Mike Matheson is one of three veterans expected to sit out tonight’s game

Basically, Matheson is a veteran who logs a ton of minutes, and the other two are physically banged up. The thinking is likely that it's better to prepare them for a potential Game 1 on the road rather than push them to start at home.

If the playoffs had already started, they'd surely be playing.

The two forwards can be replaced relatively easily. But taking Mike Matheson away from a team that's already playing without Noah Dobson is a big deal, though.

It won't be as drastic as in Philly, though, where five guys were called up.

Details to follow…