NHL Player News

Kochetkov has been recalled from his conditioning loan by the Hurricanes from AHL Chicago on Sunday, according to the official AHL transaction log.

Kochetkov has yet to appear in a game this season at the NHL level, as he's been dealing with a lower-body injury since the start of the year. The 26-year-old played well in his lone start with AHL Chicago, making 22 saves on 23 shots on goal in a victory. He will now return to the NHL, presumably as the backup to Frederik Andersen.

Kolosov will get the start in net Sunday against the Flames, Jordan Hall of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports.

Kolosov made his first appearance of the season in Saturday's 5-2 loss to the Maple Leafs, playing the majority of the third period and stopping all seven shots he faced in relief of Dan Vladar. The 23-year-old Kolosov will now get the chance to start for the first time this season against the struggling Flames, who have the NHL's worst offense at 2.15 goals per game.

Sorokin will get the start for Tuesday's game against the Bruins, Stefen Rosner of NHL.com reports.

Sorokin is backing up David Rittich against the Blue Jackets on Sunday, but Islanders head coach Patrick Roy volunteered that Sorokin would be the one between the pipes against the Bruins on Tuesday. The 30-year-old has not been his usual self so far this season, posting just a 3-4-1 record, a 3.40 GAA and an .877 save percentage. The Bruins have been off since Saturday's 2-1 win over the Hurricanes.

Rittich will get the start in net for Sunday's game against the Blue Jackets, Stefen Rosner of NHL.com reports.

The Islanders have only had one back-to-back so far this season, so the team has had to be creative in finding ways to get Rittich work. He'll be starting for the fourth time this season Sunday. The 33-year-old will look to rebound from his worst start of the year, in which Rittich surrendered six goals on 34 shots against the Hurricanes. The Blue Jackets come in on a four-game winning streak.

Vejmelka will patrol the home crease against Tampa Bay on Sunday.

Vejmelka's six-game winning streak ended in Tuesday's 6-3 loss to Edmonton. He surrendered six goals on 23 shots in the defeat, with the final tally being an empty-netter. Vejmelka has a 6-2-0 record this season while stopping 180 of the 202 shots he has faced. Tampa Bay ranks 21st in the league with 2.82 goals per game this campaign.

Merzlikins will be the starting goaltender for Sunday's game against the Islanders, Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site reports.

It will be the 250th game of Merzlikins' career Sunday night. The 31-year-old is 98-101-35 with a 3.19 GAA and a .902 save percentage in his career. This season, he is outpacing those marks with a 4-1-0 record, 2.97 GAA and .915 save percentage. He next faces an Islanders team that's bringing up the rear in the Metropolitan Division standings.

Johansson will guard the road goal against Utah on Sunday, per Lightning reporter Gabby Shirley.

Johansson is coming off a 37-save performance in a 4-3 win over Anaheim on Oct. 25. He has a 2-1-0 record this season while permitting only nine goals on 104 shots. Utah is tied for fourth in the league with 3.64 goals per game this campaign.

Talbot will defend the road net against the Sharks on Sunday, Max Bultman of The Athletic reports.

Talbot is coming off a 35-save performance in Thursday's 4-3 shootout win over the Kings. He has a 4-1-0 record through six appearances this season while allowing 16 goals on 157 shots. San Jose is tied with Detroit for 14th in the league with 3.33 goals per game this campaign.

Wolf will get the start for Sunday's game against the Flyers, Derek Wills of Sportsnet 960 The Fan reports.

It was an ugly start for Wolf his last time out; he allowed three goals in the first period on 11 shots before getting the hook in a 4-2 loss to the Devils. That outing was emblematic of the season that the Flames' young netminder has had. The 24-year-old has a 2-8-1 record, a 3.62 GAA and an .881 save percentage. He'll look to rebound against a Flyers team ranked 24th in the league with 2.77 goals per game.

Shepard was assigned to AHL Belleville on Sunday.

The Senators recalled Leevi Merilainen from the minors in a corresponding move. Shepard has appeared in two games this season as Ottawa's backup goalie, including Saturday's 4-3 overtime loss to Montreal, but he hasn't had any NHL action yet.