NHL Hockey Player News

After several poor seasons by Elvis Merzlikins, the Blue Jackets will turn to Greaves in their season-opening matchup on Thursday against the Nashville Predators. Greaves joined the Blue Jackets late in the 2024-25 season and was nearly unbeatable, posting a 1.91 GAA and .938 SV% in 11 games (7-2-2), ultimately falling just short of a playoff berth. If Greaves can establish himself early, he could quickly become the undisputed starting goalie in Columbus. The Blue Jackets enter Thursday's action as +102 road underdogs against the Predators.

The Blues started the 2024-25 season as one of the NHL’s worst teams, prompting a coaching change, with Jim Montgomery taking over in late November. After the coaching switch, Binnington posted a 22-13-4 record with three shutouts and had a top-10 GAA (2.53) and SV% (.905) among goalies that played 30 games. Jim Montgomery will turn to Binnington on Thursday and hope he can build off the momentum he garnered in the second half of last season. The Blues enter their season-opening matchup against the Minnesota Wild on Thursday as -124 home favourites.

The Devils will likely turn to Markstrom between the pipes on Thursday in their season-opening matchup against the Carolina Hurricanes. The 35-year-old Markstrom had a solid, albeit unspectacular, first season with the Devils in 2024-25, posting a 2.50 GAA, .900 SV%, and four shutouts in 49 games (26-16-6). The Devils enter Thursday's contest as +150 road underdogs against a Hurricanes team that is widely believed to be a top Stanley Cup contender.

Coming off another stellar season, winning his third Vezina trophy in the last six seasons, posting an outstanding 2.00 GAA, .925SV%, and eight shutouts in 63 outings (47-12-3), Hellebuyck will tend the twine in Winnipeg's season opener against the Dallas Stars. Hellebuyck and the Jets were eliminated by the Stars in the second round of the playoffs and will hope to enact some revenge with a victory on Thursday. Winnipeg enters the contest as slight -101 home underdogs against Dallas.

Despite a strong 34-save performance in a 3-2 losing effort on Tuesday to the Florida Panthers, Spencer Knight will likely serve as Chicago's backup netminder on Thursday in Boston. Soderblom, entering his age-26 season, played a career-high 36 games (10-18-7) in 2024-25 and played reasonably well, given he played on a Blackhawks team that finished as the NHL's second-worst defensive team (3.61 GA/GP), posting a 3.18 GAA and .898 SV%. The Blackhawks enter Thursday's contest as +144 road underdogs against a Boston Bruins team that opened their season last night with an impressive 3-1 win over the Washington Capitals.

Rust was back at practice on Thursday but will remain out of the lineup against the New York Islanders. The 33-year-old Rust scored a career-high 65 points (31G / 34A) in 71 games last season and will likely return to a role on the team's top powerplay unit when he returns.

After five seasons in Calgary, Dan Vladar signed a two-year contract with the Flyers in the offseason to share a crease with Samuel Ersson in 2025-26. The 27-year-old Czech netminder appeared in a career high 30 games in 2024-25, posting a 12-11-6 record alongside his .898 SV% and 2.80 GAA. Vladar will be tending the twine in Philadelphia's season-opening matchup against the Florida Panthers, in which they are +187 road underdogs.

Connor Dewar will be a healthy scratch on Thursday, allowing Hallander to make his season debut against the New York Islanders. The 25-year-old Hallander spent the previous two seasons playing hockey in Sweden, including an impressive 2024-25 season where he scored 53 points (26G / 27A) in 51 games with Timra IK (SweHL).

Despite an impressive 25-save shutout by Arturs Silovs in their 3-0 opening-night win over the New York Rangers, the Penguins will opt to rotate netminders early, turning to Jarry on Thursday against the New York Islanders. After a horrendous start to the 2024-25 season, posting a 3.10 GAA and .884 SV% in 22 games (9-9-4), Jarry spent two months in the minors before returning to the NHL and ending the season on a higher note, posting a 2.60 GAA and .904 SV% in 14 games to end the season (8-4-2). The 30-year-old Jarry hopes to start this season the way he ended the previous one. The Penguins enter Thursday’s contest as +116 home underdogs against an Islanders team that finished last season with the league’s fifth-worst offense (2.73 GF / GP).

The Hurricanes likely entered the season with the intention of Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov splitting time between the pipes, but with Kochetkov battling an undisclosed injury, Andersen gets the easy call for their season-opening matchup against the New Jersey Devils. The 36-year-old Andersen has battled injuries recently and was limited to only 22 appearances last season (13-8-1), posting a 2.50 GAA and .899 SV%. The Hurricanes enter Thursday's contest as -167 home favorites against a Devils team that finished the 2024-25 season mid-pack offensively, averaging 2.95 goals per game.

