We’ve speculated that Ondrej Pavelec might start for the first time since that scary collapsing incident (and the concussions that resulted from it) this week, but it seems just about official.
Chris Vivlamore reports that he will indeed start instead of Chris Mason tonight.
Mason won his last two starts, including Friday’s game against the Buffalo Sabres, but back-to-backs make it even more sensible for Pavelec to make his return.
Pavelec played 42 games for Atlanta last season, going 14-18-7 with a 3.29 GAA and a 90.6 save percentage. The team is expecting big things, as he still has plenty of room to improve at 23 years old.