NHL Hockey Player News

Surprisingly, Colorado hasn't turned to Scott Wedgewood this season and has rolled with Blackwood between the pipes for the first three games. Wedgewood's tremendous 2025-26 season, posting a 2.02 GAA and .921 SV% in 45 appearances (31-6-6), should at least earn him close to a timeshare by season's end, even if the team is showing early-season favour for Blackwood. Colorado enters Thursday's contest as significant -235 road favourites against a struggling Calgary team that has been outscored 16-3 through three games (0-3-0).

Maxim Tsyplakov will be a healthy scratch on Thursday, allowing Suniev to enter the lineup for his season debut. Suniev was drafted 80th overall by the Calgary Flames in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft, but has yet to make his presence felt at the NHL level. The 21-year-old spent mot of the 2025-26 season in the AHL, where he tallied 24 points (16G / 8A) in 57 games with the Calgary Wranglers.

Castagna was drafted in the third round of the 2023 NHL Entry Draft by the Arizona Coyotes. The 21-year-old forward made his professional debut earlier this season, tallying two goals in two games with the Calgary Wranglers (AHL). He spent the previous three seasons playing for Cornell University.

Tsyplakov hasn't been noticeable through his first three games with the Flames, recording only one shot on goal and a -3 plus/minus. He will head to the sidelines as a healthy scratch on Thursday and be replaced by Aydar Suniev.

Cooley had a terrific first season as a full-time NHLer, serving primarily as Dustin Wolf's backup, posting a solid 2.69 GAA and .909 SV% in 31 appearances (10-10-6) for a poor Calgary Flames team. The 29-year-old Cooley struggled in his only 2026-27 outing, allowing three goals on 25 shots (.880 SV%) in a 4-1 loss to the Vancouver Canucks, but hopes to improve Thursday against the Colorado Avalanche. The Flames enter Thursday's contest as sizeable +207 home underdogs against an Avalanche team coming off a disappointing final-minute 3-2 loss to the Winnipeg Jets yesterday.

O'Connor has missed Colorado's first three games of the season with a lower-body injury but could make his debut on Thursday against the Calgary Flames. 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.

To start the 2026-27 season, the Blues have made it clear they are relying more on Hofer than veteran Jordan Binnington, and will turn to him again on Thursday for his third start in four games. Through two games this season (1-1-0), Hofer has a shutout and has posted an impressive 1.01 GAA and .955 SV%. The Blues enter Thursday as -150 home favourites against a San Jose Sharks team coming off a disappointing 5-0 loss to the Dallas Stars.

Sharks Head Coach Ryan Warsofsky rolled with Yaroslav Askarov for the first three games of the season (2-1-0), but Askarov hasn't provided confidence between the pipes, so Warsofsky will turn to Nedeljkovic for the first time on Thursday. The 30-year-old Nedeljkovic was a serviceable option when Askarov struggled last season, posting a 2.87 GAA and .896 SV% in 40 games (18-14-4). The Sharks enter Thursday's contest as +137 road underdogs against a St. Louis Blues team on a two-game losing streak (0-2-0).

Celebrini was a late scratch for San Jose's Monday loss to Dallas and his status for Thursday's game against the St. Louis Blues remains up in the air. The 20-year-old is in his third NHL campaign and has five assists, nine SOG and a +2 plus/minus while averaging 22:20 TOI/GP across two games this season.

Sanderson skated on his own prior to Thursday's morning skate but will miss his third straight game with a lower-body injury that he suffered early in the season opener. Sanderson returning to the ice is a good sign that he's not expected to be sidelined long-term, but as of now the Senators have not provided a timetable for his return.

With Joel Kiviranta (lower body) expected to miss at least a week, Blackwell will draw into the lineup as his replacement. The 33-year-old Blackwell played 7:29 and was held off the scoresheet in his only game this season.

Sergachev took a puck to the head late in the second period and did not return for the third period of Tuesday's win over the Devils. Prior to getting hurt, Sergachev tallied three assists and was named the first star of the game. He is expected to play on Thursday against the Boston Bruins.

Lindgren exited Tuesday's game with an upper-body injury and has not been ruled out for the next four to six weeks. The 28-year-old Lindgren was a stabilizing presence on Seattle's blueline last season, averaging 18:20 time-on-ice, recording 118 blocks and scoring nine points (2G / 7A) in 76 games.

Jake DeBrusk (illness) will return to the lineup on Thursday, sending Gallagher to the sidelines as a healthy scratch. The 34-year-old Gallagher is averaging 9:56 time-on-ice and has zero points in four games this season.