4 weeks agoToronto Maple Leafs goaltender Joseph Woll (ankle) returned for the first time since Dec. 7 on Thursday and was instrumental in a 4-2 win over the visiting Arizona Coyotes. The 25-year-old steered aside 30 of the 32 shots he faced (.938 save percentage) and improved to a 2.75 goals-against average and a .918 Sv% across 16 outings (14 starts) on the season. Woll earned his ninth win in that time and first since a Nov. 30 victory over the Seattle Kraken via the shootout. Woll appeared in a single conditioning-game stint with the AHL's Toronto Marlies and made 36 saves on 37 shots (.973 Sv%) in a winning effort. With the win, the Maple Leafs improved to 34-17-8 on the season, good for third spot in the Atlantic Division.Source: NHL.com
4 weeks agoNew York Islanders center Brock Nelson tallied a pair of goals in helping lead his club to a 5-3 road win over the Detroit Red Wings. The veteran opened the scoring 12:11 into the first period before briefly giving his team a 3-2 lead with a power-play marker 5:04 into the second frame. The 32-year-old now sits with 27 goals and 48 points across 59 games on the season while he now has five goals and seven points over his last six games. Nelson enjoyed a career-best season in the 2022-23 campaign when he recorded 36 goals and a career-high 75 points while skating in all 82 games. With the win, the Islanders improved to 25-20-14 on the season, good for a share of fourth place in the Metropolitan Division alongside the New Jersey Devils.Source: NHL.com
4 weeks agoSan Jose Sharks goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen is the starting netminder for Thursday's home game versus the Anaheim Ducks. Kahkonen is the team's starting goalie for the foreseeable future with Mackenzie Blackwood being placed on injured reserve on Wednesday. The 27-year-old has struggled again this season as he sports a 3.63 goals-against average and a .901 save percentage across 28 games (24 starts), going 6-18-2 on a Sharks team that is tied for the least amount of points in the NHL alongside the Chicago Blackhawks. He worked to a 3.85 GAA and .883 Sv% across 37 games in his first full season with the Sharks last season. He does have a strong matchup on hand, however, as the Ducks sit in a tie for 29th with 2.59 goals per game on the season.Source: Max Miller
4 weeks agoColorado Avalanche goaltender Justus Annunen is the starting goaltender for Thursday's road game versus the Chicago Blackhawks. It appears head coach Jared Bednar is choosing to give the heavily-leaned-on Alexandar Georgiev a breather against one of the worst teams in the league. It's just the fifth start in the NHL for the 23-year-old this season as he sports a 3.50 goals-against average and an .898 save percentage across his first four outings. He now sports a 3.70 GAA and .881 Sv% across just eight career NHL appearances, going 3-3-2 in that time. That said, he has a strong chance at a victory on Thursday versus a Blackhawks offense that sits dead last while they are also last in the NHL with a .297 points percentage.Source: Jesse Montano
4 weeks agoFlorida Panthers goaltender Anthony Stolarz is the starting netminder for Thursday's contest versus the visiting Montreal Canadiens. The 30-year-old has acted as the backup to Sergei Bobrovsky this season and has been fantastic when called upon. The London Knights product has registered a dynamite 1.97 goals-against average and a .925 save percentage across 18 outings (16 starts), going 10-5-2 in the process. He has allowed two goals or fewer in each of his last five starts and his 9.54 goals saved above average ranks 10th of 69 qualified netminders, as per Hockey Reference. Stolarz will take on a Montreal Canadiens team that sits in a tie for 27th in overall offense, making him an excellent streaming option Thursday evening.Source: Florida Panthers
4 weeks agoPhiladelphia Flyers goaltender Cal Petersen has cleared waivers, paving a path for a demotion to the American Hockey League's Lehigh Valley Phantoms. The 29-year-old started Sunday's game against the Pittsburgh Penguins but was shelled for seven goals on 32 shots (.781 save percentage) while taking the loss. It was just the fifth appearance (fourth start) of the season in the NHL for the former Los Angeles Kings netminder as he sports a 3.90 goals-against average and an .864 save percentage, going 2-2-0 in the process. He has posted a 3.26 GAA and .890 Sv% across 15 games with the Phantoms, as well. Once a highly-regarded netminder, Petersen scuffled to a 3.75 GAA and .868 Sv% in 10 games with the Kings last season while spending the majority of the campaign with the AHL's Ontario Reign.Source: Elliotte Friedman
4 weeks agoCarolina Hurricanes goaltender Spencer Martin is the starting goalie for Thursday's road game versus the Columbus Blue Jackets. Interestingly, Martin was claimed off waivers by the Hurricanes from the Blue Jackets recently and has been on fire in his new digs. The 28-year-old has gone 3-0-1 in four starts with the 'Canes while posting a 1.96 goals-against average and a .925 save percentage. Whether his production is sustainable is questionable as he also sports a career 3.50 GAA and .888 Sv% across 55 NHL appearances. For the immediate term, Martin is a fine streaming option on Thursday as he takes on a struggling Blue Jackets team that sits in a tie for 22nd with 2.91 goals per game on the season.Source: Walt Ruff
