NHL Hockey Player News

Ward stopped 25 of 26 shots in the Hurricanes win in Detroit on Tuesday. Ward comes into play on Friday with a 3-4-0 with a 2.28 GAA and a. 908 SV%. He draws a strong match up vs. the Avalanche.

Bachman will make his Canucks debut tonight vs. the Coyotes—the 28-year-old has spent the first five years of his career with the Stars and Oilers. Last season he was 3-2-0 with a 2.84 GAA and .911 SV%. He has posted a 17-14-2 record with a 2.93 GAA and .904 SV% in 30 starts and 12 relief appearances in his NHL career.

Smith allowed six goals in the Coyotes’ 6-0 loss in Boston on Wednesday. It was Smith’s second game in as many nights so it is hard to fault him. Smith Has posted a 2.97 GAA and .908 SV% in nine starts this season—he comes in having lost five of his last six and makes for a risky start tonight vs. Vancouver.

Condon allowed two goals on 36 shots in the Canadiens win in Buffalo last Friday. Carey Price will obviously get the large majority of the starts this season, but Condon has proven he can be a serviceable spot-start when called upon. He has stopped 54 of 57 shots (.947 SV%) this season and draws a strong spot-start matchup tonight.

Anderson allowed four goals on 38 shots in the Senators win over the Flames on Wednesday. With Andrew Hammond starting last night in Detroit, Anderson is expected to get the nod tonight when the Senators host the Red Wings. Anderson has actually been much better on the road early in the season—he comes in at 1-1-1 with a 3.17 GAA and .886 SV% on home ice.

Neuvirth missed the last three games with an upper-body injury, but he will return to the crease tonight in Buffalo. Neuvirth has had a nice start to his Flyers career, posting 2-0-0 record, 1.55 GAA and .947 SV% in his first four appearances. He draws a fantastic matchup vs. his former team.

Bobrovsky stopped 23 of 24 shots in the Blue Jackets win in New Jersey on Tuesday. After starting the season with six straight losses, Bobrovsky has rebounded with back-to-back wins while making 54 saves on 58 shots (.931 SV%). Despite his recent success, he is a scary play tonight in Washington.

Ortio stopped all five shots that he faced after replacing the injured Jonas Hiller on Wednesday in Ottawa. In his first start of the season he surrendered four goals on 35 shots in a loss in Brooklyn, but he enters play with a .911 SV% in four periods of hockey this season. He draws a tough assignment vs. a Montreal team who has lost two straight after winning their first nine.

Hammond surrendered four goals on 32 shots in the Senators loss to New Jersey last Thursday. It was an inauspicious start to the season for 2014-15’s surprise of the year. He will get another crack at proving last year was no fluke when he takes on a struggling Red Wings team tonight in Detroit.

Ullmark surrendered four goals on 28 shots in the Sabres loss to the Devils last Saturday. He will make his second start of the season tonight vs. Michal Neuvirth and the Flyers. It is a decent matchup with Philadelphia struggling to score early in the season—they rank 25th in the NHL, averaging just 2.11 goals per game.

Strome was a late scratch from Thursday’s game because of an illness and his absence from practice this morning puts his status for Saturday in doubt. The Islanders play at 1 p.m, so expect an update on his status a few hours before game-time.

Halak was scratched from Thursday’s game because of an illness but he was back at practice this afternoon, which suggests that Halak could be ready to start on Saturday vs. the Devils. If not, look for Thomas Greiss to go again.

Paquette has missed the last two games and missing practice this morning puts him in danger of making it three straight. Paquette has been officially listed as questionable.