NHL Player News

Slavin scored a goal on four shots in Saturday's 6-3 loss to the Maple Leafs.

Slavin's defense was on display for the world to see during his time with Team USA during the 4 Nations Face-Off. The 30-year-old didn't have a point during the tournament, but offense has never been his calling card. Even with that being the case, his NHL play has been pretty good lately -- he has four goals and 11 points over 20 outings since the start of January. For the season, he's at 21 points, 75 shots on net, 98 blocked shots and a plus-11 rating through 57 appearances. Fantasy managers don't need to buy the hype from talking heads; Slavin is an excellent on-ice player, but he's not a one-size-fits-all option in the virtual game. Roster him for blocks, and consider him if you're in a deeper format, but remember that a 30-point pace is typically the expectation.

Tanev logged an assist, three blocked shots and a plus-3 rating in Saturday's 6-3 win over the Hurricanes.

Tanev snapped a nine-game point drought when he set up Auston Matthews' empty-netter, the first of two freebies for the Maple Leafs late in the game. The 35-year-old Tanev continues to quietly take care of business on the back end as a shutdown defenseman. He's also done fairly well for himself on offense with 15 points, 28 shots on net, 151 blocked shots and a plus-24 rating across 55 appearances. He can help in fantasy formats that count blocks, but he's little more than a depth defenseman in most situations.

Dumba provided an assist in Saturday's 4-2 win over the Devils.

Dumba has logged a helper in three straight contests. Prior to this stretch, he had been limited to just two assists in his first 34 appearances of the campaign. He's now at five helpers, 29 shots on net, 51 hits, 38 blocked shots, 35 PIM and a minus-1 rating through 37 outings. Dumba won't be a massive producer on offense, but a strong showing over the next week or two could allow the Stars to address other needs at the trade deadline, even with Miro Heiskanen (knee) out for weeks and Nils Lundkvist (shoulder) done for the season.

Emberson notched an assist, four shots on goal, three hits and a plus-2 rating in Saturday's 6-3 loss to the Flyers.

Emberson snapped a six-game point drought with the helper. The 24-year-old blueliner remains limited to a third-pairing role and has 10 assists through 54 contests. That matches his point total from 30 games with the Sharks last season -- he's also averaged 14:50 of ice time in his first year with the Oilers, which explains a large amount of his drop in production. He's added 83 hits, 72 blocked shots, 45 shots on net and a plus-2 rating this season.

Ekholm scored a goal and went minus-3 in Saturday's 6-3 loss to the Flyers.

Ekholm's goal briefly tied the game at 3-3 in the second period, but the Oilers didn't have another comeback in them. The defenseman has two goals and five assists over his last eight NHL outings, and he was also on Sweden's roster during the 4 Nations Face-Off, so he didn't have a break for the past two weeks. The 34-year-old blueliner is now at eight goals, 25 points, 123 shots on net, 80 blocked shots and a plus-14 rating through 55 appearances this campaign.

Zamula notched an assist in Saturday's 6-3 win over the Oilers.

Zamula missed eight games due to an upper-body injury. He slotted back in on the third pairing and logged 15:45 of ice time. Zamula will need to play well -- head coach John Tortorella won't hesitate to insert a veteran blueliner, Erik Johnson, into the lineup if Zamula's performance is poor. For the season, Zamula has 12 points, 25 shots on net, 59 blocked shots and a minus-11 rating across 40 appearances.

Juulsen (undisclosed) was placed on injured reserve Saturday, per the NHL media site.

Juulsen isn't on the Canucks' five-game road trip, so the move frees up a roster spot if they need it later on. He's unlikely to be back in action any earlier than March 5 versus the Ducks. Elias Pettersson and Carson Soucy played as the third pairing Saturday versus the Golden Knights, but Quinn Hughes (oblique) may be back before Juulsen to create competition on the blue line.

Soucy notched a helper and two blocked shots in Saturday's 3-1 loss to the Golden Knights.

Soucy helped out on a Jake DeBrusk tally in the second period. Injuries to Quinn Hughes (oblique) and Noah Juulsen (undisclosed) have offered a reprieve to Soucy's diminishing playing time. However, Souncy must elevate his game to avoid the occasional trip to the press box. For the season, the defenseman has nine points, 60 shots on net, 83 hits, 87 blocked shots, 42 PIM and a minus-15 rating through 55 appearances, a level of production that likely isn't enough to keep him in the lineup once the team is at full strength.

Korczak logged an assist in Saturday's 3-1 win over the Canucks.

Korczak got the nod to join the lineup over Ben Hutton. There's an opening on the Golden Knights' defense for as long as Shea Theodore (arm) is out -- Theodore is considered week-to-week after getting hurt during his time with Team Canada at the 4 Nations Face-Off. Korczak has done fine when called upon this season, earning four assists, 15 shots on net, 28 hits, 20 blocked shots and a plus-4 rating across 19 appearances. Until he shows success over a larger sample, he doesn't need to be rostered in fantasy.

Whitecloud registered an assist, two hits and a plus-2 rating in Saturday's 3-1 win over the Canucks.

Whitecloud has a chance to carve out a larger role while Shea Theodore (arm) is out of action. That didn't fully come to fruition Saturday -- Whitecloud's 16:47 of ice time versus the Canucks is only minimally higher than his 16:22 per game this season. The blueliner is at 10 points, 52 shots on net, 69 hits, 70 blocked shots and a plus-1 rating over 50 appearances, and he's earned a point in three straight games (one goal, two assists).