NHL Player News

Spence scored a goal on two shots, added two hits and blocked three shots in Saturday's 4-2 loss to the Kraken.

Spence's tally late in the first period tied the game at 2-2, but that's where the Kings' offense stalled out. He ended a five-game point drought with the goal, which was his first tally since Dec. 12 versus the Devils. The 23-year-old blueliner continues to see steady playing time in a third-pairing role, though his minutes are sometimes limited due to the Kings' seven-defensemen formation. He's produced three goals, 14 points, 46 shots on net, 42 hits, 49 blocked shots and a plus-10 rating over 42 appearances this season.

Hutson had a power-play assist, four blocked shots, two PIM and a minus-5 rating in Saturday's 7-3 loss to Toronto.

Hutson extended a point streak to seven games when he was the primary helper on Patrik Laine's power-play tally. The 20-year-old matched the franchise record for longest point streak by a rookie defenseman. The dynamic Hutson has one goal and 10 assists (four on the power play) during his latest scoring binge. He had done a nice job whittling away at what was a minus-16 rating as recently as Dec. 20; Hutson entered the game with a plus-12 rating over the previous 12 outings before Saturday's unfortunate turn of events.

Tucker scored a goal on two shots and added a fighting major penalty in Saturday's 4-2 loss to Utah.

Tucker opened the scoring 2:05 into the game and then fought Liam O'Brien right after the ensuing faceoff. The 24-year-old Tucker has two goals and two assists over his last five games, a rare stretch of productive offense for the third-pairing blueliner. That's all of his offense this season to go with 13 shots on net, 24 hits, eight blocked shots and 21 PIM over 13 appearances.

Kolyachonok was scratched for the fifth straight game in Saturday's 4-2 win over the Blues.

John Marino's return Tuesday from a season-long absence due to a back injury complicated Kolyachonok's path to the lineup. A spot opened up Saturday when Mikhail Sergachev (upper body) was ruled out, but it was Nick DeSimone who entered the lineup. Kolyachonok has five points, 12 shots on net, a minus-7 rating, 14 hits and 19 blocked shots over 23 appearances this season. Kolyachonok would require waivers to be sent to AHL Tucson, but his presence on the NHL roster suggests Utah is not willing to risk losing the 23-year-old for nothing.

Valimaki notched an assist and three blocked shots in Saturday's 4-2 win over the Blues.

Valimaki helped out on a Logan Cooley tally in the second period. The assist ended an 11-game point drought for Valimaki, who had 13 blocked shots, nine hits, eight shots on net and a minus-7 rating in that span. He's held onto a bottom-four role for much of the season, earning five points, 36 shots on net, 45 blocked shots and a minus-7 rating over 39 appearances. Valimaki's place in the lineup could be at risk once Mikhail Sergachev (upper body) and Robert Bortuzzo (lower body) are both healthy again.

Marino logged an assist, two blocked shots and a plus-2 rating in Saturday's 4-2 win over the Blues.

Marino has been eased back into action after missing the first 42 contests of the season due to a back injury. That ended Saturday, as he was called on for 24:14 of ice time in the absence of Mikhail Sergachev (upper body). Marino is likely to stick in a top-four going forward, though he's more of a shutdown defenseman than a big point producer -- his career high is 26 points in 56 outings in 2019-20, his rookie year. His helper Saturday was his first point of the season to go with two shots on net, three blocked shots and a plus-2 rating over three appearances.

Kesselring scored a power-play goal on six shots and blocked two shots in Saturday's 4-2 win over the Blues.

The goal was Kesselring's first since Dec. 7, and he had just three helpers over the 18 games in between. The 25-year-old saw a larger role Saturday, logging 21:11 of ice time because Mikhail Sergachev (upper body) was out of the lineup. Kesselring has thrived this season with five goals, 13 assists, two power-play points, 85 shots on net, 54 hits, 38 blocked shots, 42 PIM and a plus-10 rating through 45 appearances. His production can help in deeper fantasy formats, and he may be an option in standard formats for as long as Sergachev is sidelined.

Manson put up two assists in a 6-3 win over Dallas on Saturday.

Manson isn't an offensive guy -- he has 12 points, including 11 assists, in 35 games this season. However, he has managed 80 hits and 47 blocks, so he may give you some value in deep leagues that count those categories.

Jiricek scored a goal and added two hits in Saturday's 6-2 loss to the Predators.

The goal was Jiricek's first point over five games as a member of the Wild. The team has sheltered the 21-year-old defenseman even with the organization's defensive depth being heavily tested with three top-four blueliners injured currently. Jiricek has two points, eight shots on net, 12 hits, seven blocked shots and a minus-2 rating over 11 appearances between Minnesota and Columbus this season.

Schenn logged an assist, two hits and seven PIM in Saturday's 6-2 win over the Wild.

Schenn snapped an 11-game point drought when he helped out on a Colton Sissons tally in the first period. Schenn racked up 39 hits and 12 blocked shots during his scoring slump. His physicality is his calling card, but it may not overcome his total lack of offense in 2024-25. The defenseman has three points, 169 hits, 59 blocked shots, 36 PIM, 53 shots on net and a minus-10 rating through 45 appearances in a bottom-four role.