Kochetkov was absent from practice the past few days and will not suit up for Thursday's season opener against the New Jersey Devils. The 26-year-old Kochetkov posted a 2.60 GAA and .897 SV% in 47 appearances last season (27-16-3). Hurricanes' head coach Rod Brind'Amour stated that Kochetkov aggravated something in practice and "hasn't been getting better." If Kochetkov is unable to play, expect Frederik Andersen to be between the pipes.

Coming off a disappointing opening-night 3-0 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Rangers will roll with Shesterkin between the pipes on Thursday against the Buffalo Sabres. Despite the loss on Tuesday, Shesterkin played exceptionally, saving 28 of 29 shots (.966 SV%) in the effort. The 29-year-old netminder had a down 2024-25 season by his elite standards, posting a 2.86 GAA and .905 SV% in 61 games (27-29-5), and will hope to improve in 2025-26. The Rangers enter Thursday's contest as -111 road favourites against a Sabres team that finished the 2024-25 season as a top-10 offensive team (3.28 GF / GP).

Bobrovsky was solid in Florida's season-opening 3-2 win over the Chicago Blackhawks, saving 17 of 19 shots (.895 SV%), and will return to the crease on Thursday against the Philadelphia Flyers. In 2024-25, Bobrovsky appeared in 54 games for the Panthers (33-19-2), posting a 2.44 GAA, .905 SV%, and five shutouts. The Panthers enter Thursday's contest as -207 home favorites against a Flyers team that finished last season with the 10th-fewest goals per game (2.9 GF/GP).

After posting elite totals in his first three NHL seasons, Sorokin has posted a 2.86 GAA and .908 SV% in 117 combined appearances over the last two seasons (55-43-18); a steep decline from the 2.34 GAA and .924 SV% in his previous 136 games (70-46-18). Although still a talented netminder, Sorokin's recent stats are likely more aligned with what can be expected in the 2025-26 season. Still, the Islanders enter their season-opening matchup on Thursday as -127 road favourites against a Pittsburgh Penguins team coming off a 3-0 opening-night victory over the New York Rangers.

To no surprise, Tampa Bay will turn to Vasilevskiy between the pipes in Thursday's season opener against the Ottawa Senators. After the worst season of his career in 2023-24, Vasilevskiy returned to his elite ways in 2024-25, finishing as the runner-up for the Vezina trophy after posting a dazzling 2.18 GAA, .921 SV%, and six shutouts in 63 games (38-20-5). Tampa Bay enters Thursday's contest as -172 home favorites against an Ottawa team that snuck into the playoffs last season while being mid-pack offensively (2.96 GF/ GP).

With Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (lower body) out week-to-week, the Sabres will likely turn to Lyon between the pipes in their season-opening matchup on Thursday against the New York Rangers. The 32-year-old Lyon played 30 games last season with the Detroit Red Wings (14-9-1), posting a 2.81 GAA and .896 SV%. Unless Lyon can establish himself early, expect him to rotate starts with Alexander Georgiev during Luukkonen's absence. The Sabres enter Thursday's contest as +101 home underdogs against a Rangers team that was defeated 3-0 by the Pittsburgh Penguins in their opening-night matchup on Tuesday.

The Hurricanes likely entered the season with the intention of Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov splitting time between the pipes, but with Kochetkov battling an undisclosed injury, Andersen gets the easy call for their season-opening matchup against the New Jersey Devils. The 36-year-old Andersen has battled injuries recently and was limited to only 22 appearances last season (13-8-1), posting a 2.50 GAA and .899 SV%. The Hurricanes enter Thursday's contest as -167 home favorites against a Devils team that finished the 2024-25 season mid-pack offensively, averaging 2.95 goals per game.

On the tail end of a back-to-back, a night after a season-opening 6-5 shootout loss to the Los Angeles Kings, the Golden Knights will turn to Schmid between the pipes on Thursday against the San Jose Sharks. Schmid spent most of the 2024-25 season with the Henderson Silver Knights (AHL), but was excellent in limited NHL action with the Golden Knights, posting a 1.26 GAA and .944 SV% in five appearances (2-0-1). If the 25-year-old Schmid can put together some strong performances early, he could be in line for topping his career-high of 19 games played in a season. The Golden Knights enter Thursday's contest as -194 road favorites against a Sharks team that finished last season with the worst record in the NHL (20-50-12).

Bobrovsky was solid in Florida's season-opening 3-2 win over the Chicago Blackhawks, saving 17 of 19 shots (.895 SV%), and will likely return to the crease on Thursday against the Philadelphia Flyers. In 2024-25, Bobrovsky appeared in 54 games for the Panthers (33-19-2), posting a 2.44 GAA, .905 SV%, and five shutouts. The Panthers enter Thursday's contest as -207 home favorites against a Flyers team that finished last season with the 10th-fewest goals per game (2.9 GF/GP).

After a lengthy offseason, which included a change in agents, Jack Roslovic has signed a one-year, $1.5 million contract to provide the Edmonton Oilers with offensive depth. The 28-year-old is entering his ninth NHL season after tying his career high in goals in 2024-25 with 22 and 39 points across 81 games played with Carolina.