NHL Player News

Ludvig produced an assist and three hits in Sunday's 4-1 win over the Sharks.

The helper was Ludvig's first point in three appearances with the Avalanche. The 24-year-old defenseman has battled with Oliver Kylington and Calvin de Haan for a spot in the lineup, but that battle will be a little easier while Devon Toews (lower body) is out. Ludvig has added five hits, two blocked shots and two shots on net. When Ludvig's in the lineup, he'll likely be confined to a bottom-four role, giving him little fantasy upside.

Manson recorded an assist, five blocked shots and six PIM in Sunday's 4-1 win over the Sharks.

Manson has been steady on offense with three assists over six games this season. The 33-year-old blueliner has added 10 shots on net, 13 hits, 12 blocked shots, eight PIM and a minus-5 rating. He's a lock to play on the Avalanche's second pairing, and while his offense won't always be consistent, he regularly adds plenty of hits and PIM.

Girard posted an assist, two blocked shots and a plus-2 rating in Sunday's 4-1 win over the Sharks.

Girard was the latest defenseman to get a look alongside Cale Makar on the top pairing, and it was on Makar's empty-netter that Girard earned his third point of the season. All three of them have been assists, as Girard has struggled to get involved in the offense. He's added just two shots on net with five hits, 11 blocked shots and a minus-1 rating across six appearances. He's worth a look in deeper formats as long as Devon Toews (lower body) is out.

Makar scored an empty-net goal on two shots, added two assists and went plus-2 in Sunday's 4-1 win over the Sharks.

Makar helped out on both of Ross Colton's tallies, including one on the power play, in the first period. In the third, Makar added an empty-netter to finish off the win. The defenseman has opened the season on a six-game point streak, racking up two goals, 10 assists, 12 shots on net, seven hits, seven blocked shots and a minus-4 rating. He's earned multiple points in four of his games and remains among the best blueliners in the league even with the Avalanche off to a lackluster start in 2024-25.

Gavrikov registered an assist, two blocked shots and a plus-3 rating in Sunday's 4-1 win over the Ducks.

Gavrikov helped out on an empty-netter by Kevin Fiala. After a slow start to the campaign, Gavrikov has three assists over his last two games. The 28-year-old defenseman isn't known for scoring a lot, so it's unlikely he'll provide steady offense throughout the year. He's much better in the non-scoring categories, as he has 11 shots on net, 16 blocks and a plus-4 rating across six contests this season.

Anderson scored a goal on two shots and added an assist in Sunday's 4-1 win over the Ducks.

Anderson has scored in back-to-back games, though his tally Sunday was a lucky bank shot off the side wall into the empty net. The 25-year-old defenseman has collected four points, eight shots on net, 10 hits, seven blocked shots, six PIM and a plus-1 rating over six contests. He remains on the top pairing in the absence of Drew Doughty (ankle), though Anderson's shutdown style means his current surge of offense is likely to fizzle out.

Miller logged two assists in Sunday's 6-3 win over the Penguins.

Miller added two shots, four hits, two PIM and a plus-1 rating in 15:24 of ice time. The right-shot defenseman now has points in consecutive games after being held off the scoresheet for three contests to start the season. Miller is seeing bottom-pairing minutes while being deployed on the penalty kill.

Mintyukov will miss Sunday's contest versus Los Angeles due to an illness.

Mintyukov will be replaced in the lineup by Jackson LaCombe. Expect an update to come on Mintyukov's status ahead of Tuesday's game against San Jose.

LaCombe (illness) will suit up for Sunday's home contest versus the Kings.

LaCombe will slot in on the second defense pair with Radko Gudas in the former's first appearance of the season. The 23-year-old LaCombe produced 17 points over 71 regular-season contests in 2023-24.

Morrissey banked two assists in Sunday's 6-3 win over Pittsburgh.

Morrissey added one shot, five blocks, one hit and a plus-2 rating with a team-high 22:09 of ice time. Winnipeg's No. 1 defenseman is on fire to start the 2024-25 campaign -- he's riding a five-game point streak (one goal, six assists). Two of Morrissey's points have come on the man advantage, and he's added 10 shots, 13 blocks and a plus-7 rating through five contests. The 29-year-old will attempt to extend his point streak to six games against the Blues on Tuesday.