NHL Player News

Kesselring scored the game-winning goal on two shots in Saturday's 2-1 overtime win over the Bruins.

Kesselring tallied just after a power play expired, giving Utah the win at 2:46 of overtime. The 24-year-old defenseman has scored in back-to-back games and is up to four points, nine shots on net, eight hits, seven blocked shots, seven PIM and a plus-7 rating through six appearances. With Sean Durzi (upper body) out well into 2025, Kesselring should get a long-term chance at proving himself on the top pairing, and he's off to a great start. While his power-play usage has been minimal so far, he could bump Juuso Valimaki from the second unit if he keeps producing. Kesselring is worth a speculative add in most fantasy formats.

Murphy notched an assist and two shots on goal in Saturday's 4-2 loss to the Sabres.

Murphy earned his first point of the year on the second of Craig Smith's two goals in the game. The 31-year-old Murphy doesn't often put up much offense, adding mostly physical production, though he had no hits or blocked shots Saturday. The veteran blueliner has seven hits, 14 blocks, 11 PIM, seven shots on net and a minus-1 rating through six outings this season. Over the last 10 regular seasons, he's reached 100 hits each time and fell short of 100 blocks just once in that span. Murphy has never produced a 20-point campaign.

Jones posted an assist, five shots on goal and two PIM in Saturday's 4-2 loss to the Sabres.

Jones continues to be one of the Blackhawks' better players. He has a goal and five assists over six contests, with his latest point being a secondary helper on the first of Craig Smith's two goals Saturday. Jones has added 21 shots on net, nine blocked shots, four PIM and a minus-1 rating while playing in a top-pairing role with a spot on the first power-play unit. The 30-year-old will struggle to live up to his $9.5 million cap hit, but fantasy managers can be happy if he approaches a 50-point pace while adding plenty of shots, hits and blocks without being too much of an anchor on the plus-minus rating.

Clifton notched an assist and four hits in Saturday's 4-2 win over the Blackhawks.

Clifton has picked up two assists over seven contests this season. He's been a fixture on the Sabres' third pairing, doing enough to keep Jacob Bryson and Dennis Gilbert in the press box as healthy scratches. Clifton has added eight shots on net, 18 hits and five blocked shots. His highest point total in a regular season is 23 from the 2022-23 campaign, and he's also topped 200 hits in each of the last two years. He could be worthy of a roster spot in deep fantasy formats that reward the rough stuff.

Myers picked up an assist Saturday in a 3-0 win over the Flyers.

He earned his first point of 2024-25 in his 1,000th NHL regular-season appearance. Myers is the 400th player in NHL history to reach the milestone. He saw an offensive resurgence in 2023-24 with 29 points in 77 regular-season outings, but he's better suited to play in shutdown situations.

Power logged an assist in Saturday's 4-2 win over the Blackhawks.

Power has a goal and an assist over the last two games. The 21-year-old defenseman is up to three points, 11 shots on net, nine blocked shots and an even plus-minus rating through seven outings. He's taken some time to get his offense going, but there's no doubt about his ability to handle top-four minutes and power-play time. Power should be rostered in deeper fantasy formats, though he could gain widespread appeal if he can take his offense to another level this year.

Schenn scored a goal in a 5-2 loss to Detroit on Saturday.

Schenn opened the scoring at the 8:48 mark of the first period. He added two shots on net, two blocked shots and two hits in 15:17 of ice time. Schenn has one point through five appearances this season.

Edvinsson netted a goal in a 5-2 win over Nashville on Saturday.

Edvinsson's first goal of the season was the first of Detroit's two empty-netters in the third period. He added three blocked shots and one hit in Saturday's triumph. The 21-year-old blueliner has collected two points and six shots on net in five outings this campaign.

Jiricek notched an assist in Saturday's 3-1 loss to the Wild.

The Blue Jackets dressed seven defensemen for this contest, with Jiricek getting into the lineup over a healthy forward in Kevin Labanc. Jiricek had 11:23 of ice time, more than Jake Christiansen (10:59) and Jordan Harris (10:15) on the Columbus blue line. Jiricek made his season debut Saturday as it looks like the Blue Jackets are still taking a cautious approach with his development, but it doesn't serve him well to sit in the press box for extended stretches as a 20-year-old. If he isn't playing regularly in the NHL, he may be better off heading to AHL Cleveland.

Merrill posted an assist in Saturday's 3-1 win over the Blue Jackets.

Merrill helped out on a Mats Zuccarello tally in the third period. The assist was Merrill's first point in five games, and he's added three shots on net, seven blocked shots, four hits and a plus-1 rating. The 32-year-old defenseman is locked into a bottom-pairing role, and there's a chance he loses his place in the lineup once Jared Spurgeon (lower body) can resume playing. Spurgeon's workload is being managed following hip and back surgeries earlier in 2024, which leaves the door open for Merrill to get a fair amount of playing time, albeit in a limited role.