NHL Player News

Blackwood posted a 19-save shutout in Friday's 5-0 win over the Blues.

Blackwood was spotted a 4-0 lead after the first period, and the Blues never really put up much of a threat. This performance ended a stretch of five straight outings in which Blackwood gave up at least three goals. Unsurprisingly, he won just once in that span. The 28-year-old netminder is now 17-14-5 with a 2.58 GAA and a .915 save percentage over 37 appearances between the Avalanche and the Sharks. The Avalanche are back in action Sunday versus the Flyers.

Hofer allowed five goals on 36 shots in Friday's 5-0 loss to the Avalanche.

Hofer ended January on a sour note, giving up four of the five goals in the first period. That meant the Blues never really stood a chance, though they didn't make much of an effort at a comeback, totaling just 19 shots on net for the game. Hofer went 2-3-0 with 17 goals allowed over six outings (five starts) in January, and he's now 10-6-1 with a 2.87 GAA and a .903 save percentage over 19 appearances. Jordan Binnington isn't exactly dominating the crease, but Hofer's inconsistent play makes him a risky option in fantasy. The Blues wrap up this two-game road trip in Utah on Sunday.

Tarasov will protect the road goal versus Utah on Friday, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports.

Tarasov is 1-2-1 with 12 goals allowed over his last four outings. The 25-year-old netminder has had limited success in the backup role this year, though Elvis Merzlikins is having a solid season and hasn't allowed for many chances for Tarasov to play. Utah will be without two of its top players in Dylan Guenther (lower body) and Logan Cooley (lower body) for this contest.

Luukkonen will protect the home goal versus the Predators, Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News reports.

Luukkonen will make his 10th appearance of January. He's gone 5-3-1 with a 3.00 GAA and an .896 save percentage over the previous nine contests. The Predators will get Luke Evangelista (lower body) back in their lineup. They have scored 22 goals over the last five games, though 13 of those tallies came in a pair of games against the defensively leaky Sharks, so Luukkonen is still a solid fantasy play for Friday.

Murray was promoted from AHL Milwaukee on Friday, Alex Daugherty of The Tennessean reports.

Murray will fill the backup role behind Justus Annunen on Friday versus the Sabres, as Juuse Saros (illness) is unavailable. Once Saros is feeling well enough to play, Murray will likely return to Milwaukee.

Saros (illness) will not participate in Friday's game versus the Sabres, Alex Daugherty of The Tennessean reports.

Saros is battling an illness and will be forced to miss the first half of a back-to-back. It's unclear if he'll be available for Saturday's game in Pittsburgh. Justus Annunen will start Friday versus the Sabres, and Matt Murray will serve as backup.

Annunen will protect the road goal versus the Sabres on Friday, Alex Daugherty of The Tennessean reports.

Annunen gets the start in the first half of a back-to-back because Juuse Saros (illness) is unavailable. Matt Murray was recalled from AHL Milwaukee to back up for Friday's game. Annunen earned the win in his last outing but allowed five goals on 35 shots versus the Sharks on Jan. 23.

Tomkins was reassigned to AHL Syracuse on Friday.

Tomkins was called up because Andrei Vasilevskiy (illness) was a game-time decision while Jonas Johansson (lower body) was day-to-day going into Thursday's clash against Los Angeles. Vasilevskiy was ultimately able to play, earning a 28-save shutout victory over the Kings. Tomkins still served as the understudy, though, because Johansson was unavailable. Perhaps his demotion means Johansson will be fine to dress Saturday versus the Islanders, but Tampa Bay has the option of recalling Tomkins if that's not the case. The 30-year-old Tomkins has a 2.87 GAA and a .900 save percentage in 17 outings with Syracuse this season.

Kolosov was called up by the Flyers on Friday, according to Jackie Spiegel of The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Kolosov has a 3.59 GAA and an .874 save percentage in seven appearances with AHL Lehigh Valley in 2024-25. He's also recorded a 4-8-1 record, 3.45 GAA and .870 save percentage in 15 outings with the Flyers this year. It's not clear if his promotion is an indication that the status of Samuel Ersson or Ivan Fedotov is in question for Sunday's road tilt versus Colorado. The Flyers did carry three goaltenders earlier this season, so it's possible that Philadelphia has simply decided to do that again.

Mrazek will guard the cage on the road against the Panthers on Saturday, Mark Lazerus of The Athletic reports.

Mrazek has lost all but one of his last five outings, posting a 1-3-1 record, 3.83 GAA and .890 save percentage. In addition, the veteran netminder was forced to watch from the bench for the Blackhawks' last two contests in favor of Arvid Soderblom. If Mrazek continues to struggle, he could find himself relegated to the No. 2 role more regularly.