Vitek Vanecek News

The Utah Mammoth are 1-1-0 to start the 2025-26 season and will start Vanecek between the pipes for his first start of the season on Monday against the Chicago Blackhawks. The 29-year-old Vanecek is in his first season with Utah after splitting the 2024-25 campaign with the San Jose Sharks and Florida Panthers, posting a 3.62 GAA and .884 SV% in 25 combined appearances (5-14-4). The Mammoth enter Monday's contest as -166 road favorites against the Blackhawks.

The Utah Mammoth are 1-1-0 to start the 2025-26 season and will likely start Vanecek between the pipes for his first start of the season on Monday against the Chicago Blackhawks. The 29-year-old Vanecek is in his first season with Utah after splitting the 2024-25 campaign with the San Jose Sharks and Florida Panthers, posting a 3.62 GAA and .884 SV% in 25 combined appearances (5-14-4). The Mammoth enter Monday's contest as -166 road favorites against the Blackhawks.

Vanecek joined the Florida Panthers and the trade deadline last season and served as the backup to Sergei Bobrovsky during the run to a Stanley Cup Championship. The 29-year-old Czech goalie has battled consistency over the previous few seasons and will hope to emerge as a reliable option for the Utah Mammoth in 2025-25.

The Panthers will turn to Vanecek between the pipes on Tuesday in their final game of the regular season, facing off against the Tampa Bay Lightning in a potential first-round playoff preview. The 29-year-old Vanecek played well in his most recent outing, saving 26 of 28 shots (.929 SV%) in a 3-2 shootout win over the Buffalo Sabres. The Czech netminder has a 2.66 GAA and .900 SV% in six games with Florida this season (2-3-1). The Panthers enter Tuesday's contest as +168 road underdogs against the Lightning.

The Panthers are coming off a 4-2 loss to the Montreal Canadiens on Sunday and will hope for a better result, with Vanecek tending the twine in a rematch on Tuesday. Vanecek has showcased mixed results early in his three-game tenure as a Panther (1-2-0), including a 21-save shutout in his first contest and allowing six goals on 33 shots (.818 SV%) in his most recent. The Panthers enter Tuesday's contest as -168 road favorites against a Canadiens team that has lost five of their last six (1-3-2).

Vanecek is expected to make his Panthers debut on Saturday after being acquired from the Sharks on Wednesday. Vanecek has struggled this season, going 3-10-3 with a. 3.88 GAA and .882 SV% while playing behind one of the worst teams in the league. He goes from San Jose, who is last in the league in xGA/60 (3.50) to Florida who ranks fifth (2.76). He's a solid streaming option on Saturday with the Panthers being -254 home favourites.

The Sharks opted not to play Vanecek on Tuesday in anticipation of a trade, which was realized on Wednesday morning, sending him to Florida in exchange for Patrick Giles. Vanecek posted an unimpressive 3.88 GAA and .882 SV% in 18 games with the Sharks this season (3-10-3). Though he will be predominantly backing up Sergei Bobrovsky, Vanecek should see an improvement in his statistics on a much stronger Florida team.

Despite being in the tail end of a back-to-back, the Sharks will turn to Georgiev between the pipes on Tuesday, keeping Vitek Vanecek sidelined for trade-related reasons. The 29-year-old Vanecek has a 3.88 GAA and .882 SV% in 18 appearances this season (3-10-3).

On the tail end of a back-to-back, the Sharks will turn to Vanecek between the pipes on Monday against the Winnipeg Jets. The 29-year-old Vanecek had a forgetful final outing before the break for the 4Nations Face Off, allowing eight goals on 34 shots (.765 SV%) in an 8-3 loss to the Dallas Stars. He has an ugly 4.01 GAA and .878 SV% in 16 appearances this season (3-9-2). The Sharks enter Monday's contest as significant +393 road underdogs against a Jets squad amid a nine-game winning streak.

Vanecek has not played an NHL game since suffering an upper-body injury on December 14th but will return to the crease on Thursday against the Vancouver Canucks. In a brief conditioning stint with the San Jose Barracuda (AHL), Vanecek posted a 2.00 GAA and .917 SV% in one game (1-0-0). He has a 3.84 GAA and .885 SV% in 14 appearances with the Sharks this season (3-8-1). The Sharks enter Thursday's contest as +182 home underdogs against a Canucks squad coming off an impressive 3-0 win over the Colorado Avalanche.