NHL Player News

Vladar (lower body) participated in Monday's morning skate and is nearing a return to the lineup, Charlie O'Connor of PHLY Sports reports.

Vladar will miss his sixth straight game when the Flyers host the Islanders on Monday, but he probably could have served as Samuel Ersson's backup. However, Philadelphia will give the 28-year-old Vladar some additional time to recover before activating him from injured reserve. He has posted a 16-7-4 record with a 2.46 GAA and a .905 save percentage across 28 appearances this season.

Merzlikins and the Blue Jackets won't play against the Kings on Monday since the game was postponed due to severe winter weather in the Columbus area.

Merzlikins was slated to draw the start at home Monday, but the game will be rescheduled for March 9. The next game on the Blue Jackets' schedule is a home matchup against the Flyers on Wednesday, but it's not yet clear who will start in net during that game.

Kuemper and the Kings will not face the Blue Jackets on Monday after the game was postponed due to severe weather.

The Kings were already practicing Monday when the news came out. The team will benefit from not having to play in a back-to-back, which means Kuemper figures to be between the pipes on the road versus Detroit on Tuesday, though that hasn't been officially confirmed yet.

Sorokin will start Monday's road game against the Flyers, Stefen Rosner of NHL.com reports.

Sorokin has had mixed results over his last five starts, going 3-2-0 with a 2.84 GAA and .906 save percentage during that time. He made a road start against Philadelphia on Oct. 25, turning aside 23 of 26 shots (.885 save percentage) in a shootout loss.

Jarry will protect the home net against Anaheim on Monday, according to Ryan Rishaug of TSN.

Since returning to the lineup from a lower-body injury, Jarry has gone 2-2-1 in five appearances while allowing 14 goals on 113 shots. He has a 14-5-2 record with a 2.82 GAA, a .900 save percentage and two shutouts in 22 appearances this season between Edmonton and Pittsburgh. The Ducks earned a 4-3 overtime win over Calgary on Sunday. Anaheim is tied for 13th in the league with 3.21 goals per game this campaign.

Merzlikins was the first goalie off the ice at the morning skate, according to Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers, indicating he will protect the home net against the Kings on Monday.

Merzlikins is poised to return to the crease after leaving Tuesday's 4-1 loss to Ottawa because of an illness. He has been healthy enough to be in the lineup as Jet Greaves' backup for the last two games. The 31-year-old Merzlikins has gone 8-8-1 with a 3.81 GAA and an .882 save percentage across 18 appearances this campaign. Los Angeles is tied for 28th in the league with 2.60 goals per game this campaign.

Daccord halted 27 of 29 shots on goal in Sunday's 4-2 win over New Jersey.

Daccord ended a three-game losing streak with Sunday's victory. He was perfect at even strength and surrendered just two power-play goals in the contest. With the win, the 29-year-old goaltender is up to a 13-12-5 record, a 2.89 GAA and a .900 save percentage across 30 appearances this season. While he's less than halfway to replicating the 27-win season he posted across 57 outings a season ago, he's slated to play a big role down the stretch as the Kraken challenge for a playoff spot in the Pacific Division. Daccord holds solid fantasy value across most two-goalie fantasy formats and is on track to post a .900-plus save percentage for the third consecutive year. His next chance to take the ice is Tuesday in a home matchup versus the Capitals.

Markstrom stopped 15 of 18 shots on net in Sunday's 4-2 loss to the Kraken.

Markstrom posted a solid performance through the first two periods before he allowed two goals in an 18-second span in the third. With the loss, he now holds a 14-12-1 record, a 3.29 GAA and an .879 save percentage through 28 outings this season. Despite the late struggles in Sunday's contest, the 35-year-old netminder has been solid lately with a 4-2-0 record and a 2.65 GAA over his last six appearances. With the veteran goalie bouncing back after a rough start to the season, he has worked his way back into decent fantasy value in two-goalie formats. His next chance to find the win column is in Tuesday's home game against the Jets.

Ersson was the first goalie off during Monday's morning skate, Jordan Hall of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports, indicating that he'll draw the home start against the Islanders.

Ersson has had mixed results over his last four outings, going 2-1-1 with 12 goals allowed on 112 shots (.893 save percentage). He's made a pair of starts against the Islanders this year -- one at home and one on the road -- both of which were shootout wins. He allowed a total of six goals on 57 shots in those games.

Sogaard stopped 19 of 20 shots in Sunday's 7-1 win over the Golden Knights.

Sogaard made his first start of the season Sunday and looked surprisingly competent, as he was less than five minutes away from posting a shutout until Rasmus Andersson scored with a wrister late in the third period. The 25-year-old isn't expected to see regular playing time any time soon, and now that Linus Ullmark, who operated as the backup Sunday, is back with the team, Sogaard should return to AHL Belleville. This means Ullmark should return to the No. 1 role with James Reimer as his backup.