NHL Player News

Kochetkov will protect the home goal versus the Sabres on Saturday, Ryan Henkel of The Hockey News reports.

Kochetkov will make his second start of the season after posting a 26-save shutout versus the Rangers on Tuesday. The Sabres have won just once in their last six games, scoring 13 goals in that span, so this should be a good matchup for Kochetkov to keep things rolling.

Tarasov is set to start on the road against the Sharks on Saturday, per Rob Darragh of the Panthers' official site.

Tarasov has a record of 0-2-1 with a 2.64 GAA and an .886 save percentage in three appearances this year. His last start came Oct. 28 when he turned aside 15 of 17 shots in regulation and overtime en route to a 3-2 shootout loss to Anaheim. San Jose is 6-6-3 and ranks 10th in goals per game with 3.33 this year.

Oettinger will defend the road net against Nashville on Saturday, per Brooks Bratten of the Predators' official site.

Oettinger surrendered six goals on 24 shots in Thursday's 7-5 loss to Anaheim, with the seventh goal being an empty-netter. He has a 5-3-2 record this season with one shutout, a 2.89 GAA and an .899 save percentage through 10 appearances. Nashville is 30th in the league with 2.44 goals per game this campaign.

Annunen will protect the home net against Dallas on Saturday, according to Brooks Bratten of the Predators' official site.

Annunen stopped 21 shots in a 3-2 overtime loss to Minnesota on Tuesday. He has posted a record of 0-2-1 this season while allowing 11 goals on 78 shots. Dallas sits 22nd in the league with 2.86 goals per game in the 2025-26 campaign.

Daccord (upper body) was placed on injured reserve Saturday, per the NHL media site.

Daccord will be unavailable for at least the next three games after landing on the IR list, starting with Saturday's road matchup against the Blues. However, it remains unclear when he will be ready to return to the lineup. Daccord has a 6-2-3 record with one shutout, a 2.83 GAA and a .900 save percentage through 11 appearances this season. Philipp Grubauer will face St. Louis on Saturday, but Matt Murray should also play during Daccord's absence.

Mrazek will guard the road goal against the Golden Knights on Saturday, per Jesse Granger of The Athletic.

Mrazek has a 2-0-0 record in two appearances this season while allowing 11 goals on 65 shots. He hasn't played much behind Lukas Dostal, and that's a trend that is likely to continue throughout the year. Vegas ranks 11th in the league with 3.31 goals per game this campaign.

Lankinen will patrol the home crease against Columbus on Saturday, Brendan Batchelor of Sportsnet 650 reports.

Lankinen has a 2-4-0 record this season while allowing 22 goals on 184 shots. Jiri Patera will be the backup netminder, and Thatcher Demko (undisclosed) will get the night off to rest. The Blue Jackets sit 16th in the league with 3.08 goals per game this campaign.

Demko (undisclosed) won't dress for Saturday's home game against Columbus, Brendan Batchelor of Sportsnet 650 reports.

Kevin Lankinen will start against the Blue Jackets on Saturday, and Jiri Patera will serve as the backup goaltender. Demko isn't in the lineup for what the team described as preventative maintenance. The 29-year-old goaltender has an extensive injury history. Vancouver is presumably hoping that a cautious approach with Demko will ultimately lead to him avoiding any big stretches where he's unavailable this year. He was on the ice for Saturday's morning skate, and it's unclear if he will return to the lineup for Sunday's home matchup against Colorado.

Wedgewood was the first goalie off the ice at the morning skate, Conor McGahey of Altitude TV reports, indicating he will defend the road net against Edmonton on Saturday.

Wedgewood made 22 saves in a 3-2 win over Tampa Bay on Tuesday. He has earned a record of 8-1-2 with a 2.49 GAA and a .902 save percentage through 12 appearances this season. Edmonton is tied with the Lightning for 17th in the league with 3.07 goals per game this campaign.

Schmid is expected to start at home against Anaheim on Saturday, per SinBin Vegas.

Schmid has a 6-1-0 record, 2.31 GAA and .908 save percentage in seven appearances in 2025-26. He earned a 24-save shutout over Detroit in his last start Tuesday. Although expectations weren't high for Anaheim going into the campaign, the Ducks are 9-3-1 and rank first in goals per game with 4.15, so this might be a challenging assignment for Schmid.