NHL Player News
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Filip Gustavsson G | MIN
Wild's Filip Gustavsson: Starting Thursday
Gustavsson will be between the home pipes versus Calgary on Thursday, Wild radio broadcaster Kevin Falness reports.
Gustavsson saw his three-game winning streak come to an end Saturday, stopping 30 shots in a 4-3 overtime loss to Florida. Gustavsson is 17-9-6 with three shutouts, a 2.62 GAA and a .907 save percentage across 33 appearances this season. The Flames are having trouble finding the back of the net, scoring 2.50 goals per game, which ranks 31st in the NHL.
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Jonathan Quick G | NYR
Rangers' Jonathan Quick: Gets starting nod versus Isles
Quick will be between the pipes for Thursday's home clash with the Islanders, Stefen Rosner of NHL.com reports.
Quick was mired in a 12-game losing streak before securing a 4-3 win over the Bruins on Monday. With the veteran netminder struggling, he has been sharing the crease with Spencer Martin while Igor Shesterkin (lower body) is on the shelf. Over the last eight seasons, Quick has managed to reach the 20-win threshold just once and is unlikely to do so in 2025-26.
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Ilya Sorokin G | NYI
Islanders' Ilya Sorokin: In goal Thursday
Sorokin will get the starting nod on the road versus the Rangers on Thursday, Stefen Rosner of NHL.com reports.
Sorokin will take the second game of the back-to-back versus New York after David Rittich secured the 5-2 win Wednesday. Since returning from injury, the 30-year-old Sorokin has appeared in seven of the Isles' last 11 contests, posting a 5-2-0 record, 2.02 GAA and three shutouts. The Russian backstop currently leads the NHL with six shutouts and will look to secure No. 7 on Thursday.
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MacKenzie Blackwood G | COL
Avalanche's Mackenzie Blackwood: Takes loss in Ottawa
Blackwood allowed three goals on 21 shots in Wednesday's 5-2 loss to the Senators. The last two goals were empty-netters.
The Avalanche struggled as a whole and were in no position to help Blackwood. He's gone 1-3-0 with 15 goals allowed on 101 shots over his last four games, though that's part of a larger rough patch for the team. Overall, Blackwood has a 14-4-1 record with a 2.44 GAA and a .909 save percentage across 19 appearances. Scott Wedgewood will likely get the nod for Thursday's game in Montreal, but fantasy managers should be patient with Blackwood -- he's talented enough to turn things around, especially on a strong team.
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James Reimer G | OTT
Senators' James Reimer: Takes down Avalanche
Reimer stopped 16 of 18 shots in Wednesday's 5-2 win over the Avalanche.
The Avalanche were far from their best, but Reimer was up to the challenge to keep them from being opportunistic. The 37-year-old has now won two of his five outings with the Senators, though he has surrendered 15 goals on just 119 shots (.874 save percentage). The Senators' next game is Saturday at home versus the Devils.
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Dan Vladar G | PHI
Flyers' Dan Vladar: Loses to Blue Jackets in return
Vladar stopped 26 of 30 shots in Wednesday's 5-3 loss to the Blue Jackets. The fifth goal was an empty-netter.
Vladar missed six games due to a lower-body injury. While his final line doesn't really reflect it, Vladar played a big part in keeping this game competitive despite taking the loss. He's down to a 16-8-4 record with a 2.52 GAA and a .904 save percentage over 29 starts. Samuel Ersson is likely to start Thursday in Boston, but Vladar should see a majority of the action between the pipes moving forward, as Ersson did little to improve his standing during Vladar's absence.
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Elvis Merzlikins G | CLB
Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Gets win over Flyers
Merzlikins stopped 24 of 27 shots in Wednesday's 5-3 win over the Flyers.
Merzlikins was originally scheduled to start Monday versus the Kings before that game was postponed due to severe winter weather. The extra time off didn't hurt Merzlikins, as he picked up his third win in four outings despite giving up a hat trick to Travis Konecny in this contest. Merzlikins is now 9-8-1 with a 3.76 GAA and an .882 save percentage over 19 starts this season. The Blue Jackets have a road back-to-back up next with games in Chicago on Friday and St. Louis on Saturday. Expect Merzlikins and Jet Greaves to split those starts.
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Spencer Martin G | NYR
Rangers' Spencer Martin: Yields five goals in loss
Martin stopped 31 of 36 shots in Wednesday's 5-2 loss to the Islanders.
Martin took his third straight loss, a span in which he's given up 12 goals on 93 shots. The 30-year-old has been alternating starts with Jonathan Quick lately, but neither goalie has posted many positive results during the absence of Igor Shesterkin (lower body). Martin is now 1-3-0 over six appearances, allowing a total of 20 goals on 147 shots (.864 save percentage). The Rangers are at home Thursday for a rematch with the Islanders, which will likely see Quick get the nod.
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David Rittich G | NYI
Islanders' David Rittich: Little work in win
Rittich stopped 14 of 16 shots in Wednesday's 5-2 win over the Rangers.
Rittich didn't have to face much pressure since the Rangers sat Artemi Panarin (not injury related), taking a major weapon out of the lineup. Rittich has faced fewer than 30 shots in each of his last seven outings, though he's a mere 3-3-1 in that span, with this being just the third time in those games he's allowed two goals or fewer. For the season, he's at a 12-7-3 record with a 2.54 GAA and a .901 save percentage over 22 starts. Ilya Sorokin will probably get the nod for Thursday's rematch with the Rangers at Madison Square Garden.
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John Gibson G | DET
Red Wings' John Gibson: Starting Thursday's home game
Gibson will defend the home crease against the Capitals on Thursday, Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press reports.
Gibson snapped an eight-game winning streak in a 3-1 loss to the Kings on Tuesday, but he'll still tend the twine for a third consecutive matchup Thursday. He made a road start against Washington on Dec. 20, turning aside 24 of 26 shots (.923 save percentage) in a 5-2 victory.