1 day agoVegas Golden Knights defenseman Nicolas Hague (lower body) will miss Saturday's Game 3 against the Stars. He suffered a lower-body injury in the series opener on Monday. Hague had 12 points (two goals, 10 assists) in 73 games during the regular season, with 111 blocks and 153 hits. He led the Vegas blue line with four hits in Game 1. Alec Martinez replaced him in the lineup for Game 2 and figures to remain on the third defensive pairing on Saturday after the Golden Knights produced an outstanding defensive performance in a 3-1 win on Wednesday.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Danny Webster
1 day agoColorado Avalanche goaltender Justus Annunen (illness) is ready to back up Alexandar Georgiev on Friday against Winnipeg. He missed the first two games of the first-round series with an illness. The 24-year-old performed well during the regular season, going 8-4-1 with two shutouts. He allowed 2.25 goals with a .928 save percentage. Annunen could soon see some playoff action, as Georgiev has so far mustered a lowly .830 save percentage in the postseason.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Murat Ates
1 day agoWashington Capitals defenseman Rasmus Sandin (upper body) will be a game-time decision for Friday's encounter with the Rangers. After missing seven games with an upper-body injury, Sandin skated in a regular jersey Friday morning, signaling that he could be ready to return to action. The Swedish blue-liner would add quality for Washington at both ends of the ice. He totaled 23 points (three goals, 20 assists) in 68 regular-season appearances and had 106 blocks with 75 hits.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Sammi Silber
1 day agoWashington Capitals defenseman Nick Jensen (upper body) skated in a regular jersey Friday morning and could return to the lineup for Friday's Game 3 against the Rangers. The 33-year-old had been out for four games with an upper-body injury. Jensen had the second-most blocks on the squad during the regular season (123) and finished with 14 points (one goal, 13 assists) across 78 games. He's yet to register any points through 26 career playoff appearances.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Sammi Silber
1 day agoWashington Capitals winger Ivan Miroshnichenko will make his Stanley Cup Playoffs debut in Friday's Game 3 against the Rangers. The 20-year-old will be drafted into the lineup for Nicolas Aube-Kubel on the fourth line. Miroshnichenko had his first 21 NHL appearances during the regular season, scoring twice and notching six points. He will hope to end an eight-game scoreless spell in Friday's crucial game.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Sammi Silber
1 day agoWashington Capitals left wing Sonny Milano (undisclosed) will play against the Rangers in Game 3 on Friday. He's good to go despite skipping Thursday's practice session. Milano had a decent regular season with 15 goals and 23 points in 49 contests, but he's been quiet in the playoffs. Through the first two games of the series, Milano is without a point and boasts only one shot on goal with a minus-two rating across 11:33 of average ice time.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Sammi Silber
1 day agoNew York Rangers center Alex Wennberg (undisclosed) will be in the lineup for Game 3 against Washington on Friday. He was initially iffy for the game after not practicing on Thursday. However, Wennberg returned to the ice Friday morning and will be good to go. The Swedish forward is centering the third line and hasn't yet had any luck offensively so far in the playoffs, going scoreless in two games while averaging 16:17 of ice time.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Dan Rosen
1 day agoVancouver Canucks defenseman Tyler Myers (illness) is expected to return to the lineup for Game 3 against Nashville on Friday. He missed the second game of the series after catching a flu bug. Noah Juulsen came in for Myers on Tuesday and logged 11:24 of ice time on the second defensive pairing. Myers' return will likely push him out of the lineup again. It was a scoreless start to the postseason for Myers in Game 1, but he racked up five hits and three blocks with two shots on goal in 19:08 of action.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Adam Kimelman
1 day agoCarolina Hurricanes right wing Jesper Fast (upper body) isn't expected to play in the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs. He was injured in the team's regular-season finale against Columbus and hasn't featured in any of the first three games against the Islanders in the first round. The 32-year-old posted six goals and 19 points in 73 regular-season appearances in 2023-24. A year ago, Fast led Carolina with six goals in the playoffs and had nine points across 15 postseason outings.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Walt Ruff
1 day agoFlorida Panthers winger Matthew Tkachuk took care of two goals as the team defeated Tampa Bay 5-3 in Game 3 on Thursday. The Panthers star started and finished the scoring, with the latter goal coming in an empty-net situation. He's now the first player in franchise history with three multi-goal games in the playoffs. Tkachuk, who was huge for the team throughout the 2023 postseason, has been in hot form again, racking up five points (three goals, two assists) in the first three games. There are only six other players with multiple goals and assists through the first few playoff games.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
1 day agoTampa Bay Lightning forward Steven Stamkos continued his good start to the 2024 postseason with another goal in Thursday's 5-3 loss to Florida. The Lightning captain put his team on the board early in the second period, becoming the third player in franchise history to start a playoff campaign with a three-game goal streak. Thursday's strike marks Stamkos' first even-strength goal of the series. Sitting on four points overall, the Lightning captain has put in a big effort to make the series competitive, but Tampa Bay is facing a sweep in Game 4 on Saturday.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
1 day agoNew York Islanders goaltender Ilya Sorokin struggled in his 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs debut on Thursday against Carolina in a 3-2 loss. He coughed up three goals on 14 shots before being replaced by Semyon Varlamov. Looking to shift momentum in the series with his team 2-0 down, Islanders head coach Patrick Roy made a change between the sticks, but it backfired badly. Sorokin managed only two saves before allowing the first goal, and his night finished after he had logged only 27:14 of action. Varlamov stopped all eight shots he faced. The team will likely return to Varlamov for Game 4.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
1 day agoCarolina Hurricanes goaltender Frederik Andersen continued his perfect start to the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs with a 29-save effort in Thursday's 3-2 win over the Islanders. He became only the second goaltender in franchise history to open a postseason campaign with three consecutive victories. Andersen has saved 71 of 77 shots in total in the series, frustrating the Islanders with a .922 save percentage and a 2.01 goals-against average. Combined with the regular season, Andersen is now 16-2-0 in 2023-24. He will look to lead the team to a sweep in Game 4 on Saturday.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
2 days agoWashington Capitals winger Sonny Milano (undisclosed) missed practice on Thursday ahead of Friday's Game 3 against the Rangers. He was reportedly absent for maintenance purposes after averaging 11:33 of ice time across the first two games in the series. Milano has mustered only one shot on goal against the Rangers and hasn't picked up any points while skating on the third line with Max Pacioretty and Hendrix Lapierre. Michael Sgarbossa was on the line during Thursday's practice and could make his Stanley Cup Playoffs debut if Milano isn't available on Friday. Sgarbossa had four goals and seven points in 25 games with the Capitals during the regular season.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Sammi Silber
2 days agoNew York Rangers forward Filip Chytil (head) has traveled with the team to Washington and could return to action Friday when the two teams continue their first-round battle. The 24-year-old has been out of commission since early November. Before suffering a head injury, Chytil skated in 10 games, posting six assists. He would be a very good addition to an already strong squad that finished the NHL regular season with the best record in the league. Chytil has totaled eight goals and 13 points in 30 career playoff appearances.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Mollie Walker
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