Jacob Markstrom Ends Losing Spell Friday

New Jersey Devils goaltender Jacob Markstrom stopped 25 of 27 shots, leading the team to a 3-2 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes in double overtime on Friday night. Markstrom let a 2-0 lead slip in the third period as Carolina scored two power-play goals. However, he was then forced into only three saves before Simon […]

Cole Caufield Collects Two Points In Friday's Win

Montreal Canadiens winger Cole Caufield recorded two points in Friday's 6-3 victory over the Washington Capitals. He potted his second postseason goal late in the second period to give Montreal a 3-2 lead and assisted Juraj Slafkovsky on the team's fifth goal in the third frame. It was a shooting barrage throughout the night from […]

Connor McDavid Totals Three Points In Game 3 Win

Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid finished Friday's 7-4 victory over the Los Angeles Kings with three points, scoring an empty-net goal and registering two even-strength assists. McDavid became the fourth player in franchise history to record 20 three-point playoff games, joining Wayne Gretzky (39), Jari Kurri (26), and Mark Messier (22). It was an impressive […]

Johnathan Kovacevic Exits Early Friday

New Jersey Devils defenseman Johnathan Kovacevic (undisclosed) did not finish Friday's Game 3 against the Carolina Hurricanes. He logged only 6:00 of ice time in a 3-2 double-overtime win and did not see any action after the first period. The 27-year-old recorded one shot on goal and two penalty minutes with a plus-one rating. Overall, […]

Sam Montembeault Suffers Lower-Body Injury Friday

Montreal Canadiens goaltender Sam Montembeault (lower body) was forced to exit Game 3 against the Washington Capitals early on Friday. He gave up the crease to Jakub Dobes in the middle of the second period due to a lower-body injury. The night ended with 11 saves on 13 shots for Montembeault. Dobes helped Montreal secure […]

Logan Thompson Exits Loss With Injury

Washington Capitals goaltender Logan Thompson suffered an apparent left leg injury in Friday's Game 3 against the Montreal Canadiens. He was forced to leave the contest with 6:37 remaining in regulation after a collision with teammate Dylan Strome. Following an outstanding start to the series, Thompson had a bad night on Friday, allowing five goals […]

Brandon Hagel Suspended For Game 3

Tampa Bay Lightning winger Brandon Hagel has been suspended for one game. The NHL Department of Player Safety announced Hagel's suspension on Friday night for "an extremely forceful body check to an unsuspecting opponent" that injured Florida Panthers forward Aleksander Barkov. As a result of the suspension, Hagel will be forced to sit out Saturday's […]

NHL DFS Picks and Heat Map (Premium Content) - April 26, 2025

All other Premium Tools can be accessed on the premium dashboard. Each night, we will bring you our award-winning NHL DFS Heat Map with expert research and picks for cash games and GPPs. Here are a few notes about the sheet: Blue means ELITE, Green means GO (good for the player), Yellow means value/supplemental play, […]

Today's NHL DFS Lineup Picks for DraftKings, FanDuel (4/26/25)

Welcome, RotoBallers! My name is Brandon, and I'll be writing both The First-Serve and The Kick-Off for tennis and soccer. The NHL season has entered the land of Lord Stanley, which means it's time to sharpen our skills and partake in NHL DFS! As always, I'll give you the best tools to succeed and the […]

Aaron Ekblad Available To Return Saturday

Florida Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad has completed his 20-game suspension and is eligible to return to the lineup for Game 3 against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday. Ekblad was suspended on March 10 for violating the terms of the NHL/NHLPA Performance Enhancing Substances Program. He missed the final 18 regular-season games and the first […]

Aleksander Barkov Questionable For Saturday

Florida Panthers center Aleksander Barkov (undisclosed) is questionable for Saturday's matchup against the Florida Panthers. He was injured on Thursday night in a 2-0 victory over Tampa Bay and missed Friday's optional practice. "He hasn't been ruled out yet [for Game 3], and he hasn't been cleared," Panthers head coach Paul Maurice said of Barkov […]

Gabriel Landeskog Set For Larger Role In Game 4

Colorado Avalanche forward Gabriel Landeskog is expected to assume a larger role in Saturday's Game 4 against the Dallas Stars. Making his first NHL appearance since the 2022 Stanley Cup Finals, Landeskog skated on the third line in Wednesday's Game 3 loss, logging 13:16 of ice time. He finished the contest scoreless but had a […]

Calvin Pickard To Start Game 3 For Oilers

Edmonton Oilers goaltender Calvin Pickard will replace Stuart Skinner between the pipes for Game 3 against the Los Angeles Kings on Friday night. Skinner struggled significantly in the first two games of the series, allowing 11 goals while registering a .810 save percentage. Pickard already saw some action in Game 2, replacing Skinner midway through […]

Jonas Siegenthaler To Play Limited Minutes In Game 3

New Jersey Devils defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler (lower body) is on track to rejoin the lineup on Friday night against the Carolina Hurricanes. He has not played since Feb. 4 due to a lower-body injury. Initially, the 27-year-old was not expected to play at all in the first-round series. However, Siegenthaler has recovered well, and the […]

Luke Hughes Remains Out On Friday

New Jersey Devils defenseman Luke Hughes (upper body) has been ruled out for Friday's Game 3 against the Carolina Hurricanes. He will miss a second consecutive game in the series due to an upper-body injury suffered in Game 1. Brenden Dillon (lower body) isn't ready to return, either. However, the Devils defense is expected to […]

