NHL Player News

Akhtyamov was promoted from AHL Toronto on Monday.

Akhtyamov's elevation would seem to indicate that there is an injury or illness to one of the Leafs' other two backstops. With the team heading into a back-to-back against the Sharks and Jackets on Monday and Tuesday, respectively, Akhtyamov could be pressed into service.

Bussi stopped 31 of 34 shots in Sunday's 3-2 loss to the Flames.

Bussi was able to put in a decent effort, but the Hurricanes are missing four regulars from their forward group. That left the scoring depth thinned out too much for them to keep pace in the second half of a back-to-back. Bussi is now 2-2-1 with a 2.98 GAA and an .882 save percentage over five games this season. Pyotr Kochetkov is undefeated between the pipes and looks to have gained an edge for starts over the last week, but Bussi represents a solid backup or 1B option. The Hurricanes' five-game road trip reaches its midpoint when they visit the Canucks on Tuesday.

Cooley stopped 34 of 36 shots in Sunday's 3-2 win over the Hurricanes.

Even with numerous absences, the Hurricanes still posed a threat. Cooley was able to do enough for the win in one of the bigger upsets of the early part of the season. It's his first win in three outings, and he's allowed 12 goals on 91 shots so far. Wins will still be hard to come by in Calgary, but Cooley won over some doubters last year and could continue to do so from the backup role in 2026-27. Dustin Wolf is likely to be back between the pipes Thursday versus the Wild.

Talbot stopped 32 of 34 shots in Sunday's 2-1 loss to the Wild.

The Blue Jackets got more than doubled up on shots (34-14), but Talbot did his part to keep things close. The 39-year-old looked a lot better in this game than when he gave up six goals on 23 shots against the Panthers on Tuesday. Talbot will continue to handle backup duties behind Jet Greaves, though neither goalie is a strong play in weekly leagues since the Blue Jackets are playing just twice in the next seven days. They'll host the Maple Leafs on Tuesday and the Golden Knights on Saturday.

Wallstedt stopped 13 of 14 shots in Sunday's 2-1 win over the Blue Jackets.

Wallstedt collected his fourth straight win in this outing, and he faced a season low in shots to do so. The 23-year-old has allowed just one goal in half of his eight outings this season. He's posted a 6-1-1 record with a 1.99 GAA and a .921 save percentage. Wallstedt is poised for at least another month unchallenged as the Wild's top goalie before Filip Gustavsson (hip) is in the mix to return to action. A road trip is up next as the Wild face a four-game week -- expect Wallstedt to start three of them, beginning with Tuesday's tough matchup against the Oilers.

Bussi is expected to patrol the road blue paint Sunday against the Flames, according to Walt Ruff of the Hurricanes' official site.

Bussi seems to have lost the No. 1 gig in net to Pyotr Kochetkov, who is off to a perfect 5-0-0 record to being the 2026-27 campaign. Still, the 28-year-old Bussi has won his last two starts, and he should remain a solid option in fantasy on one of the NHL's top teams. Even with the Hurricanes on the second half of a back-to-back, Bussi has a favorable matchup Sunday against a Calgary squad that has generated just 2.00 goals per game this season, which is tied for 30th in the NHL. The Flames should be well rested, however, as they have been off since Thursday.

Head coach John Hynes said Sunday that Gustavsson (hip) is slated to miss at least another month, Dylan Loucks of The Hockey News reports.

Gustavsson was moved to long-term injured reserve earlier in October, so Sunday's update isn't particularly surprising. The 28-year-old netminder recently began skating on his own, but he still has several steps to take in his recovery before he's in the mix to return to game action. Jesper Wallstedt and Calvin Pickard should continue to handle goaltending duties in Gustavsson's absence.

Talbot will defend the road net against the Wild on Sunday, per Heather Rule of NHL.com.

Talbot will get the second half of Columbus' back-to-back after Jet Greaves played in Saturday's 1-0 overtime win over the Rangers. The 39-year-old Talbot is 1-1-0 this season while allowing eight goals on 45 shots. Minnesota (5-2-1) ranks 11th in the league with 3.25 goals per game this campaign.

Cooley will patrol the home crease against Carolina on Sunday, per Pat Steinberg of QR Calgary 770 AM.

Cooley has lost his first two outings of the 2026-27 campaign, surrendering 10 goals on 55 shots. Sunday's matchup will be challenging, as Carolina (7-1-1) is tied for fourth in the league with 3.78 goals per game this season.

Knight made 28 saves in Saturday's 4-0 loss to the Stars.

The 25-year-old netminder kicked out all 12 shots he faced in the first period to keep Chicago in the game, but the team's defensive issues eventually saddled Knight with another loss. He's started seven of the team's nine games to begin the season, going 3-4-0 with a 3.59 GAA and .888 save percentage, but he could get in the win column a little more often now that Connor Bedard is back on the ice.