NHL Player News

Rittich allowed four goals on 21 shots in Sunday's 5-4 win over the Flyers.

Rittich made his fourth start in December, and he came away with his second win of the month despite an ugly performance. The Flyers led 4-3 after two periods, but Rittich made Anze Kopitar's two third-period goals stand for the win. Rittich is now 11-8-0 with a 2.55 GAA and an .887 save percentage over 20 outings this season. The 32-year-old is firmly in the backup role behind Darcy Kuemper -- Rittich's last two starts have been in back-to-back situations, and the Kings don't have any of those for nearly two weeks as they open 2025 with three games over eight days before a back-to-back in Winnipeg on Jan. 10 and Calgary on Jan. 11.

Soderblom allowed five goals on 35 shots in Sunday's 5-1 loss to the Stars.

Dallas experimented with new lines Sunday, and Soderblom was unable to keep up. This was just the second time all season he's allowed more than three goals in a game -- he's generally been good while serving as the 1B option to Petr Mrazek in the Chicago crease. Soderblom is 5-9-1 with a 2.78 GAA and a .907 save percentage over 16 appearances this season. The Blackhawks' next game is Tuesday's Winter Classic at Wrigley Field, which is expected to be a start for the veteran Mrazek.

Oettinger stopped 24 of 25 shots in Sunday's 5-1 win over the Blackhawks.

Oettinger had lost his last three outings (0-2-1) while allowing nine goals on 59 shots in that span. While he had a fairly easy matchup Sunday, he needed to put in a good performance to get himself back on track, and that's just what he did. The 26-year-old netminder is up to 17-9-1 with a 2.38 GAA and a .909 save percentage over 27 starts this season. Oettinger will likely get the nod for Tuesday's favorable home matchup versus the Sabres.

Pickard conceded four goals on 27 shots in Sunday's 5-3 loss to the Ducks. The fifth marker was an empty-netter.

Pickard had a rare subpar performance in the defeat -- it was just the second time through 13 appearances that he's allowed more than three goals in a game. The 32-year-old hadn't been tagged with a loss since Nov. 18, as he had won four consecutive contests prior to Sunday. Pickard has been a formidable backup to Stuart Skinner in 2024-25, posting an 8-4-0 record, 2.51 GAA and .898 save percentage.

Samsonov stopped all 31 shots he faced in Sunday's 3-0 win over the Flames.

Samsonov has won four straight starts, allowing just five goals in that span. This was his best of the bunch, as he stayed dialed in against a Flames team that didn't look too worn down from being on the second half of a back-to-back. Samsonov is now 9-3-1 with a 2.74 GAA and a .906 save percentage over 13 starts this season after his first shutout of the campaign. The Golden Knights have some favorable matchups over the remainder of their homestand, with games against the Canadiens on Tuesday, the Flyers on Thursday and the Sabres on Saturday.

Vladar allowed two goals on 36 shots in Sunday's 3-0 loss to the Golden Knights. The third goal was an empty-netter.

Vladar put in a strong performance, but it wasn't enough as the Flames' offense went silent. He's won just two of his last six outings, giving up a total of 20 goals in that span. Vladar is down to 6-7-5 with a 3.02 GAA and an .890 save percentage through 18 starts. He continues to see equal time to Dustin Wolf, though the Flames have often rewarded wins with more starts rather than developing any sort of clear pattern for the division of work between the pipes. Both goalies played during this weekend's back-to-back, and with Wolf winning his last start, Vladar will likely be on the bench at home versus the Canucks on Tuesday.

Dostal made 20 saves on 23 shots in Sunday's 5-3 win over Edmonton.

Edmonton's lethal power play was able to cash in twice Sunday, but Dostal allowed just one goal at even strength en route to his ninth win of the campaign. The 24-year-old has won three of his past five outings, and he'll likely be between the pipes versus the Devils on Tuesday, especially if John Gibson (illness) is unable to suit up. Dostal has a 9-10-3 record, .913 save percentage and 2.75 GAA through 22 appearances.

Johansson allowed four goals on 36 shots in Sunday's 5-2 loss to Montreal.

Johansson saw an end to a three-game win streak during which he allowed three goals on 89 shots. He's made seven starts this season and Sunday's result was more in line with Johansson's first three starts when he posted a 5.71 goals-against average and .845 save percentage. The Lightning are off until 2025, kicking off a three-game road trip Thursday at San Jose.

Lindgren stopped 23 of 27 shots during Sunday's 4-2 road loss to the Red Wings.

The Red Wings came flying out of the gates, scoring all four of their goals in the first period. Lindgren falls to 10-8-0 in 18 starts. The Minnesota native's next start will come Thursday against the Wild if Washington continues its pattern of alternating starts between Lindgren and Logan Thompson.

Rittich is expected to start at home against Philadelphia on Sunday, according to Zach Dooley of the Kings' official site.

Rittich has lost his past two starts while stopping 41 of 46 shots. He's 10-8-0 with a 2.46 GAA and .891 save percentage in 19 outings this season. The Flyers rank 18th in goals per game with 3.00.