Patrik Laine A Game-Time Decision Friday

Montreal Canadiens' Patrik Laine (undisclosed) will be a game-time decision for Friday's matchup against the Washington Capitals. Laine missed Friday's morning skate after being benched in the third period of Game 2 on Wednesday night. "I know he wasn't on the ice today, we have some guys battling a couple things so I think you'll […]

Sergei Bobrovsky Shuts Out Lightning In Game 2

Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky recorded his fourth career postseason shutout on Thursday, securing a 2-0 victory against the Tampa Bay Lightning with 19 saves. Although Bobrovsky had limited work, he made several crucial saves, tying Semyon Varlamov for the seventh most postseason shutouts by an active netminder. Dating back to last year's playoffs, Bobrovsky […]

Cam Fowler Finishes Thursday's Win With Five Points

St. Louis Blues defenseman Cam Fowler had a special performance in Thursday's Game 3 victory over the Winnipeg Jets, recording one goal and four assists in a 7-2 win. He set a new franchise record for the most points in a playoff game by a defenseman and became the ninth blue-liner in league history to […]

Robert Thomas Posts Four Assists In Game 3 Win

St. Louis Blues center Robert Thomas finished Thursday's 7-2 victory over the Winnipeg Jets with four assists. He picked up three even-strength helpers before capping things off with a power-play assist late in the game. Thomas' efforts had been underwhelming in the first couple of games in the series, as he notched only one point […]

Pavel Buchnevich Celebrates Hat Trick During Four-Point Performance

St. Louis Blues forward Pavel Buchnevich netted a hat trick and recorded one assist as the team narrowed the deficit to 2-1 in its first-round series against the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday night, clinching a 7-2 victory. Buchnevich scored twice within the first 3:11 of play and completed his first career playoff hat trick early […]

Dylan DeMelo Battling An Illness

Winnipeg Jets defenseman Dylan DeMelo missed Thursday's Game 3 against the St. Louis Blues due to an illness. He was a late scratch for the contest. In his absence, Collin Miller made his 2025 postseason debut, recording a power-play assist. However, Winnipeg's defense clearly missed DeMelo, as the Blues put seven pucks past the visiting […]

Marcus Johansson Exits Early Thursday

Minnesota Wild left wing Marcus Johansson (undisclosed) exited Thursday's Game 3 victory against the Vegas Golden Knights after logging only 11:09 of ice time. The Swedish veteran was minus-one in the contest with one block. While Johansson has been quiet in the series, recording one assist and one shot on goal, his veteran presence would […]

Aleksander Barkov Hurt In Game 2

Florida Panthers center Aleksander Barkov (undisclosed) did not finish Thursday's 2-0 victory against the Tampa Bay Lightning. He exited the contest in the third period following a hit from Lightning forward Brandon Hagel, which earned him a five-minute major penalty for interference. Before leaving the action, Barkov helped to set up Nate Schmidt for the […]

NHL DFS Picks and Heat Map (Premium Content) - April 25, 2025

All other Premium Tools can be accessed on the premium dashboard. Each night, we will bring you our award-winning NHL DFS Heat Map with expert research and picks for cash games and GPPs. Here are a few notes about the sheet: Blue means ELITE, Green means GO (good for the player), Yellow means value/supplemental play, […]

Anthony Cirelli Good To Go Thursday

Tampa Bay Lightning center Anthony Cirelli (undisclosed) will play in Game 2 against the Florida Panthers on Thursday night. Cirelli was hurt in Tuesday's series opener and was labeled a game-time call on Thursday morning. He will continue as the second-line center, working with Brandon Hagel and Jake Guentzel. Cirelli has notched 42 points (17 […]

Andrei Vasilevskiy Looks To Bounce Back In Game 2

Tampa Bay Lightning goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy will aim to rebound from a rough start to the postseason in Thursday's Game 2 against the Florida Panthers. The 2019 Vezina Trophy winner was lit up for six goals in Game 1 on Tuesday night, finishing with only 11 saves and a .625 save percentage. Tampa Bay allowed […]

Rasmus Ristolainen To Miss Training Camp

Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen will be sidelined for six months after undergoing successful right triceps tendon surgery on March 26. He is expected to make a full recovery; however, Flyers general manager Daniel Briere announced on Thursday that Ristolainen will not be healthy for next season's training camp. Ristolainen has been significantly limited by […]

Jonas Siegenthaler Returns To Practice

New Jersey Devils defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler (lower body) practiced with the team on Thursday for the first time since sustaining a lower-body injury on Feb. 4. New Jersey lost Luke Hughes (upper body) in Game 1 against the Carolina Hurricanes and could use some reinforcement on defense; however, it remains uncertain whether Siegenthaler will join […]

Aliaksei Protas Traveling With Capitals

Washington Capitals forward Aliaksei Protas (foot) has traveled with the team for Games 3 and 4 against the Montreal Canadiens. Protas is expected to return to the lineup in this series and could be an option on Friday night. The two teams will also clash in Montreal on Sunday. Washington lost Protas eight games ago […]

Gabriel Vilardi Still Out On Thursday

Winnipeg Jets forward Gabriel Vilardi (upper body) will not play in Game 3 against the St. Louis Blues on Thursday. Vilardi traveled with the team to St. Louis but will be sidelined for a 14th consecutive game. The 25-year-old has been skating in a non-contact jersey this week, a sign that Vilardi is making progress. […]