NHL Player News

Rittich turned aside 30 of 32 shots in Saturday's 3-2 shootout loss to the Sabres.

After allowing two goals before the halfway point of regulation, Rittich shut the door from there to force a shootout, in which he ultimately fell 2-1. The 33-year-old netminder now has a 7-3-2 record with a 2.53 GAA and a .908 save percentage across 12 appearances this season. He continues to perform as one of the league's top backup goalies and currently has GAA and save percentage numbers that rank inside the top 20 among netminders with double-digit appearances this season. He also hasn't allowed more than three goals in a game since Nov. 7. Ilya Sorokin should continue to see the bulk of the workload for the Isles moving forward, but when Rittich is slated to play, the veteran backup is a strong spot-start option in nearly all two-goalie fantasy formats.

Gustavsson made 28 saves in Saturday's 5-2 win over the Oilers.

Edmonton got two pucks past him in a little over five minutes during the first period, including a Connor McDavid power-play tally, but Gustavsson slammed the door shut on the visitors the rest of the way. It was the fifth straight win for the veteran netminder, and Gustavsson hasn't allowed more than three goals in a start in over a month, going 8-1-2 over his last 11 outings with a dazzling 1.70 GAA and .934 save percentage.

Pickard turned aside 32 of 36 shots in Saturday's 5-2 loss to Minnesota, with the Wild's final goal getting scored into an empty net.

Most of the scoring took place in the first period as the Oilers emerged staring at a 3-2 deficit, and while Pickard played well the rest of the way, his offensive support disappeared. The veteran netminder has just one win since the beginning of November, going 1-4-1 with a rough 4.16 GAA and .867 save percentage over his last nine outings, but with Tristan Jarry (lower body) on the shelf, Pickard will see a heavier workload in the Edmonton crease, with Connor Ingram -- who has yet to make an appearance in an NHL game this season -- as his backup.

Fowler posted a 31-save shutout in Saturday's 4-0 win over the Penguins.

Fowler was excellent between the posts and cruised to the first shutout of his career. He has recorded at least 30 saves in two of four starts in his young NHL career. The 21-year-old Fowler could be a candidate to return to the AHL after Sam Montembeault returns from his conditioning assignment with AHL Laval on Dec. 28, though Saturday's shutout helps Fowler's case for maintaining a role in Montreal's crowded crease alongside Montembeault and Jakub Dobes.

Skinner stopped 17 of 20 shots in Saturday's 4-0 loss to the Canadiens. The fourth goal was an empty-netter in the final period.

Skinner has yet to record his first win since being traded from the Oilers to the Penguins earlier this month. In his two starts with Pittsburgh, the 27-year-old has stopped 34 of 42 shots, which translates to a disappointing .810 save percentage. Skinner should continue to get ample opportunities to protect the Penguins' crease going forward, but his first two outings with the team haven't left many positive remarks.

Tarasov stopped 25 of 30 shots in Saturday's 6-2 loss to the Blues. The sixth goal was an empty-netter in the third period.

Tarasov has alternated wins and losses in his last six starts dating back to Nov. 24, a span in which he's gone 3-3-0 with a 3.55 GAA and an .892 save percentage. Tarasov has allowed four or more goals in each of the defeats, and that inconsistency on a game-to-game basis makes him hard to trust him even as a potential streaming, plug-and-play option in standard leagues.

Hofer stopped 27 of 29 shots in Saturday's 6-2 win over the Panthers.

Hofer was beaten twice in the second period, as the Panthers attempted to come back from a two-goal deficit, but the 25-year-old netminder shut the door for good the rest of the way and got plenty of goal support. Hofer has won three of his last four starts, posting a 2.00 GAA and a .925 save percentage in that span.

Merzlikins allowed four goals on 28 shots in Saturday's 4-3 loss to the Ducks.

Merzlikins made just his second start in the last seven games, but he didn't have a great performance. He never had a lead to protect, but he allowed a late goal to Pavel Mintyukov that decided the game. Merzlikins has allowed 14 goals on 73 shots over his last three outings, and he hasn't looked all that good in his most recent wins either. Merzlikins is 6-6-1 with a 4.04 GAA and an .877 save percentage in 14 starts. The only thing keeping him in the mix for regular playing time is that fact that Jet Greaves has failed to run away with the starting job so far, but Greaves' numbers are still far better than what Merzlikins has shown. The Blue Jackets' next game is Monday versus the Kings.

Dostal stopped 23 of 26 shots in Saturday's 4-3 win over the Blue Jackets.

Columbus erased Anaheim's first two leads, but Dostal held on for the final 3:29 after Pavel Mintyukov put the Ducks ahead a third time. This was a much better outing compared to Friday, when Dostal was pulled after allowing four goals on seven shots. He's now at a 13-7-1 record with a 2.91 GAA and an .899 save percentage over 21 starts. The Ducks' next game is against the low-scoring Kraken on Monday.

Kochetkov made 23 saves in a 6-4 loss to the Lightning on Saturday.

He allowed five goals. The Canes staked him to a 3-0 lead in the first period, and then the Bolts took over the game. It was the second straight game Carolina failed to hold a three-goal lead, although that wasn't on Kochetkov. Overall, he's 6-2-0 in eight starts with one shutout, a 2.33 GAA and an .899 save percentage.