NHL Hockey Player News

Mackey is an undrafted 29-year-old defenseman defenseman that has played 42 career NHL games since his debut in the 2020-21 season, but has spent the entirety of the 2025-26 campaign in the AHL. He has seven points (2G / 5A) in 32 games with the Hartford Wolf Pack (AHL) this season.

Armia has not played in nearly two weeks because of an upper-body injury, but will return to the lineup on Friday against the Anaheim Ducks. The 32-year-old Finnish forward has gained the trust of the Kings coaching staff, seeing an increase in deployment in recent weeks. He has 16 points (9G / 7A) in 41 games this season.

Gauthier was a late scratch in Tuesday's game against the Dallas Stars, as he came down with an illness, but he is set to return to the lineup on Friday against the Dallas Stars. After a hot start to the 2025-26 season, with 21 points (12G / 9A) in his first 17 games, Gauthier's production has cooled off, with 19 points (8G / 11A) in 28 games since.

Terry has been sidelined for nearly two weeks because of an upper-body injury, but is set to return to the lineup on Friday against the Los Angeles Kings. The 28-year-old Terry is having an excellent season, with 42 points (13G / 29A) in 43 games. He had seven points (3G / 4A) in his last five games before his injury.

Kreider is coming off a one-goal performance in Tuesday's 3-1 win over the Dallas Stars, but is battling an illness and could miss Friday's game against the Los Angeles Kings. The 34-year-old veteran has 25 points (15G / 10A) in 42 games this season.

Smith has not played in over a month, but has ramped things up over the last week after returning to contact drills in practice, and could return to the lineup as soon on Friday against the Detroit Red Wings. The 20-year-old second-year player has 29 points (12G / 17A) in 33 games this season.

Kuemper has struggled in recent games, losing seven of nine (2-4-3), while posting a less-than-stellar 2.94 GAA and .880 SV%. That said, he will return to the crease on Friday against an Anaheim Ducks team that he has been statistically solid against in his career, posting a 2.48 GAA and .912 SV% in 19 career games (10-6-1). The Kings enter Friday's contest against the Ducks, who defeated the Dallas Stars 3-1 on Wednesday to snap a nine-game losing streak (0-8-1), as -130 home favorites.

Before the 2025-26 season, Englund exclusively played in the NHL for the previous two seasons. That said, the 29-year-old defenseman has spent the entirety of this season in the AHL, where he has six points (2G / 4A) in 30 games with the Milwaukee Admirals.

Blackwood has not played since New Year's Eve due to a lower-body injury, but was activated from IR on Wednesday and will return to the crease on Friday against the Nashville Predators. The 29-year-old Blackwood has struggled with injuries throughout his career, a trend that has unfortunately continued this season, but he has been exceptional when healthy, posting a stellar 2.07 GAA and .924 SV% in 16 games (13-1-1). The Avalanche enter Friday's contest as enormous -300 home favorites against a Predators team on a two-game winning streak.

Colton has been productive in primarily a bottom-six role for Colorado this season, scoring 20 points (5G / 15A) in 45 games. He did not practice on Thursday because of a lower-body injury, but he will not miss any time and will suit up to play on Friday against the Nashville Predators.

Sweezey in an undrafted defenseman that played nine game for the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2022-23 season, but has otherwise exclusively played in the AHL. The 29-year-old has 11 points (1G / 10A) in 34 games with the Providence Bruins (AHL) this season.

With the Blues hoping to get back into playoff contention, they will need to roll with their more consistent goalie, Joel Hofer. The 25-year-old Hofer is tied for the league lead with four shutouts and has a 2.81 GAA and .902 SV% in 25 games (10-9-2). That said, Hofer had a poor start to the season, but he has corrected it with an exceptional 1.94 GAA and .927 SV% in his last 14 games (8-6-0). The Blues enter Friday's contest as +168 home underdogs against a scorching-hot Tampa Bay Lightning team that is on an 11-game winning streak.

Jonas Johansson was absent from practice on Thursday, which was initially classified as "body maintenance," but may actually be something that could keep him out of the lineup, as indicated by the recalling of Brandon Halverson from the Syracuse Crunch (AHL). The 30-year-old Johansson has been serviceable in a supporting role this season, posting a 2.73 GAA and .896 SV% in 18 games (10-6-1).

Chychrun has had a tremendous season from Washington's blueline, pacing for career-best offensive totals, scoring 33 points (15G / 18A) in 46 games, but he was absent from practice on Friday. It's unclear if this will impact his availability on Saturday against the Florida Panthers.

Blackwood has not played since New Year's Eve due to a lower-body injury, but was activated from IR on Wednesday and will likely return to the crease on Friday against the Nashville Predators. The 29-year-old Blackwood has struggled with injuries throughout his career, a trend that has unfortunately continued this season, but he has been exceptional when healthy, posting a stellar 2.07 GAA and .924 SV% in 16 games (13-1-1). The Avalanche enter Friday's contest as enormous -300 home favorites against a Predators team on a two-game winning streak.

Viel has not played much this season, limited to only one game since the beginning of December, and hopes that a fresh start with the Anaheim Ducks will allot him more playing time. The 28-year-old forward has five points (3G / 2A) in 64 career NHL games.

Schwindt has not played in two months because of a broken arm, but he will make his return on Friday against the Carolina Hurricanes. Before his injury, the 24-year-old forward was averaging 8:38 time-on-ice and had two points (2G / 0A) in 10 games.

Bobrovsky has a serviceable 5-4-0 record in his last nine games, which has not come easily, as he has a concerning sub- .900 SV% in each of those games. The 37-year-old Bobrovsky has battled adversity all season, settling into a less-than-stellar 2.90 GAA and .881 SV% through 32 games (19-12-1). The Panthers enter Friday's contest as +146 road underdogs against a Carolina Hurricanes team that they defeated 5-2 less than a month ago.