NHL Player News

Gavrikov scored a goal, blocked two shots and went plus-2 in Saturday's 3-2 overtime win over the Kraken.

Gavrikov opened the scoring midway through the first period. The 29-year-old defenseman's tally was his first goal this season, to go with two assists across 13 contests. He's added 18 shots on net, 21 blocked shots, six PIM and a plus-5 rating. Gavrikov remains a defensive presence on the top pairing, so while his ice time will be high, his point production isn't likely to follow on a consistent basis.

Bouchard scored a goal on four shots and added a power-play assist in Saturday's 3-2 overtime win over the Blackhawks.

Bouchard helped out on a Jack Roslovic tally in the second period and scored a goal of his own at 2:43 of overtime. This was Bouchard's second goal of the season and first game-winner in 2025-26. He's at nine points (four on the power play), 35 shots on net, 18 blocked shots and a minus-8 rating through 13 contests. All of his points have been earned within the last seven games, so it's safe to say he's shaken off his slow start to the year.

Cholowski registered an assist, two blocked shots and a plus-2 rating in Saturday's 4-1 win over the Kings.

Cholowski made his season debut Saturday, stepping into the lineup for Seamus Casey, who was a healthy scratch. The 27-year-old Cholowski had 10 points over 39 appearances between the Devils and the Islanders in 2024-25, so there's a little scoring potential for him. The veteran blueliner is on a one-way contract in 2025-26 -- there's no benefit for the Devils to stash him at AHL Utica, but he's best positioned to serve as a rotational option on the third pairing rather than being a lineup regular.

Brodin scored a goal, dished an assist, blocked four shots and went plus-2 in Saturday's 5-2 win over the Canucks.

This was Brodin's first multi-point effort of the season, and it snapped a five-game skid. The 32-year-old defenseman sees plenty of ice time, but he's in a shutdown role, so fantasy managers shouldn't expect him to be a regular contributor on offense. Brodin is at two goals, two assists, eight shots on net, 24 blocks and an even plus-minus rating across 12 appearances while playing in the Wild's top four.

McCabe scored a goal in a 5-2 win over the Flyers on Saturday.

McCabe lofted a shot from the center of the blue line that went in through a screen at 8:14 of the second period. It pushed the score to 2-1 in favor of the Leafs. He has three points (one goal, two assists) in his last four games, but he may be focused on more shutdown situations in the near future after Chris Tanev (upper body) was stretchered off the ice Saturday.

Aitcheson scored two goals on six shots in OHL Barrie's 4-2 win over Erie on Saturday.

Aitcheson has five goals and one assist during a four-game point streak. The 19-year-old defenseman is showing some serious scoring chops with 11 goals and 17 points through 16 appearances this season. He had 26 goals and 59 points over 64 regular-season outings in 2024-25, but he appears to have taken another step, which is exactly what the Islanders want to see out of one of their top prospects.

Tanev (upper body) was taken out of Saturday's game against Philadelphia on a stretcher after Matvei Michkov knocked into him, Luke Fox of Sportsnet reports.

Tanev was playing in his first game since returning from a concussion. Michkov's hit might not have been intentional, but he did receive two minutes for interference. Should Tanev need to miss some time, Philippe Myers is likely to draw back into the lineup.

Blankenburg picked up an assist in Saturday's 4-2 win over the Flames.

It was his first point of the season in his third appearance. After being a healthy scratch in 10 of the first 11 games, Blankenburg has played in two straight outings because of injuries to Roman Josi (upper body) and Adam Wilsby (lower body).

Nikishin scored a goal Saturday in a 2-1 loss to Boston.

He wired a slap shot from the slot late in the third period with the extra skater on the ice for Carolina's lone goal. Nikishin has a goal and an assist in his last two games. He has produced two tallies, six points, 21 shots on net and a plus-10 rating through 11 contests this season. He's already in the hunt for the Calder Trophy as the best rookie. Due to injuries, he is on the top pairing and has been working on the second power-play unit. Nikishin is a star in the making.

Dineen scored a goal and added an assist in AHL Bakersfield's 4-3 overtime loss to Calgary on Saturday.

Dineen has made a positive start to the AHL season with six points over eight games. The 27-year-old has enough experience to get a call-up should the Oilers need emergency depth on the blue line. However, with Edmonton's defense at nearly full health, don't expect Dineen to be recalled any time soon.