NHL Player News

McMichael scored a power-play goal on five shots, added an assist and went minus-2 in Tuesday's 4-2 loss to the Blackhawks.

McMichael had scored earlier in the game, but a review for offside wiped that tally off the board. He got it back late in the third period for his first goal and multi-point effort with the Blues. Through three games, he has three points, eight shots on net and a minus-1 rating. The 25-year-old is operating as a second-line winger centered by Mason McTavish, which is a position that should help McMichael's offense stay steady this year.

Hofer allowed two goals on 19 shots in Tuesday's 4-2 loss to the Blackhawks. The last two Chicago goals were empty-netters.

Hofer wasn't able to replicate what he showed in the Blues' season opener when he had a 25-save shutout against the Stars. The Blues at least kept it close, but Hofer ended up with his first loss of the season. Despite the poor result Tuesday, the 26-year-old's play should give him the edge for starts if head coach Jim Montgomery starts to lean on one goalie. Hofer and Jordan Binnington have alternated so far, and it's not yet clear if that pattern will continue Thursday at home versus the Sharks.

Rinzel scored a power-play goal on two shots in Tuesday's 4-2 win over the Blues.

The official scoring fluctuated during the game -- Rinzel's goal came right at the end of a power play in the second period. For now, it's a power-play tally, and it'll count as Rinzel's first point of the season either way. The defenseman has added six shots on net, two blocked shots and a minus-2 rating over three appearances. The Blackhawks are carrying eight blueliners early in the year, though the injuries to Andrew Mangiapane (lower body) and Teuvo Teravainen (undisclosed) could lead the team to dress seven defensemen Thursday against the Islanders. Rinzel's not safe in the lineup, but he appears to have a little more security than Kevin Korchinski or Ethan Del Mastro.

Smith scored a shorthanded empty-net goal in Tuesday's 4-2 win over the Blues.

This was Smith's first point in four games for the Blackhawks. The forward continues to fill a bottom-six role, which was what was expected of him when he signed a three-year, $9 million contract with Chicago at the start of free agency. Smith has added three shots on net, six hits and a plus-2 rating. His physicality and defensive presence will keep him in the lineup a vast majority of the time, but he probably won't score enough to help in most fantasy formats.

Frondell scored a goal, dished an assist and went plus-2 in Tuesday's 4-2 win over the Blues.

That's a second consecutive multi-point effort for Frondell, who looks to be getting more comfortable in a second-line spot. The center has a goal, three helpers, six shots on net, five hits and an even plus-minus rating across four contests this season. The 19-year-old rookie should already be rostered in dynasty formats, but he has the potential to produce enough offense to make waves in redraft leagues this year.

Nazar scored an empty-net goal on three shots and added a power-play assist in Tuesday's 4-2 win over the Blues.

While he's worked in a top-line role for much of the early part of the season, this was the first time Nazar got on the scoresheet. He's added eight shots on net and a minus-4 rating across four contests. The 22-year-old will continue to get significant usage as the Blackhawks await the season debut of Connor Bedard (shoulder), which is still likely a few weeks away. Nazar has the talent to handle a larger role than he has in past years, so his fantasy managers should be patient with the hope that Tuesday's outing will be the spark he needed to get going.

Knight allowed two goals on 28 shots in Tuesday's 4-2 win over the Blues.

Knight put together a positive outing and got enough goal support to earn his first win in three starts. The 25-year-old netminder is seeing plenty of playing time early in the season, as expected. He's allowed 10 goals on 92 shots over his three games, but this was the first time this season he's faced a team that wasn't in the playoffs last year. The Blackhawks have a quick one-game road trip to face the Islanders on Thursday.

Teravainen (undisclosed) won't play Thursday versus the Islanders, Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

It's a one-game road trip, so it's not all that surprising Teravainen will sit out after getting injured Tuesday. The Blackhawks have just 11 healthy forwards on the roster after Teravainen joined Andrew Mangiapane (lower body) and Connor Bedard (shoulder) among the injured. Chicago could opt to dress seven defensemen or call up a forward to fill out the lineup.

Shesterkin stopped 17 of 19 shots in Tuesday's 5-2 win over the Islanders.

Shesterkin was perfect in the first period before the Islanders struck twice in a span of 1:56 early in the second, with Bo Horvat scoring on the power play and Calum Ritchie tying the contest at 2-2. Shesterkin shut the door from there, stopping all seven shots he faced in the third while the Rangers pulled away. He finished with 17 saves to earn his third consecutive win, and the Rangers have won their last four contests since dropping the season opener against Boston on Sept. 29. In his four appearances, Shesterkin has stopped 89 of the 96 shots he's faced, good for a 92.7 save percentage.

Varlamov stopped 19 of 22 shots in Tuesday's 5-2 loss to the Rangers. The Rangers' final two goals were empty-netters.

Varlamov surrendered goals to Oliver Bjorkstrand (twice) and Alexis Lafreniere. He stopped all six shots he faced in the third before heading to the bench as the Islanders pushed for a late equalizer, but the Rangers took advantage of that scenario to score two empty-netters. This was Varlamov's first NHL regular-season appearance since November 2024, and he should remain the No. 2 option between the posts behind Ilya Sorokin, meaning his opportunities to contribute from a fantasy perspective will be limited and matchup-based.