NHL Player News

Vejmelka was the first goalie off the ice at the morning skate, Cole Bagley of KSL Sports reports, indicating Vejmelka will defend the road net in Game 1 against Vegas on Sunday.

Vejmelka went 2-1-0 versus the Golden Knights during the regular season, allowing only five goals on 95 shots. He had a 38-20-3 record with two shutouts, a 2.75 GAA and an .896 save percentage across 64 appearances in the 2025-26 regular season.

Hart will get the start in net for Sunday's Game 1 against the Mammoth, Danny Webster of the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports.

Hart has appeared in only 18 games this season, but there aren't many hotter goalies in the sport right now. Since returning in April, the 27-year-old has won six straight starts and has allowed two goals or fewer in all but one of them. Hart has brought much-needed stability to a Golden Knights crease that has struggled this season overall. He brings an 11-3-3 record into the postseason with a 2.71 GAA and an .891 save percentage. The Mammoth ranked 12th in the NHL at 3.27 goals per game in the regular season.

Heiskanen registered a power-play assist in Saturday's 6-1 loss to the Wild in Game 1.

Heiskanen missed the last three games of the regular season due to a lower-body injury. He ended the campaign at 63 points, including 28 on the power play, over 77 appearances. Heiskanen will be tasked with heavy minutes throughout the playoffs. In previous postseason runs, Heiskanen has amassed 17 goals and 48 helpers across 93 outings. This is the seventh time in his eight NHL campaigns he's helped the Stars make the playoffs.

Robertson scored a power-play goal on six shots in Saturday's 6-1 loss to the Wild in Game 1.

Robertson was the only Star able to break through against Jesper Wallstedt and the Wild's defense. After a strong regular season with 45 goals and 96 points over 82 contests, Robertson will be looking to lead the Stars' offense in the playoffs. He's had decent success over the last four years in the postseason, earning 18 goals and 26 assists across 56 playoff outings prior to this year.

Hartman scored a goal, added an assist, logged two hits, blocked three shots and went plus-2 in Saturday's 6-1 win over the Stars in Game 1.

Hartman was among the many key players for the Wild who produced multi-point efforts in this playoff opener. He was rested for the last two games of the regular season, but he should be good for top-six minutes for most of the postseason. Entering this playoff run, Hartman had earned 21 points over 41 postseason contests across seven previous playoff runs, including six goals and 12 assists over 28 career postseason games with the Wild.

Wedgewood will get the start in goal for Sunday's Game 1 against the Kings, Bailey Curtis of DNVR Sports reports.

Wedgewood has appeared in four playoff games in his career, but this will be the first start in the playoffs for the 33-year-old. He had the best regular season of his career this year, playing in 45 games and going 31-6-6 with a 2.02 GAA and a .921 save percentage. The Avalanche may use Mackenzie Blackwood at some point in the postseason as well, but it will be Wedgewood's net to open the postseason against the Kings, who had the fourth-worst offense in the NHL during the regular season at 2.68 goals per game.

Swayman will defend the road net against the Sabres on Sunday in Game 1, Rachel Lenzi of The Buffalo News reports.

During the 2025-26 regular season, Swayman posted a 31-18-4 record with two shutouts, a 2.71 GAA and a .907 save percentage across 55 appearances. He made 21 saves in a 3-1 win over Buffalo on Oct. 11 in his second game of the campaign.

Yakemchuk has been added to the active roster by the Senators, Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia reports Sunday.

Following Saturday's 2-0 defeat in Game 1 against the Hurricanes, the Senators have added their crop of Black Aces to the roster with AHL Belleville's season officially in the books. Alongside Yakemchuk, Ottawa also added Graeme Clarke, Arthur Kaliyev, Xavier Bourgault, Oskar Pettersson and Tyler Boucher to the roster.

James (lower body) was activated from long-term injured reserve Sunday, per the NHL media site.

James is back ahead of schedule for the Lightning as the 23-year-old was given a timeline of 8-10 weeks in early March after undergoing surgery. He had 15 points (seven goals, eight assists) in 43 games played during the regular season. If he suits up in Game 1 against the Canadiens on Sunday, it would be the rookie's first game since Feb. 28.

Chaffee was reassigned to AHL Syracuse on Sunday.

Chaffee was recalled to play in the Lightning's regular-season finale against the Rangers, and he notched an assist for his first point of the season in his 11th NHL game of the campaign. The 28-year-old has excelled at the AHL level, registering 57 points (24 goals, 33 assists) in 54 games.