NHL Player News

Manson logged an assist, two shots on goal and three hits in Tuesday's 2-1 overtime win over the Kings in Game 2.

Manson dealt with an upper-body injury late in the regular season, which cost him three games. The 34-year-old defenseman snapped a five-game point drought when he set up Nicolas Roy's game-winning tally in overtime. Manson had a strong regular season with 31 points, 128 shots on net, 174 hits, 99 blocked shots, 91 PIM and a plus-42 rating over 79 appearances. Over seven previous postseason runs, the defenseman has earned 21 points across 65 outings, including eight points over 20 games during the Avalanche's Stanley Cup championship run in 2022.

Kadri logged an assist in Tuesday's 2-1 overtime win over the Kings in Game 2.

Kadri missed the last five games of the regular season due to a broken finger. The 35-year-old center is filling a third-line role to begin the playoffs, though he could shuffle up to the top six if the Avalanche run into adversity or injury troubles. Between Calgary and Colorado in the regular season, he produced 50 points, 213 shots on net and a minus-30 rating over 77 appearances. Kadri is a veteran of seven previous postseason runs, in which he collected 19 goals and 44 points over 52 appearances, including 15 points over 16 contests when the Avalanche won the Stanley Cup in 2022.

Roy scored the game-winning goal, added three hits and blocked three shots in Tuesday's 2-1 overtime win over the Kings in Game 2.

The goal was Roy's first since March 22 versus the Capitals, which was the last game he played prior to an upper-body injury. He had two assists over the last six games of the regular season, giving him a total of 25 points across 74 appearances between Colorado and Toronto for the year. Roy will likely occupy a bottom-six role for much of this postseason. In previous playoff runs, the veteran forward has earned 10 goals and 32 points over 79 appearances over five postseasons, including the Golden Knights' 2023 Stanley Cup championship.

Landeskog scored a goal on four shots, added two PIM, logged four hits and blocked two shots in Tuesday's 2-1 overtime win over the Kings in Game 2.

Landeskog tied the game at 1-1 with 3:35 left in the third period, setting the stage for the Avalanche's overtime win. The 33-year-old hasn't logged an assist since March 26, but he has five goals over his last 11 outings. He finished the regular season with 35 points, 132 shots on net, 86 hits and 47 PIM across 60 appearances. Landeskog is no stranger to the pressure of the playoffs -- prior to this postseason, he logged 28 goals and 43 assists over 74 career playoff outings.

Wedgewood stopped 24 of 25 shots in Tuesday's 2-1 overtime win over the Kings in Game 2.

Wedgewood picked up his sixth win in a row, dating back to April 4, and he was again able to hold an opponent to no more than one goal. The 33-year-old is locked in, even as the Avalanche's offense hasn't fully materialized in this first-round series -- both of their wins have been by 2-1 scores so far. Wedgewood's strong play makes him the clear No. 1 over Mackenzie Blackwood for now, though both goalies had chances to shine during the regular season. Wedgewood went 31-6-6 with a 2.02 GAA and a .921 save percentage over 45 regular-season appearances. He's likely to start Game 3 on Thursday in Los Angeles.

Eichel logged two assists, including one on the power play, and added two PIM in Tuesday's 3-2 loss to the Mammoth in Game 2.

Eichel didn't get on the scoresheet in the playoff opener Sunday, but he bounced back by helping out on goals for Mark Stone and Ivan Barbashev in this contest. The 29-year-old Eichel is locked in as the Golden Knights' top center after a 90-point effort over 74 regular-season contests. That includes 28 power-play points, and he added 260 shots on net and a plus-23 rating. Eichel is in his fourth career playoff run, and over 40 postseason appearances prior to this year, he had a total of 10 goals and 43 points, including a league-best 26 points in 22 games when Vegas won the Stanley Cup in 2023.

Barbashev scored a goal on two shots, added two PIM, doled out four hits and went minus-2 in Tuesday's 3-2 loss to the Mammoth in Game 2.

Barbashev has two goals over as many games to start this first-round series. The winger looks poised to remain a fixture in the Golden Knights' top six, though head coach John Tortorella has done some shuffling already, looking for the best role for Mitch Marner between first-line winger and second-line center. Barbashev is versatile enough to play on any line, but as long as he stays in a prominent spot, he should be a solid contributor on offense.

Stone scored a power-play goal on three shots and added two PIM in Tuesday's 3-2 loss to the Mammoth in Game 2.

Stone has a power-play tally in both games so far in this first-round series, and he's contributed at least one power-play point in five of his last six outings. The 33-year-old winger's top-line role at even strength should help him stay productive even if the Golden Knights' power play cools off. As long as Stone stays healthy, he'll be a critical part of the Vegas offense.

Hart stopped 26 of 29 shots in Tuesday's 3-2 loss to the Mammoth in Game 2.

Hart didn't let the game get out of hand, but a goal in each period from the Mammoth gave him his first loss since he returned from a lower-body injury. Through the first two games of the season, Hart has allowed five goals on 62 shots, and he's faced a bit more traffic than Karel Vejmelka as the Mammoth have been able to put some pressure on the Golden Knights' defense. One loss probably won't cause head coach John Tortorella to turn away from Hart in goal, so expect the 27-year-old to get the nod in Game 3 on Friday in Utah.

Yamamoto notched two assists, three hits and a plus-2 rating in Tuesday's 3-2 win over the Golden Knights in Game 2.

The Mammoth's second line led them to the win, with Yamamoto helping out on goals by Dylan Guenther and Logan Cooley. The 27-year-old Yamamoto had a bit of a bounce-back year with 23 points over 59 regular-season contests, and he's maintained a second-line role at even strength in recent weeks. This is his fifth year appearing in the postseason -- over his previous four playoff runs, he collected three goals and 12 points across 34 games.