NHL Player News

Cooley is expected to start on the road against Chicago on Thursday, per Tracey Myers of NHL.com.

Cooley has a 5-4-2 record, 2.29 GAA and .918 save percentage in 14 outings in 2025-26. He stopped 27 of 28 shots en route to a 2-1 win over Pittsburgh in his last start Saturday. Chicago ranks 24th in goals per game with 2.78, and the Blackhawks have gone 1-2-0 while managing just five goals across their past three games.

Hellebuyck is expected to start on the road against Minnesota on Thursday, per Mike McIntyre of the Winnipeg Free Press.

Hellebuyck has won his past two starts, but he's also allowed at least three goals in each of his last five appearances. The 32-year-old netminder has an 11-12-4 record, 2.75 GAA and .899 save percentage in 27 outings, which is pretty disappointing by his standards. He's 1-0-1 with a 3.48 GAA and an .870 save percentage in two starts against Minnesota in 2025-26.

Daccord will start on the road versus the Bruins on Thursday, Mike Benton of the Kraken Audio Network reports.

Daccord will get the nod in a return to his hometown, which is likely why the Kraken flipped their goalie rotation during this back-to-back set. The netminder has won four of his last six outings with a .917 save percentage in that span. The Bruins have won five of their last six games, scoring a total of 25 goals in that span, but their lone loss in that stretch came in Seattle on Jan. 6.

Vladar (undisclosed) won't suit up Thursday versus the Penguins, Flyers Director of Broadcasting Brian Smith reports.

Vladar will miss at least one game with the injury he sustained Wednesday against the Sabres. An update on Vladar's status hasn't been provided by the team yet, leaving his timeline to return in question, though Kevin Kurz of The Athletic reports the issue is not expected to be a long-term concern. Samuel Ersson and Aleksei Kolosov will handle the goaltending duties until Vladar is able to return.

Ellis will protect the home goal versus the Canadiens on Thursday, Heather Engel of NHL.com reports.

Ellis will make his third start in the last five games, which suggests he's worked his way into a timeshare with Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen. The 25-year-old Ellis has allowed five goals on 63 shots while going 1-1-0 in his last two outings. The Canadiens have 22 goals over their last six games, going 4-1-1 in that span.

Lankinen is slated to start Thursday's road game against Columbus, Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers reports.

Lankinen has yet to enter the win column over four appearances since the start of the calendar year, going 0-2-1 with a 2.98 GAA and .894 save percentage during that time. He made a home start against the Blue Jackets on Nov. 8 and turned aside 29 of 32 shots in a 4-3 victory.

Ersson will start Thursday's road game against Pittsburgh.

Ersson has taken losses in each of his last three outings, but he'll draw the start Thursday after Dan Vladar (undisclosed) exited Wednesday's game against the Sabres. It's not yet clear when Vladar will return to action, but Ersson will likely serve as the Flyers' No. 1 netminder if Vladar misses time, while Aleksei Kolosov was also called up Thursday.

Hart (lower body) was put on injured reserve Thursday, per SinBin.vegas.

Hart has a 5-3-3 record, 3.28 GAA and .871 save percentage in 12 outings in 2025-26. He hasn't played since Jan. 8 due to the injury. Adin Hill (lower body) has been taken off injured reserve in a corresponding move and will probably serve as the No. 1 netminder, while Akira Schmid will serve as the No. 2. Goaltender Carl Lindbom is also on the active roster, but it wouldn't be surprising to see him sent to the minors in the near future now that Hill is healthy. Once Hart is ready to return, he might supplement Schmid as the No. 2 netminder, though Schmid, Hill and Hart might find themselves all getting starts on a semi-regular basis.

Hill (lower body) was activated from injured reserve ahead of Thursday's home game against the Maple Leafs, SinBin Vegas reports.

Hill had been sidelined since Oct. 20 due to a lower-body injury, but he made progress in his recovery recently and has been cleared to return to game action. The Golden Knights haven't yet named their starting netminder for Thursday's matchup, but it seems likely that Hill will tend the twine after being activated. Over five appearances this season, Hill has gone 1-0-2 with a 2.73 GAA and .888 save percentage.

Oettinger will start Thursday's road game against Utah, Mike Heika of the Stars' official site reports.

Oettinger has started in just one of the Stars' last four games, but he'll return to the crease Thursday after getting a night off Tuesday in Anaheim during the second half of a back-to-back set. He's been relatively shaky since the start of the calendar year, but he had a successful outing against Los Angeles on Monday, turning aside 24 of 25 shots en route to a 3-1 victory.