NHL Player News

Quick stopped 14 of 17 shots Monday after replacing Igor Shesterkin (lower body) midway through the first period of a 3-2 overtime loss to the Mammoth.

It's not yet clear how serious the injury to Shesterkin is, but Quick would move into the No. 1 spot in the Rangers crease for however long Shesterkin's sidelined. The 39-year-old Quick has gone nearly two months without getting into the win column, posting a record of 0-5-2 over his last seven outings with a 2.80 GAA and a .902 save percentage.

Vejmelka made 22 saves in Monday's 3-2 overtime win over the Rangers.

New York got two pucks past him on power plays in the second period, but otherwise Vejmelka had an answer for everything the home side fired at him. The 29-year-old netminder has been getting just enough offensive support over the last few weeks, going 6-2-0 in his last eight starts with a 2.63 GAA and an .898 save percentage.

Vladar will get the starting nod at home versus the Ducks on Tuesday.

Vladar has been putting up decent numbers of late, going 4-1-0 with a 2.01 GAA and a .919 save percentage in his last five outings. With his 15 wins this year, the 28-year-old backstop has already set a new career high for victories and should be capable of challenging for the 30-win threshold.

Shepard was reassigned to AHL Belleville on Tuesday.

Shepard made a relief appearance against the Red Wings on Monday, stopping 10 of 12 shots in a loss, but will now be headed back down to the minors in favor of Mads Sogaard, who was recalled in a corresponding move. Given the organizational depth in goal, the 30-year-old Shepard doesn't figure to make enough NHL appearances this year to make him fantasy relevant.

Sogaard was elevated from AHL Belleville on Tuesday.

With the Senators heading into a back-to-back versus the Mammoth and Avalanche on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively, Sogaard figures to make his first NHL start of the 2025-26 campaign. In two regular-season appearances last year, the 25-year-old backstop went 1-1-0 with a 5.22 GAA and an .800 save percentage.

Shepard halted 10 of 12 shots on goal in Monday's 5-3 loss to Detroit.

Shepard entered Monday's contest in relief of Leevi Merilainen, who allowed three goals in the first period. Shepard played decently in his first taste of NHL action this season, but he still picked up the loss when he surrendered Lucas Raymond's go-ahead goal in the second period. The 30-year-old netminder could see a handful of starts in the absence of Linus Ullmark (personal), but expectations in fantasy should be tempered with Ottawa's crease as a whole moving forward.

Merilainen stopped five of the eight shots on net he saw in Monday's 5-3 loss to the Red Wings.

Merilainen struggled throughout the first period of Monday's contest, allowing three total goals, with one just 17 seconds away from the end of the period. He would ultimately be replaced by Hunter Shepard when the Senators came out for the second period. Merilainen now has a 6-7-0 record, a 3.49 GAA and an .869 save percentage through 14 appearances this season. After a strong rookie campaign, the second-year netminder has been inconsistent this year, making him and the rest of Ottawa's options in the crease tough to trust in fantasy. With Linus Ullmark (personal) on a leave of absence, Merilainen will likely continue to operate as the lead option unless he continues to struggle.

Gibson turned aside 35 of 38 shots on goal in Monday's 5-3 win over the Senators.

Gibson played with a lead for the majority of the contest, giving him the confidence to post his second-highest save total in a game this season. With the win, the 35-year-old netminder is up to a 14-9-1 record with a 2.94 GAA and an .897 save percentage through 25 appearances this season. Since his stretch of strong play began Dec. 2, he has a 10-2-0 record with a 2.26 GAA and a .925 save percentage across 12 outings. A very small list of netminders have been better during this time, giving Detroit's new 1A option a bright fantasy outlook moving forward. He is a top waiver wire target across most two-goalie formats, and his next chance to take the ice is Thursday against the Canucks.

Head coach Joel Quenneville said that Mrazek (undisclosed) was injured during Monday's 7-4 loss to the Capitals, per Tom Gulitti of NHL.com.

Mrazek was replaced in goal by Lukas Dostal for the start of the third period in the defeat. Mrazek missed a few weeks in December due to a lower-body problem, but it's currently unclear if the reason he left Monday's game was a result of an aggravation of his previous injury. If Mrazek is forced to miss any upcoming games, it wouldn't be surprising to see Ville Husso elevated from the minors. The Ducks will continue their road trip in the second half of a back-to-back Tuesday in Philadelphia.

Cooley will be sidelined for Monday's home game against the Kraken because of an illness, Pat Steinberg of Sportsnet 960 The Fan reports.

Owen Say was recalled from AHL Calgary on Monday and will serve as the No. 2 option behind Dustin Wolf due to Cooley's illness. The Flames have a road back-to-back set against the Canadiens on Wednesday and the Bruins on Thursday, so Cooley will likely get the start for one of those matchups if he's healthy enough to play.