NHL Player News

Sorokin was the first goalie off the ice Wednesday, Andrew Gross of Newsday reports, indicating he'll be in goal at home against Pittsburgh.

With the Isles locked into the third seed in the Metropolitan Division, the team will go with Sorokin on Wednesday. That points to Semyon Varlamov being the presumptive starter for Game 1 of the postseason, which shouldn't come as a surprise considering he went 7-1-0 in eight games down the stretch. For his part, Sorokin did play in 55 games for the team this year and could jump into action in the playoffs if Varlamov struggles.

Markstrom allowed four goals on 31 shots in Tuesday's 4-1 loss to the Canucks.

The Flames' offense went cold against a tough opponent, leaving Markstrom with his fourth straight loss. The 34-year-old goalie dropped to 23-23-2 with a 2.78 GAA and a .905 save percentage through 49 contests this season. The Flames host the Sharks on Thursday to finish the campaign, but the team hasn't announced if Markstrom or Dustin Wolf will start the finale.

Demko stopped 39 of 40 shots in Tuesday's 4-1 win over the Flames.

Demko returned from a 14-game absence due to a knee injury, and the Flames kept the pressure up throughout the contest. The 28-year-old was up to the challenge, allowing just a Brayden Pachal tally in the third period. Getting Demko back is a huge boost for a Canucks team that has the depth to be a contender in the playoffs. He's at 35-13-2 with a 2.44 GAA and a .918 save percentage over 50 appearances. It's unclear at this time if Demko will get the start Thursday versus the Jets in a tilt that may have implications for home-ice scenarios later in the postseason.

Mrazek allowed two goals on 36 shots in Tuesday's 3-1 loss to the Golden Knights. The third goal was an empty-netter.

Mrazek hasn't surrendered more than three goals in any of his last seven outings, but he's gone 2-5-0 in that span. The 32-year-old netminder is down to 18-31-4 with a 3.04 GAA and a .907 save percentage through a career-high 56 appearances. The Blackhawks end their season versus the Kings on Thursday, but a starting goalie for that contest hasn't been announced yet.

Thompson stopped 22 of 23 shots in Tuesday's 3-1 win over the Blackhawks.

Thompson was denied a shutout at 16:02 of the third period when Jason Dickinson scored. With five wins in his last seven games, Thompson has been effective in goal for the Golden Knights. The 27-year-old improved to 25-14-5 with a 2.70 GAA and a .908 save percentage through 46 contests. Adin Hill is slated to start the regular-season finale Thursday versus the Ducks, but Thompson has enough momentum to deserve a chance to play in the postseason.

Hill will guard the home goal versus the Ducks on Thursday, Danny Webster of the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports.

Hill has allowed eight goals on 49 shots over his last two outings since returning from a lower-body injury. Logan Thompson has been sharper lately, but the Golden Knights are often at their best when both goalies are performing well. Hill will get Thursday's game to use as preparation for the playoffs.

Woll allowed four goals on 41 shots in Tuesday's 5-2 loss to the Panthers.

After blanking the Panthers in the opening frame, Woll was tagged for four goals on a staggering 29 shots in the second period en route to an eventual 5-2 defeat. The 25-year-old Woll was okay down the stretch, going 2-2-0 with a .900 save percentage in his final four starts. With Ilya Samsonov likely to get the nod Wednesday in Tampa Bay, Woll will finish the year 12-11-1 with a .907 save percentage and a 2.94 GAA.

Stolarz stopped 24 of 26 shots in Tuesday's 5-2 victory over the Maple Leafs.

After Toronto jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the first period, Stolarz rebounded to blank the Leafs over the final two frames while the Panthers rallied with five unanswered goals. The 30-year-old Stolarz has won back-to-back starts, allowing three goals on 52 shots in that span. He put together a solid campaign overall while backing up Sergei Bobrovsky, going 16-7-2 with a .925 save percentage and a 2.03 GAA.

Grubauer surrendered four goals on 24 shots in Tuesday's 4-3 loss to the Jets.

The Kraken hung around in this contest, but they weren't able to give Grubauer a lead to protect. He has won four of his last seven games, allowing a reasonable 17 tallies over that span. Grubauer is at 14-16-2 with a 2.85 GAA and an .899 save percentage through 36 appearances on the year. The Kraken end their season Thursday in Minnesota, but the team hasn't revealed which goalie will start that contest.

Ersson stopped 16 of 17 shots in Tuesday's 2-1 loss to the Capitals.

Ersson was solid Tuesday, holding Washington to an Alex Ovechkin goal in the first period. However, with the Flyers needing a regulation win to stay alive in the playoff hunt, Ersson went to the bench with the score tied 1-1 in the third period, allowing T.J. Oshie to collect the game-winner in an empty net. Although it was an inconsistent year for Ersson overall, he finished strong, going 2-1-0 while allowing just two goals on 62 shots over his final three outings. He'll finish the season 23-19-7 with an .890 save percentage and a 2.82 GAA.