NHL Player News

Shesterkin will be between the pipes versus Tampa Bay on Thursday, per Mollie Walker of the New York Post.

Shesterkin will likely face a depleted Lightning team as Tampa Bay is locked in to second place in the Atlantic Division and will host Florida in Game 1 of the opening round of the playoffs. Shesterkin is 26-29-5 with five shutouts, a 2.91 GAA and a .903 save percentage in 60 outings this season. Despite having the worst season statistically in his NHL career, Shesterkin was stellar most of the season and kept the Rangers in playoff contention. Shesterkin should be drafted among the top goaltenders in fantasy drafts ahead of the 2025-26 season.

Hellebuyck made 30 saves in Wednesday's 2-1 overtime win over the Ducks.

The veteran goalie saw his shutout bid spoiled by Troy Terry early in the third period, but it was still an impressive final regular-season outing for Hellebuyck. The reigning Vezina Trophy winner is the favorite to take home the hardware again after posting career-best numbers in wins (47), GAA (2.00) and save percentage (.925) in 2024-25, leading the NHL in the first two categories and sitting just a hair behind Anthony Stolarz's .926 save percentage in the third.

Husso turned aside 42 shots in Wednesday's 2-1 overtime loss to the Jets.

The 30-year-old netminder did everything he could to steal a win for the Ducks in their regular-season finale, but Mark Scheifele snapped a puck past him 71 seconds into OT to end Anaheim's campaign. After a rough beginning to the season as part of the goaltending jumble in Detroit, Husso looked better in four late-season outings for Anaheim, going 1-1-1 with a 2.99 GAA and .925 save percentage. He'll try to find a backup job as a free agent this offseason.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.