NHL Hockey Player News

Swayman will start Friday afternoon, the front end of a back-to-back for the Bruins. Swayman has struggled his last three games (1-0-2), posting a .895 SV% and allowing 10 goals in the process. That said, the Bruins are -186 home favourites despite losing to the Detroit Red Wings 5-4 on November 4th with Linus Ullmark between the pipes.

Oettinger will return to the crease after saving 24 of 26 shots (.923 SV%) in a 2-1 overtime loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday. The Stars are -174 home favourites on Friday when they welcome the Calgary Flames, whom they defeated 4-3 on November 1st when Oettinger saved 44 of 47 shots (.936 SV%) in a 4-3 victory. That said, Oettinger has been significantly worse on home ice this season, posting a 2.82 GAA and .898 SV%, compared to the stellar 2.14 GAA and .935 SV% he sports on the road.

Varlamov appears to be the starting goalie on the front end of a back-to-back for the Islanders on Friday. Despite a 2-3-1 record, Varlamov has been terrific when called upon this season, posting a 2.18 GAA and .934 SV% along with two shutouts. The Islanders are +118 road underdogs against the Ottawa Senators but have momentum on their side as they look for their third consecutive victory after overcoming a season-worst seven-game losing skid (0-4-3).

Oettinger will return to the crease after saving 24 of 26 shots (.923 SV%) in a 2-1 overtime loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday. The Stars are -174 home favourites on Friday when they welcome the Calgary Flames, whom they defeated 4-3 on November 1st when Oettinger saved 44 of 47 shots (.936 SV%) in a 4-3 victory. That said, Oettinger has been significantly worse on home ice this season, posting a 2.82 GAA and .898 SV%, compared to the stellar 2.14 GAA and .935 SV% he sports on the road.

Perry was pacing for his best offensive totals in a half-decade with nine points (4G / 5A) in 16 games this season but will serve as a healthy scratch for the second consecutive game on Friday against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Perry's continued absence from the lineup is puzzling, given his strong start to the season and the news that Taylor Hall will miss the remainder of the 2023-24 campaign.

Bobrovsky will start for the third consecutive game on Friday when the Panthers take on the Winnipeg Jets. Despite a strong 9-5-1 record, Bobrovsky only has seven quality starts in 15 games (.467), a rate that rivals career lows and is significantly beneath his .571 quality start rate over his career. The Panthers are -132 home favourites, but as previously mentioned, Bobrovsky's performance is a coin-flip, especially against a Jets team that has won four straight, outscoring their opposition 17-9.

Gustavsson has only two above-average performances this season (1-0-1), his first start and his most recent, in which he has saved a combined 71 of 72 shots (.986 SV%). Taking those two games out of the equation, Gustavsson has been horrendous, posting a .848 SV% in those seven games (1-4-1). Minnesota will hope their recent trip to Gustavsson's homeland of Sweden as part of the NHL Global Series will help him rediscover the magic he had in the crease last season. The Wild will host a Colorado Avalanche team on Friday evening that has scored five or more goals in four of their last five games (4-1-0)

Dmitry Kulikov will be a healthy scratch for the first time this season, allowing Balinskis to return to the Panthers lineup. Balinskis has two points (1G / 1A) and 15 shots on goal while averaging 13:59 time-on-ice, playing predominantly on the Panthers' third defensive pair.

Lorentz will be a healthy scratch on Friday, signalling that Aleksander Barkov will likely return to the Panthers lineup. In 18 games this season, Lorentz has three points (1G / 2A), 10 shots, and 15 hits while averaging 8:22 time-on-ice.

Kulikov will be a healthy scratch on Friday, allowing Uvis Balinskis to draw back into the lineup. Kulikov has played all 19 games for the Panthers this season, tallying six points (0G / 6A), 26 blocks, and 27 hits while averaging 18:43 time-on-ice.

Rust's return to the lineup appears to be on the horizon as he participated in practice on Friday but unfortunately is not quite ready to return to game action. After a down 2022-23 campaign, Rust was in the process of having a terrific rebound season, tallying 16 points (9G / 7A) in 17 games thus far.

Nedeljkovic was heroic in his last contest on Sunday, posting a 38-save shutout in a 3-0 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights. Sunday's contest marked Nedeljkovic's first game in over three weeks while he was on the injured reserve with a lower-body injury. If Nedeljkovic can put together some consistent performances, he could see more action between the pipes, as Tristan Jarry has been a workhorse thus far for the Penguins. Nedelkjovic and the Penguins are -114 road favourites against a Buffalo Sabres team that was shut out 4-0 by the Penguins on November 11th.

Hart will start Friday afternoon as the Flyers are +124 home underdogs against the New York Rangers. Despite a 10-1-1 record in their last 12 contests, the Rangers have only scored four goals over their past two games (1-1-0). Hart has been exceptional this season but has struggled slightly over his past two contests (1-1-0), allowing six goals on 56 shots (.893 SV%), contrasting his heroic .931 SV% he registered over his seven games prior (4-2-0).

Shesterkin will return to the Rangers crease on Friday against the Philadelphia Flyers. The 2021-22 Vezina winner has been overshined by backup, and 2011-12 Vezina runner-up, Jonathan Quick, who was sensational in the Rangers' last outing, saving 32 shots for a 1-0 shutout victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins. Since returning from injury, Shesterkin has allowed seven goals in two games (1-1-0), posting an uncharacteristic .896 SV%. That said, the Rangers have points in 11 of their last 12 games (10-1-1) and are -137 road favourites Friday afternoon.

After missing two games with a knee injury, Barkov was a full participant at practice and should return to the lineup on Friday against the Winnipeg Jets. Barkov is expected to return to his familiar place on the Panthers' top line with Sam Reinhart and Evan Rodrigues. Before his injury, Barkov was lighting it up with 11 points (5G / 6A) in his last 10 games.

Korpisalo appears to still be nursing an undisclosed injury that kept him from dressing in the second game of the NHL Global Series in Sweden on November 18th. The Senators have recalled Mads Sogaard to serve as the backup to Anton Forsberg in the interim. The Senators will hope Korpisalo can return soon as he was finally starting to find his footing this season, posting a 4-2-0 record and a .921 SV% in his last eight appearances.

Raanta exited Wednesday's contest for precautionary reasons associated with a lower-body concern but seems no worse for wear as he will likely start on Friday against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Injury concerns are always a worry with Raanta, but so long as he is healthy, he should continue to see a fair share of action in the Hurricanes crease. In his last six outings (5-1-0), Raanta has allowed only 12 goals and registered a .912 SV%, strong numbers for any netminder on a Hurricanes team that leads the league in shot suppression (25.8 SA / GP).

Joonas Korpisalo was not present at the morning skate and as a result, Forsberg will likely be the starting goalie on Friday against the New York Islanders. Friday's matchup marks the Senators' first game since returning from the NHL Global Series in Sweden, where Forsberg played exceptionally well, saving 24 of 25 shots in a 2-1 victory over the Minnesota Wild. The Senators will hope Forsberg can build off his most recent performance because he struggled immensely in his three games prior (0-3-0), allowing 13 goals on only 51 shots (.745 SV%). Forsberg and the Senators are -121 home favourites against an Islanders team that ranks third worst in the league offensively (2.56 GF / GP).