NHL Player News

Ristolainen (upper body) will remain out Thursday versus Pittsburgh, per Flyers Director of Broadcasting Brian Smith.

Ristolainen also missed Wednesday's 5-2 loss to Buffalo. He has three assists in 13 outings in 2025-26. Noah Juulsen is projected to stay in the lineup, but Juulsen might be a healthy scratch once Ristolainen is ready to play.

Vladar (undisclosed) won't suit up Thursday versus the Penguins, Flyers Director of Broadcasting Brian Smith reports.

Vladar will miss at least one game with the injury he sustained Wednesday against the Sabres. An update on Vladar's status hasn't been provided by the team yet, leaving his timeline to return in question, though Kevin Kurz of The Athletic reports the issue is not expected to be a long-term concern. Samuel Ersson and Aleksei Kolosov will handle the goaltending duties until Vladar is able to return.

Ellis will protect the home goal versus the Canadiens on Thursday, Heather Engel of NHL.com reports.

Ellis will make his third start in the last five games, which suggests he's worked his way into a timeshare with Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen. The 25-year-old Ellis has allowed five goals on 63 shots while going 1-1-0 in his last two outings. The Canadiens have 22 goals over their last six games, going 4-1-1 in that span.

Mateychuk is slated to miss Thursday's game versus the Canucks, Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site reports.

Mateychuk's second evaluation results haven't been revealed, but it looks like he'll need to miss a second contest. The Blue Jackets will get a boost on defense with the return of Erik Gudbranson (hip) and Damon Severson (illness). Once cleared to play, Mateychuk will have a little more competition for top-four minutes.

Lankinen is slated to start Thursday's road game against Columbus, Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers reports.

Lankinen has yet to enter the win column over four appearances since the start of the calendar year, going 0-2-1 with a 2.98 GAA and .894 save percentage during that time. He made a home start against the Blue Jackets on Nov. 8 and turned aside 29 of 32 shots in a 4-3 victory.

Ersson will start Thursday's road game against Pittsburgh.

Ersson has taken losses in each of his last three outings, but he'll draw the start Thursday after Dan Vladar (undisclosed) exited Wednesday's game against the Sabres. It's not yet clear when Vladar will return to action, but Ersson will likely serve as the Flyers' No. 1 netminder if Vladar misses time, while Aleksei Kolosov was also called up Thursday.

Norris (ribs) will miss Thursday's game against Montreal, per Paul Hamilton of WGR Sports Radio 550.

Norris has six goals and 17 points in 19 outings in 2025-26. He sustained the injury during Wednesday's 5-2 win over Philadelphia. Konsta Helenius was summoned from the minors Thursday and is likely to draw into the lineup due to Norris' absence.

Laczynski was summoned from AHL Henderson on Thursday.

Laczynski has 13 goals and 35 points in 32 outings with Henderson in 2025-26. He hasn't played for Vegas yet this season, but he did record a goal in eight regular-season appearances with the Golden Knights in 2024-25.

Montour (hand) was taken off injured reserve, per Sound of Hockey, which indicates that he'll play Thursday in Boston.

Montour hasn't been in the lineup since Dec. 16 due to the injury. He has six goals, 16 points, 21 PIM, 34 hits and 35 blocks in 27 appearances in 2025-26. Now that Montour is healthy, he'll probably serve in a top-four capacity, while Cale Fleury might be a healthy scratch against the Bruins.

Melanson was reassigned to AHL Coachella Valley on Thursday, Sound of Hockey reports.

Melanson had been with the Kraken since mid-December, and he recorded a goal, three assists, 66 hits and six blocked shots while averaging 9:25 of ice time over 15 appearances with Seattle. However, he'll head back to the minors since Brandon Montour (hand) was activated from injured reserve ahead of Thursday's game in Boston.