
Patrik Berglund, C (shoulder) - remains on long-term injured reserve, but has skated
Steve Ott, C (hamstring) - will be out another couple months
Kyle Brodziak, C (sore) - is out of Saturday's game
Los Angeles Kings
Matt Greene, D (upper body) - is on long-term IR
Trevor Lewis, C (upper body) - did not play Thursday
Dwight King, LW (foot) - skated on his own this week, but is unlikely to play Saturday
Kyle Clifford, LW (upper body) - is out
Toronto Maple Leafs
James Reimer, G (groin) - won't return until after the holiday break
Garret Sparks, G (lower body) - won't return until after the holiday break
Nick Spaling, C (upper body) - is also no expected back until after the holiday break
Stephane Robidas, D (knee) - is still without a timetable for a return
Anaheim Ducks
Nate Thompson, C (suspension) - has two more games of his suspension to serve
Simon Despres, D (concussion) - has been out for a long time and has no timetable for a return
New Jersey Devils
Bobby Farnham, LW (upper body) - is on IR
Travis Zajac, C (upper body) - hopes to return this weekend
Carolina Hurricanes
James Wisniewski, D (ACL) - tore his ACL in the first game of the year and was projected to miss the vast majority of the season
Nathan Gerbe, LW (lower body) - remains out
Pittsburgh Penguins
Beau Bennett, RW (upper body) - was injured early in the week and isn't expected back for at least a month
Kris Letang, D (undisclosed) - didn't play Friday, but is close to a return
Pascal Dupuis, RW (blood clots) - has effectively retired from hockey
Marc-Andre Fleury, G (concussion) - is on IR
Philadelphia Flyers
Mark Streit, D (groin) - has skated, but remains out
Sam Gagner, C (concussion) - has recovered, but hasn't seen game action yet
Luke Schenn, D (lower body) - is close to a return
Columbus Blue Jackets
Cody Goloubef, D (jaw) - remains out after taking a shot to the face
David Savard, D (lower body) - didn't play Thursday
Sergei Bobrovsky, G (groin) - has skated and is said to be ahead of his three-week timetable for return
Markus Hannikainen, RW (shoulder) - will miss at least another month and a half
Rene Bourque, LW (undisclosed) - remains out
Jack Johnson, D (upper body) - missed Thursday's game
Montreal Canadiens
Carey Price, G (leg) - won't return until January
Devante Smith-Pelly, RW (lower body) - has skated, but remains questionable to return to game action
Brendan Gallagher, RW (fingers) - rejoined practice Monday, but won't play Saturday
Dallas Stars
Healthy
Minnesota Wild
Healthy
Nashville Predators
Gabriel Bourque, LW (lower body) - is on IR
Mike Fisher, C (lower body) - isn't expected to play Saturday, but could return early next week
New York Islanders
Jean-Francois Berube, G (lower body) - is on IR
Kyle Okposo, RW (lower body) - is expected to miss the next two games
Arizona Coyotes
Joe Vitale, C (fractured orbital bone) - remains out
Anders Lindback, G (illness) - missed practice Friday and will be reevaluated Saturday
Zbynek Michalek, D (lower body) - has been ruled out of Saturday's game
Mike Smith, G (core muscle) - will miss at least two months following surgery this week
Martin Hanzal, C (lower body) - didn't play Thursday
Edmonton Oilers
Benoit Pouliot, LW (lower body) - is closing in on a return, but didn't play Thursday
Rob Klinkhammer, LW (ankle) - aggravated something when he returned and is expected to be held out of Saturday's game
Oscar Klefbom, D (finger) - will return on Dec. 21 at the earliest
Nail Yakupov, RW (ankle) - remains out
Connor McDavid, C (shoulder) - is skating and considered to be ahead of schedule
Colorado Avalanche
Ben Street, C (chest) - is on IR
Jesse Winchester, LW (concussion) - is still on injured reserve
Brad Stuart, D (back) - remains out
Hot
Brent Burns, D, SJS — It's been an incredible couple games for Burns, who has two goals, three assists, 13 shots and three power play points over his last two games. He's also played over 27 minutes in both of those games.
Bobby Ryan, RW< OTT — Ryan now sits seventh in the league in assists and 10th in points. That's great no matter what, but it's especially impressive when you remember he had just one goal in his first eight games and put up just four points in his first seven games. Since snapping that slump he's been on a tear. He's currently on a three-game point streak with two goals, two assists, a plus-4 rating, a power play goal and eight shots.
Cold
Phil Kessel, RW, PIT — Kessel hasn't scored in seven games and has only put in a goal in one of his last 11 games. That seven-game slump? He's only contributed a single assist and a minus-7 rating during that time. It's been a rough stretch for a player many predicted would hit 40 goals this season.
Evgeny Kuznetsov, C, WSH — Kuznetsov was one of the hottest players in the NHL to start the season. Through the season's first 22 games, he had eight goals and 24 points. Now he's gone 10 games without a goal and has just two points over his last nine games. He'll snap out of his funk, but it's a frustrating time to have him on your roster.
Recommended Pickup
Reilly Smith, RW, FLA — With a 20-goal season and two straight seasons of 40+ points behind him, it's surprising that Smith's ownership levels hover under 10 percent. He's currently on a four-game point streak with four goals, an assist, a plus-5 rating, nine shots, five hits and three blocked shots. He's creating production across categories and may carry more value, even after this hot stretch ends, than meets the eye on first glance. His 43 hits on the season are fourth among team forwards. Two of those three ahead of him are at eight points or below, compared to Smith's 18.
