NHL Player News

  • Canucks' Nikita Tolopilo: Sent to minors

    Tolopilo was assigned to AHL Abbotsford on Thursday.

    Tolopilo made his NHL debut late in the 2024-25 campaign, going 1-1-0 with a 2.14 GAA and .875 save percentage over two appearances. He'll head back to the minors now that the Canucks' regular-season schedule has concluded.

  • Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Locks up playoff spot with win

    Montembeault made 27 saves in Wednesday's 4-2 win over the Hurricanes.

    Facing a Carolina team that was resting a number of key skaters, Montembeault was more than up to the task of clinching a playoff spot for Montreal in its final regular-season game. The 28-year-old will head into a first-round playoff matchup against the Capitals with plenty of momentum -- over his last eight starts, Montembeault has gone 6-1-1 with a 2.11 GAA and .922 save percentage.

  • Hurricanes' Pyotr Kochetkov: Downed by Habs on Wednesday

    Kochetkov stopped 17 of 20 shots in Wednesday's 4-2 loss to the Canadiens, with Montreal's final goal getting scored into an empty net.

    With nothing on the line in their second-last game of the regular season, the Hurricanes rested a number of skaters and didn't provide Kochetkov with his usual support. It's the 25-year-old netminder's third loss in his last four starts, and over his last seven outings he's stumbled to a 3.91 GAA and .832 save percentage. Frederik Andersen has been marginally better during that stretch (2.80 GAA, .885 save percentage in his last six starts), but it's not yet clear which goalie Carolina will have between the pipes when the team kicks off its playoff run against New Jersey.

  • Oilers' Stuart Skinner: Playoff-ready after shutout win

    Skinner posted an 18-save shutout in Wednesday's 3-0 win over the Sharks.

    Skinner has allowed just one goal on 36 shots over two wins since returning from a head injury. The 26-year-old was sharp, and considering Calvin Pickard struggled versus the Kings on Monday, it could be Skinner who gets the first shot at claiming the No. 1 job in goal for the Oilers in the postseason. Skinner ends the regular season at 26-18-4 with a 2.81 GAA and an .896 save percentage, as well as three shutouts, over 51 appearances. Even if Skinner starts Game 1 versus the Kings, he's unlikely to have much leeway should his performance falter early in the series.

  • Sharks' Alexandar Georgiev: Loses in finale

    Georgiev stopped 25 of 27 shots in Wednesday's 3-0 loss to the Oilers. The third goal was an empty-netter.

    Georgiev went 0-3-3 with 25 goals allowed over his last six games of the season. The 29-year-old ends the year at 15-26-4 with a 3.71 GAA and an .875 save percentage. Per Max Miller of NHL.com, Georgiev has already been informed he'll be a free agent this summer, as general manager Mike Grier is not interested in re-signing the struggling goalie. Given Georgiev's statistical decline over the last two years, he may not find anything more than a backup role if he stays in the NHL, though he could opt to continue his career overseas. Fantasy managers shouldn't be expecting Georgiev to make a positive impact in 2025-26, regardless of where he ends up.

  • Canucks' Nikita Tolopilo: Takes loss in relief

    Tolopilo allowed two goals on eight shots in relief of Kevin Lankinen (undisclosed) in Wednesday's 4-1 loss to the Golden Knights.

    Tolopilo played the third period after Lankinen exited the game with a muscle strain. This was Tolopilo's second NHL appearance and his first loss -- he went 1-1-0 with three goals allowed on 24 shots over the last two games of the season. The 25-year-old goalie is likely to be reassigned to AHL Abbotsford to join that team's playoff run. When both Thatcher Demko and Lankinen are healthy, Tolopilo has no obvious path to NHL playing time.

  • Golden Knights' Akira Schmid: Light work in win

    Schmid stopped 16 of 17 shots in Wednesday's 4-1 win over the Canucks.

    Schmid wasn't all that busy in the contest. Pius Suter opened the scoring for the Canucks, but the Golden Knights bounced back with a third-period tally to claim the win. Schmid went 2-0-1 with five goals allowed on 90 shots over his five NHL appearances this season. Since AHL Henderson missed the minor-league playoffs, expect Schmid to stay in the NHL as extra goaltending depth during the postseason.

  • Canucks' Kevin Lankinen: Leaves game with muscle strain

    Lankinen suffered an undisclosed muscle strain that forced him to exit Wednesday's game versus the Golden Knights, Thomas Drance of The Athletic reports.

    Lankinen stopped 19 of 20 shots prior to his exit, and he won't end up with a result from the contest, as the scored was tied at 1-1. Nikita Tolopilo took over in goal for the Canucks. Lankinen ends 2024-25 with a 25-15-10 record, a 2.62 GAA, a .902 save percentage and four shutouts over 51 appearances. If the injury is significant, or even moderate, Lankinen may not be an option for Finland at the 2025 IIHF World Championship.

  • Stars' Casey DeSmith: Makes relief appearance Wednesday

    DeSmith stopped all 12 shots he faced in relief of Jake Oettinger in Wednesday's 5-1 loss to the Predators.

    Once the game turned into a blowout in the second period, head coach Pete DeBoer turned to DeSmith to play the final frame of the regular season. Barring an injury to Oettinger, this was likely DeSmith's last playing time for a while. DeSmith allowed 15 goals on 117 shots over his last four appearances as part of a larger seven-game losing streak for the Stars. Overall, DeSmith ends the season at a 14-8-2 record with a 2.59 GAA and a .915 save percentage across 27 appearances in his first year with the Stars.

  • Stars' Jake Oettinger: Can't shake skid in finale

    Oettinger stopped 17 of 22 shots before he was pulled from Wednesday's 5-1 loss to the Predators.

    Oettinger probably shouldn't have been starting in the regular-season finale, but he got the nod anyway. He wasn't able to shake his recent skid, which is up to four straight losses (0-3-1), a span in which he's allowed 17 goals on 134 shots. Oettinger ends the regular season at 36-18-4, one win shy of his career high from 2022-23, and he also posted a 2.59 GAA and a .909 save percentage in 58 starts. He'll be the man between the pipes for the Stars' playoff run, which begins with Game 1 versus the Avalanche on Saturday.

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