NHL Player News

Binnington stopped 24 of 25 shots in Sunday's 2-1 win over Utah.

Binnington had little margin for error in the contest, and he was up to the challenge. He had been pulled from his previous start Monday versus the Canucks, so this was a good bounce-back effort. Still, Binnington hasn't earned consecutive wins since Dec. 31 and Jan. 3, and he's just 7-10-1 over 18 outings since the start of December. Overall, the 31-year-old has a 14-19-3 record, a 2.83 GAA and an .898 save percentage through 37 outings. Joel Hofer hasn't been any more consistent, so Binnington figures to continue seeing a slight edge for starts. Fantasy managers may want to stay away from him for Tuesday's game against the Oilers or Thursday's matchup against the Panthers.

Merzlikins allowed five goals on 39 shots in Sunday's 5-3 loss to the Stars.

The Blue Jackets took the lead on three separate occasions, but Merzlikins didn't protect any of those advantages. Evgenii Dadonov then scored twice in the third period to seal the game in favor of the Stars. Merzlikins has had some notable struggles when flipping the calendar -- he is 1-4-0 and has allowed at least three goals in each of his first games of a month this season. He had gone 6-1-0 with just 13 goals allowed over his previous seven starts, and he can be given a pass for Sunday's clunker given the quality of the opponent. Merzlikins is 19-12-3 with a 2.96 GAA and an .895 save percentage through 34 outings this season. The Blue Jackets wrap up their four-game road trip Tuesday in Buffalo.

DeSmith stopped 27 of 30 shots in Sunday's 5-3 win over the Blue Jackets.

DeSmith got a rare start outside of a back-to-back set and took care of business against a high-scoring team. The game was even through two periods, but Evgenii Dadonov's two tallies in the third lifted the Stars to the win. DeSmith improved to 8-6-0 with a 2.46 GAA and a .912 save percentage over 16 appearances this season. The Stars will play their last three games before the 4 Nations Face-Off in California, including a back-to-back Friday in Los Angeles and Saturday in San Jose, so it seems likely DeSmith will get one more start before the break.

Daccord will tend the home twine Sunday against the Flames, per Sound of Hockey.

Daccord will make his 35th appearance of the campaign Sunday -- the 28-year-old owns an 18-12-2 record, .916 save percentage and 2.43 GAA. The Flames are on the second half of a back-to-back, having lost 3-1 to Detroit on Saturday. Calgary is generating 2.65 goals per game this season, the fifth-worst mark in the league.

Allen surrendered four goals on 27 shots in Sunday's 4-3 loss to the Sabres.

New Jersey almost pulled off the comeback Sunday, but Buffalo's three-goal first period was too much to surmount. Allen has lost two of his last three starts, but he was solid across six appearances in January, posting a .927 save percentage and a 1.81 GAA. Overall, the 34-year-old owns an 8-10-1 record, .905 save percentage and 2.68 GAA through 19 appearances.

Luukkonen made 21 saves on 24 shots in Sunday's 4-3 win over New Jersey.

The Sabres rattled off three first-period goals in Sunday's win, but the Devils were able to make the game close over the final 40 minutes. Luukkonen has won three consecutive games and four of his last five. The 25-year-old has been Buffalo's unquestioned No. 1 netminder this season, and he should benefit from a break in the schedule when the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament begins Feb. 12. On the season, Luukkonen is sporting an 18-15-4 record, .897 save percentage and 2.97 GAA through 38 appearances.

Lyon will draw the road start against the Canucks on Sunday, per the NHL media site.

Lyon was spectacular in his last start, turning aside 45 of 47 shots in Thursday's 3-2 road win over the Oilers. Vancouver sits 19th in the NHL with 2.84 goals per game. Detroit is on the second half of a back-to-back, while the Canucks last played Friday.

Dostal allowed two goals on 23 shots in Sunday's 3-2 win over the Canadiens.

Dostal and the Ducks fell into a two-goal hole in the first period, but the 24-year-old was able to keep the Canadiens out of the net for the final two frames to pick up his third straight win. Dostal has a 2.63 GAA and .919 save percentage during his current three-game winning streak.

Montembeault allowed three goals on 22 shots during Sunday's 3-2 loss to the Ducks.

Montembeault kept the Ducks off the board during the first period of Sunday's game but allowed second-period goals to Mason McTavish and Frank Vatrano within a 40-second span before Alex Killorn scored the go-ahead goal midway through the third frame. Montembeault has dropped his last three games and has a 3.42 GAA and .889 save percentage over that span. The Canadiens will continue their three-game California road trip Tuesday in San Jose.

Wedgewood is day-to-day with an upper-body injury, per Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette.

Wedgewood missed Sunday's 2-0 win over the Flyers -- Trent Miner backed up Mackenzie Blackwood in the victory on home ice. Wedgewood will travel with the team for its upcoming three-game road trip through Western Canada, but it's unclear if he'll be ready for game action. The Avalanche have a back-to-back set against Calgary on Thursday and Edmonton on Friday, so Wedgewood would be poised to start in one of those contests if he's healthy.