NHL Player News

Sorokin will be between the home pipes versus Nashville on Saturday, Brooks Bratten of the Predators' official site reports.

Sorokin is 21-18-4 with three shutouts, a 2.76 GAA and a .905 save percentage over 43 games this season. He snapped a four-game losing streak in Boston on Thursday, stopping 38 shots in a 2-1 win. The Predators are tied for last in NHL scoring, averaging 2.55 goals per game this season.

Saros will guard the road net Saturday against the Islanders, Brooks Bratten of the Predators' official site reports.

Saros will make his third straight start after stopping 22 shots in Thursday's 2-1 win over Winnipeg. The Islanders sit 27th in the league with 2.69 goals per game this season. Saros has a 13-24-6 record with a .900 save percentage and 2.88 GAA this campaign.

Pickard will get the road start Saturday against the Hurricanes, Tony Brar of Oilers TV reports.

Pickard struggled in his first start out of the break, allowing six goals on 34 shots in a loss to the Capitals on Sunday. The 32-year-old netminder is 14-6-0 with a 2.69 GAA and an .896 save percentage in 22 appearances this season. Carolina is tied with Edmonton for eighth in the league with 3.25 goals per game this campaign.

Vasilevskiy will guard the visiting crease in Washington on Saturday, according to Tom Gulitti of NHL.com.

Vasilevskiy has won seven straight contests, including a shutout against Calgary on Thursday. He is 28-15-3 with four shutouts, a sparkling 2.21 GAA and a .922 save percentage through 46 appearances this season. Washington ranks first in the league with 3.63 goals per game this campaign.

Ullmark will be between the home pipes versus San Jose on Saturday, Claire Hanna of TSN reports.

Ullmark was strong Wednesday, stopping 35 of 38 shots in a 4-1 loss to Winnipeg, as he had no chance on any of the goals that beat him. The 31-year-old netminder will try to halt a four-game losing streak against the Sharks. Ullmark is 12-11-2 with three shutouts, a 2.66 GAA and a .911 save percentage across 27 appearances this season. San Jose ranks 30th in the league with only 2.57 goals per game this campaign.

Luukkonen will guard the home net Saturday against the Canadiens, Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports reports.

Luukkonen started Thursday in Carolina but was pulled early in the first period after allowing two goals on seven shots. The 25-year-old netminder will look to bounce back against a Montreal team that's won three straight, scoring 13 goals in that span. Luukkonen is 20-16-4 this season with an .894 save percentage and 3.01 GAA.

Thompson will defend the home crease versus Tampa Bay on Saturday, Tom Gulitti of NHL.com reports.

Thompson was saddled with a rare loss in his last outing, giving up three goals on 25 shots in a 3-1 loss to Calgary on Tuesday. The loss gave Thompson a 25-3-5 record with a 2.28 GAA and a .919 save percentage across 33 starts this season. The Lightning are generating 3.57 goals per game, second in the NHL this season.

Gustavsson stopped 25 of 29 shots in Friday's 5-2 loss to the Avalanche. The fifth goal was an empty-netter.

Gustavsson was done in by allowing three goals in a span of 5:42 during the middle of the second period, which turned a 2-1 Wild lead into a 4-2 deficit. He's now down to 22-13-3 after his second loss in a row. He also has a 2.67 GAA and a .912 save percentage across 39 outings this season. The Wild return home to face the Bruins on Sunday.

Blackwood stopped 18 of 20 shots in Friday's 5-2 win over the Wild.

Blackwood was lightly tested in the win, his fourth in his last five outings. Over that span, he's allowed 12 goals, and he hasn't faced more than 29 shots in any of those games as the Avalanche's defense has stepped up to keep pucks from getting to the net. The 28-year-old is up to 22-16-5 with a 2.49 GAA and a .916 save percentage over 44 appearances. The Avalanche's next game is Tuesday versus the Penguins, followed by Thursday's game against the Sharks and a Saturday showdown with the Maple Leafs. If Blackwood continues to see a large share of the starts, he'll be a strong play in weekly leagues for the week ahead.

Kuemper stopped 26 of 32 shots in Friday's 6-2 loss to the Stars.

The Stars led 3-1 after one period, but head coach Jim Hiller didn't pull Kuemper. This likely indicates that David Rittich will handle the second half of a back-to-back when the Kings visit the Blues on Saturday, and the team wanted to keep him fresh at the expense of Kuemper's performance. This outing ended a four-game winning streak for Kuemper, and it was his worst game since an eight-goal meltdown Oct. 14 versus the Senators, which preceded one of his stints on injured reserve. Kuemper dropped to 18-7-6 with a 2.33 GAA and a .913 save percentage over 32 contests this season.