NHL Player News

Askarov (lower body) was not in attendance for Tuesday's game-day skate and will miss out versus Anaheim, Curtis Pashelka of The San Jose Mercury News reports.

Askarov came into training camp with high expectations but a lower-body injury has kept him from getting on the ice with his teammates. Set to compete for the starting job for Opening Night against St. Louis on Oct. 10, an extended absence could open the door for either Mackenzie Blackwood or Vitek Vanecek to step up. Still, unless Askarov is out long-term, he should eventually claim the No. 1 gig in San Jose.

Vanecek was the first netminder off the ice at the morning skate, according to Max Miller of NHL.com, indicating he will guard the home net Tuesday in exhibition action versus Anaheim.

Vanecek earned a 17-9-3 record with a 3.18 GAA and an .890 save percentage in 32 regular-season outings for New Jersey in 2023-24. He didn't see any game action with the Sharks after being acquired via a trade in March because of a lower-body injury. Following his recovery in the offseason, he will compete with Mackenzie Blackwood and Yaroslav Askarov (lower body) for the No. 1 goalie role during training camp.

Silovs was the first goalie off the ice at the morning skate, Brendan Batchelor of Sportsnet 650 reports, indicating he will patrol the home crease in Tuesday's preseason contest against Seattle.

Silovs posted a 3-0-1 record with a 2.47 GAA and an .881 save percentage in four regular-season outings with the Canucks in 2023-24. He also went 5-5 in the playoffs, allowing 29 goals on 283 shots. If Thatcher Demko (knee) isn't ready for the start of the 2024-25 campaign, Silovs will compete for starts with Kevin Lankinen.

Ferguson agreed to terms on a one-year, minor-league contract with AHL Iowa on Tuesday after being released from his PTO with Vancouver, Dylan Loucks of The Hockey News reports.

Ferguson's days with Vancouver were numbered as soon as the team brought in veteran Kevin Lankinen. The club already has some young backstops competing for ice time with AHL Abbotsford, so keeping Ferguson would have created an unnecessary logjam. Without an NHL deal, Ferguson figures to spend the entire year in the minors with Iowa.

Merilainen has not participated in training camp yet due to a groin injury that occurred during rookie camp, per TSN 1200 Ottawa.

Merilainen was expected to compete with Mads Sogaard for the No. 1 goaltending gig with AHL Belleville, but it's unclear when the former will be ready to return. Merilainen appeared in two NHL contests with Ottawa during the 2022-23 campaign, going 0-1-1 with an .878 save percentage and a 4.23 GAA. The 22-year-old was a third-round selection by Ottawa in the 2020 NHL Draft.

Nedeljkovic will be between the pipes at home versus Buffalo on Tuesday, Seth Rorabaugh of Tribune-Review Sports reports.

Nedeljkovic saw action in 38 games for the Penguins last year, including starting 14 straight to close out the season in which he posted an 8-1-3 record, 3.00 GAA and .899 save percentage. Having re-signed with the team for another two years, the 28-year-old netminder still comes into the campaign as the No. 2 option, but clearly, starter Tristan Jarry is on a short leash and Nedeljkovic could play his way into a split share.

Shepard will guard the road crease in Tuesday's exhibition contest versus Boston, Sammi Silber of The Hockey News reports.

Shepard will play the entirety of Tuesday's preseason game. The 28-year-old is one of the AHL's top netminders -- he's won consecutive Calder Cup championships with the Hershey Bears. Shepard will likely be limited to the AHL again this year, barring injury, after Washington traded for Logan Thompson to form a tandem in net with Charlie Lindgren. Shepard was 2-1-1 with an .894 save percentage and a 3.19 GAA in four regular-season appearances with the Capitals in 2023-24.

Kochetkov will defend the road net Tuesday in preseason action versus Tampa Bay, Walt Ruff of the Hurricanes' official site reports.

Kochetkov compiled a 23-13-4 record with four shutouts, a 2.33 GAA and a .911 save percentage over 42 regular-season contests in 2023-24. Even if Frederik Andersen stays healthy this campaign, Kochetkov could push for plenty of starts. The talented duo may share time in the crease in 2024-25.

Forsberg was in the starter's crease ahead of Tuesday's preseason matchup with Toronto at home, Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia reports, indicating he'll get the starting nod.

Forsberg figures to have the inside track on the backup job heading into the 2024-25 campaign, with Mads Sogaard a potential challenger. Even if Forsberg does win the No. 2 gig as expected, he is unlikely to see significant work this year behind Linus Ullmark. Fantasy managers can likely expect Forsberg to top out at around 30 games played, barring a long-term injury to Ullmark.

Houser will get the starting nod on the road against the Penguins on Tuesday, Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News reports.

Houser won't have much of a supporting cast in terms of NHL-caliber players, so fantasy managers may want to pursue other options for Tuesday's slate. The veteran backstop's time in Buffalo is almost certainly temporary, as he figures to join youngster Devon Levi with AHL Rochester after signing a two-way deal back in July.