4 weeks agoDetroit Red Wings goaltender Alex Lyon will once again be between the pipes for Thursday's home game versus the New York Islanders. The 31-year-old won an 8-3 decision over the Washington Capitals his last time out and will make his fifth start over his team's last six games on Thursday. Lyon has been the club's best option between the pipes this season over James Reimer and Ville Husso as he sports a quality 2.69 goals-against average and a .914 save percentage across 28 appearances, going 18-8-2 in that time. He has won each of his last four outings, allowing just one goal twice in that time. The Red Wings are winners of their last six games and sit fourth in the Atlantic Division with a 33-20-6 record.Source: Ansar Khan
4 weeks agoDetroit Red Wings defenseman Moritz Seider will suit up for Thursday's contest versus the visiting New York Islanders. Seider was banged up after blocking five shots in an 8-3 win over the Washington Capitals on Tuesday but head coach Derek Lalonde said his rugged blueliner is indeed good to go. The German blueliner is having another nice offensive season with seven goals and 32 points across 59 games. He has added a whopping 132 hits and 145 blocked shots on the campaign, the latter of which ranks him eighth in the league. Seider's next goal will set a new career-high as he also recorded seven tallies in his 2021-22 rookie campaign. The Red Wings have won six straight games entering Thursday's action.Source: Ansar Khan
4 weeks agoSan Jose Sharks defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic (undisclosed) is a game-time decision for Thursday's home game against the visiting Anaheim Ducks. The veteran blue-liner was injured during a practice last Friday and has since missed the club's last two games versus the Predators and Devils. The 36-year-old is in the midst of his 18th NHL season, all spent with the Sharks after they took him in the second round of the 2005 NHL entry draft. The defense-first rear guard has notched five goals and seven points across 33 games on the season while blocking 61 shots in that time. His ice time is down to a career-low 16:07 per game, while he is a minus-11 on a Sharks team that sports a league-worst goal differential of minus-102. They have dropped four straight games entering Thursday's contest with the rival Ducks.Source: Curtis Pashelka
4 weeks agoMinnesota Wild forward prospect Marat Khusnutdinov will join the team as soon as possible after signing a two-year, entry-level contract on Wednesday, according to Wild general manager Bill Guerin. Visa processing will be the holdup in Khusnutdinov making his move overseas. "I think that Marat is the type of player that can help us right now," Guerin said. "All the assets that he has, he's a solid two-way player. He's got speed, he's tenacious. Those are the things we're looking for." The 21-year-old went without a point in six games with the KHL's St. Petersburg SKA before being traded to Sochi HC where he has rebounded with six goals and 20 points across 49 games while serving as the team's captain. The Wild drafted Khusnutdinov with the 37th overall pick in the 2020 NHL Draft.Source: NHL.com
4 weeks agoColumbus Blue Jackets forward Kent Johnson will be sidelined indefinitely due to an upper-body injury. He managed to get through Tuesday's 4-1 loss to the New York Rangers but was injured at some point during the contest. The 2021 fifth-overall pick has notched six goals and 16 points across 42 games, a little bit of a disappointing season considering he registered 16 goals and 40 points in 79 games as a rookie last season. Johnson was demoted to the American Hockey League earlier in the season where he recorded a healthy five goals and 15 points across just 10 games for the Cleveland Monsters. The University of Michigan product will be replaced in the lineup by Alexandre Texier on Thursday versus the Carolina Hurricanes.Source: NHL.com
4 weeks agoOttawa Senators forward Josh Norris is going to miss an extended period of time due to an upper-body injury suffered in a collision with Nashville Predators forward Cole Smith during Tuesday's 4-1 loss. "I don't have any more, really, info, but we'll have some more info later on," Senators interim head coach Jacques Martin said on Thursday. "Too early to know (the timeline)." The biggest fear is another shoulder injury for the 24-year-old who was limited to just eight games last season due to shoulder surgery. He missed the first three games of this season while recovering. Norris has collected 16 goals and 30 points along with 115 shots on goal across 50 games this season, his fifth in the NHL.Source: NHL.com
4 weeks agoToronto Maple Leafs goaltender Joseph Woll (ankle) will be back between the pipes for Thursday's home game versus the Arizona Coyotes. The 25-year-old has been out since suffering a high-ankle sprain in a Dec. 7 win over the Ottawa Senators. The Leafs recalled Woll from his AHL conditioning stint earlier in the week. Woll was excellent prior to his injury, working to a 2.80 goals-against average and a .916 save percentage across 15 games (13 starts), going 8-5-1 in that time. He had overtaken the starting role from the then-struggling Ilya Samsonov, but considering Samsonov has been far better of late, there should be more of a timeshare in the Leafs' crease moving forward.Source: NHL.com
4 weeks agoSeattle Kraken winger Andre Burakovsky (undisclosed) missed Wednesday's practice, leaving him with a question mark ahead of Thursday's matchup versus Pittsburgh. Kraken head coach Dave Hakstol noted that it was a maintenance day for Burakovsky but also added that there was "a reason" the Swedish forward wasn't out on the ice. Health issues have already robbed Burakovsky of 31 games in 2023-24. He hasn't really performed up to his standards either when available, scoring only once and posting nine points in 27 games. Tye Kartye worked in Burakovsky's spot on the third line Wednesday.Source: Mike Benton