NHL Hockey Player News

Markstrom will regain Florida's crease on Sunday after pitching a shutout in their opening-night overtime win over Carolina last Tuesday, stopping all 15 of 15 shots against. The 36-year-old was acquired from New Jersey in the offseason after several rough seasons and will look to continue his early success in Anaheim on Sunday. The Ducks are coming off a 4-3 opening night win over Vegas on Friday and will look to stay undefeated in their second contest of the season.

Marchand's early-season absence only lasted two games after Florida announced on Sunday that the 38-year-old winger would be returning to the lineup. Marchand made a huge impact in his first full season in 2025-26, putting up over a point per game with 27 goals and 54 points in 52 games played.

Vejmelka will look to keep Utah's early season magic going on Sunday as the Mammoth head to New York for a battle of two win teams. Vejmelka is coming off a perfect performance in Utah's opener, stopping all 15 shots he faced during a 6-0 shutout win over Chicago. He draws a much tougher task in the New York Rangers on home ice on Sunday, who have outscored opponents 7-4 in the early stages of the season.

Fresh off of scoring his first career goal, Igor Shesterkin will yet again take the crease as the Rangers look for their third win in four games, hosting Utah on Sunday. The 30-year-old netminder has enjoyed a solid start to his 2026-27 campaign, shown by his 1-1-0 record, 1.51 GAA and .935 SV%. He hosts the red-hot Utah Mammoth on Sunday, who are 2-0 with 10 goals for and only one against this season.

Toropchenko left Friday's season opener vs. Dallas with an upper-body injury and will now be forced to miss weeks after the team announced Sunday that the 27-year-old would be re-evaluated in six weeks for the injury. It is a tough loss for the sixth-year pro, who was looking for a bounce-back campaign after putting up four goals, 11 points and 68 SOG in 65 games last season.

Gustafsson was placed on waivers Saturday but went unclaimed and has now been assigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (AHL) on Sunday. The 26-year-old was acquired in a trade with Winnipeg in June for Jack St. Ivany but has yet to appear for the Penguins after putting up two goals and six points in 36 games last season.

L'Heureux's Avalanche debut has had to wait after the bruising forward missed the team's first two games due to a lower-body injury but was a full participant in practice on Sunday. The 23-year-old former 1st-round pick (2021 - 27th overall) appeared in 25 games with Nashville last season, picking up four goals, five points and 25 PIMs.

O'Connor has missed Colorado's first two games of the season with a lower-body injury but returned to practice on Sunday in a regular practice jersey. The 30-year-old is entering his eighth season in Colorado after only managing to appear in 13 games last season due to a hip injury. He will be a key part of the Avalanche's bottom-six when he is fully able to return to the lineup.

Detroit claimed Englund off waivers from Calgary a week ago and will have the towering defenseman make his Red Wings debut after Marco Kasper was placed on injured reserve on Sunday. Detroit will go with an 11F/7D lineup for the first time this season after being shut out by New York in their opening night matchup. Englund is entering his ninth NHL season with his sixth organization and had zero points across three games with Nashville in 2025-26.

Despite a tough 2-0 loss to New York in Detroit's opener, John Gibson was fantastic, stopping 19 of 20 shots against (.950 SV%) while receiving the hard-luck loss on Friday. He will hope for some offensive support on Sunday as Detroit hosts Winnipeg, who is coming off a 4-3 overtime loss vs. Boston in their opener.

Skinner's Winnipeg debut could have certainly gone better, allowing four goals on 30 shots (.867 SV%) and dropping an overtime matchup vs. Boston. The 27-year-old was thrust into Winnipeg's starting crease after Connor Hellebuyck stayed home due to a trade request and will hope to get himself back in the win column after picking up 23 victories with both Pittsburgh and Edmonton in 2025-26. He heads to Detroit to take on the Red Wings, who were blanked in their opening-night matchup vs. New York, 2-0.