Blackhawks vs. Sharks Lines: Braun Misses Morning Skate

Justin Braun did not skate this morning, as the Sharks' lines remain otherwise unchanged from Monday's practice.

Defenseman Justin Braun did not skate, but the Sharks' lines otherwise did not change at their morning skate. Brenden Dillon will slide up and play alongside Marc-Edouard Vlasic, while Mirco Mueller draws back into the lineup and will play next to Matt Tennyson.

Braun's absence is a big loss for San Jose. He's fourth on the team in total and shorthanded ice time, so Peter DeBoer will have to do some juggling to figure out minutes on the blueline. Mueller and Tennyson, meanwhile, have yet to truly earn the trust of the coaching staff. Mueller has played in just four games this season, playing under ten minutes in two games, while Tennyson's played as many as 17 minutes and as little as seven in 18 games this season. The move also forces Dillon to play on his off side alongside Vlasic, which is an area where he's struggled in the past.

UPDATE (11:10 AM): According to coach DeBoer, Braun is officially out of the lineup tonight, and is "day-to-day" with an upper body injury.

Projected Sharks Lines

Melker Karlsson - Joe Thornton - Joe Pavelski

Joonas Donskoi - Patrick Marleau - Joel Ward

Matt Nieto - Tomas Hertl - Tommy Wingels

Dainius Zubrus - Chris Tierney - Mike Brown

Marc-Edouard Vlasic - Brenden Dillon

Paul Martin - Brent Burns

Mirco Mueller - Matt Tennyson

Martin Jones

Alex Stalock

Projected Blackhawks Lines

Artemi Panarin - Artem Anisimov - Patrick Kane

Andrew Shaw - Jonathan Toews - Ryan Garbutt

Andrew Desjardins - Marcus Kruger - Marian Hossa

Marko Dano - Tanner Kero - Brandon Mashinter

Duncan Keith - Niklas Hjalmarsson

Trevor van Riemsdyk - Brent Seabrook

Trevor Daley - Michal Rozsival

Corey Crawford

Scott Darling