NHL Player News

Skinner will patrol the road crease Tuesday against the Lightning, per Tony Brar of Oilers TV.

Skinner will look to rebound Tuesday after allowing five goals in a loss to Philadelphia in his first appearance following the 4 Nations Face-Off break. The 26-year-old will have his hands full against a Tampa Bay squad that is tied for second in the NHL with 3.57 goals per game. Skinner is 1-2-0 with a 3.77 GAA and a woeful .836 save percentage over three career appearances against the Lightning.

Hellebuyck stopped 17 shots in Monday's 2-1 overtime win over the Sharks.

While he wasn't particularly busy, Hellebuyck came up big when he needed to, and the only puck to get past him came on a San Jose power play in the first period. The veteran netminder was still staring at his first regulation loss since Jan. 20 until Josh Morrissey rifled home the tying tally inside the final minute of the third period, and Mark Scheifele then secured Hellebuyck's league-leading 35th win of the season in OT -- an incredible eight victories ahead of second-place Jake Oettinger. During his current seven-start win streak, Hellebuyck has posted a 2.13 GAA and a .917 save percentage.

Vanecek made 33 saves in Monday's 2-1 overtime loss to the Jets.

It was a gut punch of a loss. Vanecek took a shutout into the final minute of regulation, but Josh Morrissey blasted a one-timer through traffic with 26 seconds left to tie it, and Mark Scheifele then banged home a rebound 93 seconds into OT. The 29-year-old netminder has started three of San Jose's last four games, going 0-1-2 with a 3.97 GAA and an .871 save percentage, but with Alexandar Georgiev having gone 0-6-0 since Jan. 16, Vanecek should remain in the mix in the crease despite his own lack of success.

Reimer (personal) was on the ice for Tuesday's morning skate, per Paul Hamilton of WGR Sports Radio 550.

Reimer will probably back up Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen in Tuesday's home matchup versus the Ducks. Reimer is 2-4-1 with a .908 save percentage and a 2.55 GAA through nine appearances in 2024-25.

Thompson will defend the home cage against the Flames on Tuesday, Sammi Silber of The Hockey News reports.

Thompson has been seeing a heavy workload since the start of February, playing two of every three games for the Caps. If that trend continues, the 28-year-old netminder figures to be back in the crease against the Blues at home Thursday before Charlie Lindgren gets the nod at home versus Tampa Bay on Saturday. For his part, Thompson is undefeated in regulation since Dec. 17 versus the Blackhawks, going 13-0-3 over his last 16 starts while registering a 2.02 GAA and two shutouts.

Merzlikins will tend the twine for Tuesday's home tilt versus Dallas, Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers reports.

Merzlikins is coming off a 27-save victory over the Blackhawks on Saturday that ended a four-game losing streak for the backstop. Tuesday's tilt will be the sixth straight appearance for the 30-year-old netminder, a trend of heavy work that figures to continue into the closing weeks of the 2024-25 campaign.

Sorokin exited the ice first Tuesday, Stefen Rosner of NHL.com reports, indicating he'll be between the pipes at home against the Rangers.

Sorokin is mired in a three-game losing streak during which he's given up four or more goals in each outing. Prior to his slump, the Russian netminder had been riding a seven-game winning streak that went with a 1.16 GAA. Even with Sorokin slumping, he is unlikely to cede the starting job to Jakub Skarek, so fantasy players can expect Sorokin to continue getting plenty of work.

Ersson will get the starting nod at home against the Penguins on Tuesday, Jordan Hall of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports.

Ersson is riding a two-game winning streak during which he posted a 2.50 GAA, which includes a win over the Penguins on Feb. 8. The 25-year-old netminder needs just three more victories to reach the 20-win mark for the second consecutive campaign and could best his win total (23) from last season before the 2024-25 campaign wraps up.

Merilainen was placed in the AHL's concussion protocol Monday, Steve Lloyd of TSN 1200 Ottawa reports.

Merilainen reportedly told head coach David Bell that he was fine, so it's unclear if he will be an option to face AHL Manitoba on Wednesday. While the netminder's injury won't immediately impact the Senators, it could be an issue if Linus Ullmark or Anton Forsberg gets hurt in the short term.

Kuemper stopped 21 of 23 shots in Monday's 5-2 win over the Golden Knights.

Kuemper has been on a roll of late and secured the win for a fourth consecutive start, allowing three or fewer goals in each of those contests. The 34-year-old has been excellent in the new year. He posted a 5-4-1 record with a 1.72 GAA and a .938 save percentage across 10 games in January and remains undefeated in February, going 4-0-0 with a 2.50 GAA and a .900 save percentage.