NHL Player News

Shesterkin was the first goaltender off the ice at morning practice and will patrol the visiting crease in Colorado on Thursday, Colin Stephenson of Newsday reports.

Shesterkin saw his three-game winning streak come to an end Tuesday in Vegas, as he allowed three goals on 26 shots in a 3-2 loss. Shesterkin is 7-7-2 with a 2.43 GAA and a .911 save percentage across 16 starts this season. Shesterkin will face a tough test Thursday, as the Avalanche have lost only once in regulation over their first 19 games of the season.

Askarov was the first goalie off the ice ahead of Thursday's home matchup with Los Angeles, Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now reports, indicating he'll be between the pipes.

Askarov has been hard to beat of late, going 5-1-0 with a 1.31 GAA in his last six contests. With the 23-year-old netminder on top of his game, he figures to see plenty of work ahead of Alex Nedeljkovic. Through just 12 outings, Askarov has already set a new personal best with six wins and should be capable of challenging for the 20-win threshold at least.

Lankinen is going through his starter's routine at morning skate, per Jeff Paterson of CanucksArmy.com, and is slated to protect the home crease against Dallas on Thursday.

Lankinen got a rare night off Monday, as Jiri Patera gave up seven goals on 40 shots in an 8-5 loss to Florida. Lankinen will get his seventh start in the last eight games. Lankinen is 4-5-2 with a 3.44 GAA and an .890 save percentage over 11 appearances this season. The Stars are tied for 11th in NHL scoring, generating 3.20 goals per game.

Vejmelka was the first goalie off during Thursday's morning skate, Cole Bagley of KSL Sports reports, indicating that he'll draw the home start against the Golden Knights.

Vejmelka will start for the fourth time in Utah's last five games. Across his last three outings, he's gone 1-0-2 with a 2.62 GAA and .879 save percentage. The Golden Knights are tied for 13th in the league with 3.16 goals per game this season.

Wedgewood is expected to defend the home goal against the Rangers on Thursday, Jesse Montano of Guerilla Sports reports.

Wedgewood has won six straight games, allowing just 11 goals on 166 shots (.934 save percentage). He is 11-1-2 with a 2.17 GAA and a .917 save percentage across 15 appearances this season. He has taken over as the No. 1 goaltender in Colorado, bumping Mackenzie Blackwood to a backup role. The Rangers are 30th in NHL scoring, generating only 2.48 goals per game.

Greaves will serve as the starting netminder for Thursday's road game against Toronto, Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site reports.

Greaves has been strong over the past week and a half, going 3-0-1 with a 2.12 GAA and .923 save percentage over his last four starts. He'll face a tough test against the Maple Leafs on Thursday, as they rank fourth in the league with 3.50 goals per game this season.

Stolarz (upper body) has yet to return to the ice, Lance Hornby of The Toronto Sun reports Thursday.

Stolarz suffered the injury Nov. 11 in Boston. Head coach Craig Berube said Thursday. the injury was worse than initially thought, but he might skate Friday. Stolarz is 6-5-1 with a 3.51 GAA and an .884 save percentage across 13 appearances this season.

Hofer will be between the visiting pipes in Philadelphia on Thursday, Adam Kimelman of NHL.com reports.

Hofer is 2-4-1 with one shutout, a 4.04 GAA and an .867 save percentage across nine games this season. It's by far his worst season at the NHL level, parts of five seasons. The Flyers are averaging 2.61 goals per game, 29th in the NHL.

Bobrovsky will get the starting nod at home versus the Devils on Thursday.

Despite giving up five goals on 15 shots (.667 save percentage), Bobrovsky picked up his ninth win of the season against the Canucks on Monday. The veteran backstop trails Colorado's Scott Wedgewood (11) and Anaheim's Lukas Dostal (10) in victories this season. A clash with a banged-up New Jersey squad, which will be without Jack Hughes (finger), sets Bobrovsky up well to secure his 10th win of the year.

Vasilevskiy was the first goalie off during Thursday's morning skate, Lightning reporter Gabby Shirley reports, signaling that he'll draw the home start against the Oilers.

Vasilevskiy has been productive recently, going 4-1-0 with a 2.58 GAA and .908 save percentage over his last five starts. The Oilers are scoring 3.05 goals per game this season, which ranks 18th in the NHL.