NHL Player News

Merilainen stopped 18 of 21 shots in Thursday's 5-3 win over the Bruins.

Merilainen posted an .857 save percentage, and while that was a step in the wrong direction compared to his recent two outings, it was enough to earn the win thanks to the support provided by the offense. Merilainen has won each of his last three starts, going 3-0-0 with a 2.33 GAA and a .912 save percentage over that span.

Talbot picked up the win in Thursday's 6-3 victory over the Ducks, turning aside 10 of 11 shots after replacing John Gibson (upper body) to begin the third period.

Detroit took a 3-2 lead into the final frame, but it was Alex DeBrincat's power-play tally early in the third that proved to be the game-winner, giving Talbot the W. The 38-year-old netminder has won three of his last four decisions while working in a strict rotation with Gibson, but the latter's injury could push Talbot into a full starter's workload. On the season, Talbot has gone 6-2-0 in nine outings with a 2.92 GAA and .892 save percentage.

Dostal stopped 27 of 32 shots in Thursday's 6-3 loss to the Red Wings, with Detroit's final goal getting scored into an empty net.

After a scoreless first period, the Wings' offense got rolling with a Moritz Seider power-play tally early in the second, and Dostal wasn't able to stem the tide. The 25-year-old netminder has lost back-to-back starts on the heels of a six-game win streak, and on the season, Dostal sports an 8-5-1 record in 14 outings with a 2.86 GAA and .903 save percentage.

Silovs will get the starting nod in Friday's Global Series matchup with Nashville, Michelle Crechiolo of the Penguins' official site reports.

Silovs has been struggling of late, going 1-1-3 in his last five outings while posting a .914 save percentage. With Tristan Jarry (lower body) on the shelf, it's possible Silovs sees an uptick in starts, though youngster Sergei Murashov is considered the goalie of the future for Pittsburgh and could get the nod versus Nashville on Sunday.

Saros was the first goalie to leave the ice, Penguins play-by-play announcer Josh Getzoff reports, indicating he'll be in goal for Friday's Global Series clash with Pittsburgh.

Saros is currently stuck in a three-game losing streak in which he has posted an 0-2-1 record and 4.42 GAA. Despite sporting just a 5-6-3 record and a career-worst 3.10 GAA in 14 outings, the 30-year-old Finn remains the preferred option in the crease for the Preds ahead of Justus Annunen.

Schmid allowed four goals on 24 shots in Thursday's 4-3 overtime loss to the Islanders.

Schmid has lost two straight games past regulation time, allowing eight goals on 53 shots in that span. The 25-year-old is now at a 6-1-2 record with a 2.67 GAA and an .894 save percentage through nine appearances. Schmid will need to be sharper than he has been lately to get back in the win column. He looks set to continue sharing the crease with Carl Lindbom until Adin Hill (lower body) gets healthy. If the Golden Knights continue rotating goalies, Lindbom would play Saturday in St. Louis while Schmid would get the second half of a back-to-back Sunday in Minnesota.

Sorokin stopped 26 of 29 shots in Thursday's 4-3 overtime win over the Golden Knights.

Things looked grim when the Islanders took a penalty in overtime, but Jean-Gabriel Pageau turned it around with a faceoff win into a shorthanded rush chance, which he buried for the game-winning goal. This was Sorokin's third straight win, and he's allowed just five goals on 97 shots in that span. For the season, the 30-year-old netminder is up to 6-4-2 with a 2.90 GAA and an .898 save percentage over 12 starts, but he's clearly trending up. David Rittich will start Friday in Utah, but Sorokin is likely to get the nod for Sunday's game in Colorado, which will be arguably his biggest test yet this season.

Hellebuyck stopped 13 of 17 shots in Thursday's 5-3 loss to the Kraken. The fifth goal was an empty-netter.

The four goals against were the most Hellebuyck has allowed since he yielded five on Opening Night versus the Stars. The 17 shots against also matched a season low, making this an all-around bad performance for the American netminder. Those are usually pretty rare for him -- Hellebuyck stands at 7-6-0 with a 2.49 GAA and a .914 save percentage over 13 starts. The Jets wrap up their road trip in Calgary on Saturday.

Grubauer stopped 23 of 26 shots in Thursday's 5-3 win over the Jets.

Grubauer has won both of his starts since Joey Daccord (upper body) landed on injured reserve. The 33-year-old Grubauer has still given up six goals on 45 shots in those two outings, which is far from encouraging work, but the wins have been enough to see him split the crease with Matt Murray. Through four appearances, Grubauer is 2-0-1 with nine goals allowed on 74 shots. The Kraken will host a Sharks team Saturday that is coming off a 2-0 loss to the Flames.

Luukkonen allowed three goals on 30 shots in relief of Alex Lyon in Thursday's 6-3 loss to the Avalanche.

A report earlier in the day had Luukkonen as the starter, but fantasy managers who didn't get him out of their lineups still got an appearance from the Finnish netminder. Lyon lasted just 6:10 into the game before he was pulled for performance reasons, and Luukkonen did a fair job in relief. However, Luukkonen did end up with the loss, falling to 1-2-1 on the year while allowing a total of 12 goals on 103 shots. The Sabres' crease is up for grabs with Luukkonen, Lyon and Colten Ellis all in contention for starts, though wins may remains rare for this struggling team.