NHL Player News

Soderblom turned aside 24 shots in Thursday's 3-2 loss to the Hurricanes.

The 25-year-old netminder didn't play all that poorly, although he might want another crack at Mikko Rantanen's second-period tally, but Soderblom simply didn't get enough help from his offense during a game in which Chicago never held a lead. He has just one win in his last six outings, going 1-3-2 with a 3.33 GAA and .905 save percentage, and while Petr Mrazek has had some struggles of his own lately, Soderblom appears to be letting his chance to claim the No. 1 job slip away.

Korpisalo stopped 21 of 26 shots in Thursday's 6-2 loss to the Jets, with Winnipeg's final goal getting scored into an empty net.

The Bruins tied the game at 2-2 on an Elias Lindholm shorthanded tally, but Korpisalo crumpled under the Jets' counterattack, giving up three goals in the next six minutes. It's the veteran goalie's first regulation loss since Dec. 27, but that's largely due to some impressive offensive support from Boston's skaters. Through five appearances in January, Korpisalo has gone 2-1-1 with a 3.24 GAA and .889 save percentage.

Hellebuyck made 27 saves in Thursday's 6-2 win over the Bruins.

An Elias Lindholm shorthanded tally just 11 seconds into the third period tied things up at 2-2, but Hellebuyck buckled down from there and watched his offense blow the game wide open. The reigning Vezina Trophy winner has won four straight starts and eight of his last nine, posting a stellar 1.67 GAA and .932 save percentage over that stretch, and Hellebuyck ranks first in the NHL in GAA (2.00), save percentage (.927) and shutouts (six) while building a commanding lead with 32 wins, which is seven more than Jake Oettinger, who ranks second in wins.

Georgiev stopped 20 of 22 shots in relief of Yaroslav Askarov in Thursday's 6-2 loss to the Kraken.

The Kraken didn't relent after the swap, but Georgiev was more effective in this contest. It's the first time in six appearances he's allowed fewer than three goals, though all of the previous outings in that span were starts. The 28-year-old remains at a 10-17-0 record with a 3.64 GAA and an .877 save percentage. Since Askarov has been slumping, Georgiev could be back in a goaltending tandem with Vitek Vanecek (face) by the time the Sharks face the Canadiens on Tuesday.

Askarov stopped seven of 11 shots in Thursday's 6-2 loss to the Kraken.

Consistency continues to elude Askarov, who has allowed three or more goals in five of his last six games. The Kraken blitzed him in the second period, scoring three goals in a span of 3:55 before head coach Ryan Warsofsky put Alexandar Georgiev in. For the season, Askarov is 4-6-2 with a 3.10 GAA and an .896 save percentage over 13 appearances. It's looking more and more likely that he'll return to AHL San Jose once Vitek Vanecek (face) completes his conditioning stint. The Sharks are off until Tuesday's game versus the Canadiens, and by that time, Vanecek may be ready to come off injured reserve.

Daccord stopped 26 of 28 shots in Thursday's 6-2 win over the Sharks.

Daccord is in for a heavy workload at least up to the 4 Nations Face-Off following the Kraken's decision to waive and demote Philipp Grubauer. The 28-year-old Daccord has been up to the challenge -- he's gone 6-3-0 over his last 11 outings while allowing just 23 goals in that span. For the season, he's one win shy of his career high (19), clocking in at 18-12-2 with a 2.43 GAA and a .917 save percentage through 34 appearances. Ales Stezka is serving in a backup role, but it wouldn't be surprising to see Daccord start each of the next four games since the Kraken don't have any back-to-backs on the docket prior to the league's pause in February.

Samsonov stopped 22 of 24 shots in Thursday's 2-1 overtime loss to the Blue Jackets.

Samsonov played well, but the Golden Knights' offense didn't give him enough help. The 27-year-old netminder has allowed two or fewer goals in nine of his last 11 games, going 7-3-1 in that span. He's still playing second fiddle to Adin Hill, who recently started three games in a row versus teams firmly in the playoff picture. Samsonov is 12-6-2 with a 2.74 GAA and an .899 save percentage over 20 starts this season. The Golden Knights will be on the road leading into the 4 Nations Face-Off, and the trip begins on Broadway when they visit the Rangers on Sunday.

Merzlikins stopped 25 of 26 shots in Thursday's 2-1 overtime win over the Golden Knights.

Merzlikins didn't face a ton of shots, but he made a number of quality saves against a tough opponent. That allowed the Blue Jackets to have a chance to win, and they did just that when Cole Sillinger tallied 52 seconds into overtime. Merzlikins has won three straight games and seven of his nine outings in January, allowing two or fewer goals on five occasions this month. The Latvian netminder is 19-11-3 with a 2.89 GAA and an .896 save percentage over 33 starts this season. Daniil Tarasov is likely to start Friday in Utah, but Merzlikins should be penciled in for Sunday's tough matchup against the Stars.

Gibson stopped 26 of 29 shots in Thursday's 4-1 loss to the Flames. The fourth goal was an empty-netter.

Gibson's first start since Saturday, when he left early versus the Predators due to an upper-body injury, didn't go all that well. The Ducks led 1-0 after the first period, but the Flames were able to score twice in each of the last two frames. Gibson has gone 1-4-1 with 19 goals allowed over his last eight outings. For the season, he's 8-9-2 with a 2.78 GAA and a .913 save percentage, so his performance was pretty steady in January despite the lack of positive results. The Ducks' next game is at home Sunday versus the Canadiens.

Fedotov made 25 saves in a 3-0 loss to the Islanders on Thursday.

Fedotov's last win came Nov 29 against the Rangers. Overall, he's 4-7-3 in 15 starts this season, and he sports a 3.21 GAA and .881 save percentage. We'd love to play Fedotov, but the situation in Philly isn't ideal for him right now. That may change in the future, but we can't recommend him right now.