Preview/Lines #31: Reimer Impressed by Makiniemi’s 1st NHL Start

James Reimer will get the call tonight once again.

Reimer has been out since Nov. 25, when he suffered a lower-body injury against the Los Angeles Kings.

In his stead, Kaapo Kahkonen went 1-1-1 with an .877 Save %, veteran Aaron Dell went 0-2-0 with an .897 Save %, and Eetu Makiniemi made his NHL debut and won his first NHL start, going 1-0-1 with a .906 Save %.

The waiver-exempt Makiniemi was sent back to the San Jose Barracuda to make room for Reimer.

Reimer watched Makiniemi’s first start, a 6-1 victory over the Anaheim Ducks, from the Honda Center pressbox.

What did the 34-year-old, veteran of 13 NHL seasons, think of the 23-year-old rookie’s first NHL start?

“He has what it takes. Obviously, he showed it,” Reimer said this morning. “He’s a confident kid and he’s confident in his game. I think that shows in the way he plays. He’s got a lot of skill and a great demeanor.”

San Jose Sharks (9-16-5)

James Reimer returns, otherwise, should be the same lines as against Anaheim – Alexander Barabanov, however, is a game-time decision with a lingering lower-body injury.

If Barabanov plays, this is how lines should look:

Meier-Hertl-Labanc
Bonino-Couture-Barabanov
Svechnikov-Sturm-Kunin
Gadjovich-Lorentz-Lindblom

Megna-Karlsson
Vlasic-Benning
Harrington-Simek

Reimer

Arizona Coyotes (9-13-4)

This is how the Coyotes skated in their last game, a 5-4 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers on Sunday:

Sunday's crew. pic.twitter.com/u8Is12cwqL

— Arizona Coyotes (@ArizonaCoyotes) December 11, 2022

Where to Watch

The San Jose Sharks will take on the Arizona Coyotes at 7:30 PM PST at SAP Center. Watch it live on NBC Sports California. Listen to it on the Sharks Audio Network.