NHL Player News

Vasilevskiy stopped 19 of 22 shots Monday in the Lightning's 4-2 loss to the Panthers in Game 4 of their first-round series. Florida's final goal was scored into an empty net.

Tampa Bay took a 2-1 lead into the third period, but late in the frame, Aaron Ekblad and Seth Jones scored 11 seconds apart to flip the script. Vasilevskiy has been erratic this postseason, managing a 2.79 GAA and an .884 save percentage through four starts, and as a result, the Bolts will be facing elimination when the series shifts back to Tampa for Game 5 on Wednesday.

Vasilevskiy will be between the road pipes in Game 4 against the Panthers on Monday, Gabby Shirley of FanDuel Sports Network Florida & Sun reports.

As if there was any doubt, Vasilevskiy will be tasked with attempting to send the series back to Tampa Bay tied at 2-2. The Russian netminder's workload has increased in each game of this series, and after conceding six goals on 17 shots in Game 1, Vasilevskiy has turned aside 54 of 56 shots (.964 save percentage) over the last two matchups. The Lightning will receive a boost Monday in the form of Brandon Hagel, who was suspended for Saturday's Game 3 win.

Blackwood will guard the road goal against the Stars on Monday in Game 5, per Aarif Deen of Colorado Hockey Now.

Blackwood stopped 23 shots in Saturday's 4-0 win over Dallas to earn his first NHL playoff shutout. He has a 2-2 record with a 1.60 GAA and a league-leading .939 save percentage this postseason. Dallas sits seventh in the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs with 28.5 shots per game.

Bobrovsky will start Monday's critical Game 4 at home against the Lightning, Panthers play-by-play announcer Steve Goldstein reports.

The Panthers had a chance to grab a stranglehold on the series in Game 3 and Bobrovsky had a tough game, stopping just 17 of the 21 shots he faced. The 36-year-old will get a chance to rebound from that performance in Game 4 and try to capture some of the magic from the first two games where he stopped 39 of 41 shots (.951 save percentage).

Oettinger will patrol the home crease against Colorado on Monday in Game 5, Stars radio analyst Bruce LeVine reports.

Oettinger stopped 31 of the 34 shots he faced in Saturday's 4-0 loss to the Avalanche before sitting out the third period for rest. He has a 2-2 record with a 2.72 GAA and a .911 save percentage during the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Colorado ranks first with 34.5 shots per game this postseason.

Woll is dealing with an illness that kept him out of Monday's practice session, Luke Fox of Sportsnet reports.

Woll has been stuck behind Anthony Stolarz during the postseason -- a situation that is unlikely to change any time soon, considering Stolarz is 3-1 in four postseason outings with a 2.29 GAA. If Woll isn't healthy enough to serve as the backup for Game 5 on Tuesday, Artur Akhtyamov could be tasked with being the No. 2 behind Stolarz.

Kuemper stopped 43 of 47 shots in Sunday's 4-3 overtime loss to the Oilers in Game 4.

Kuemper had another bad third period. Of the 16 goals he's allowed in this series, 10 have come in the third period or overtime. That inability to close out games is unusual considering how good Kuemper was late in the regular season, which included a pair of shutout wins of the Oilers in April. Still, he's the Kings' No. 1 goalie, and it doesn't look like his role as the starter is in any danger heading into Game 5 back in Los Angeles.

Pickard stopped 38 of 41 shots in Sunday's 4-3 overtime win over the Kings in Game 4.

The Oilers pulled off a late comeback, scoring twice in the third period and then again on a power play in overtime to overcome a 3-1 deficit in the game. Pickard has allowed seven goals on 69 shots over the last two contests, but he's won both of those games to tie the series at 2-2, so it looks like he's overtaken Stuart Skinner as the Oilers' No. 1 goalie. The Oilers will look to replicate their home-ice success on the road when they play in Los Angeles for Game 5 on Tuesday.

Dobes allowed three goals on 24 shots in Sunday's 5-2 loss to the Capitals in Game 4. The last two goals were empty-netters.

Dobes got the start since Sam Montembeault (lower body) was unavailable. The Canadiens took a 2-1 lead after two periods, but Dobes was unable to protect it in the final frame. He won his playoff debut in relief of Montembeault in Friday's Game 3, but Dobes is still a relatively untested rookie netminder. The Canadiens will be facing elimination in Game 5 at Washington on Wednesday, and Dobes will get the nod if Montembeault remains out.

Thompson stopped 16 of 18 shots in Sunday's 5-2 win over the Canadiens in Game 4.

Thompson left Friday's Game 3 with an apparent lower-body injury, but he was able to avoid missing additional time. The Capitals put in a better effort Sunday, limiting the shots Thompson saw, and he let in only two power-play tallies to Juraj Slafkovsky and Cole Caufield. This win extended the Capitals' series lead to 3-1, and Thompson has allowed 10 goals on 114 shots over those four contests. Assuming he feels fine after this outing, he can be penciled in to start again in Wednesday's Game 5 on home ice.