NHL Player News

Wedgewood stopped 21 of 23 shots in Friday's 4-2 win over the Golden Knights.

Wedgewood delivered a bounce-back performance Friday against a struggling Golden Knights team that has lost three of its last four contests. Wedgewood was beaten twice in the final period, but the Avalanche provided him with enough support to help the 33-year-old earn his seventh win of the season. This was also the first time since Oct. 18 that Wedgewood didn't allow three or more goals.

Markstrom signed a two-year, $12 million contract extension with the Devils on Friday.

Markstrom will pull in the same salary as he has had since the 2020-21 campaign on this new deal. The 35-year-old netminder will also continue to share the crease with Jake Allen for the next two seasons. Markstrom is off to a rough start in 2025-26, going 2-2-0 with a 5.13 GAA and an .830 save percentage over four appearances. However, he's an experienced starter and should get himself on track eventually.

Kochetkov was sent to AHL Chicago on a conditioning assignment Friday.

The Hurricanes activated Kochetkov from injured reserve earlier in the day, but they've decided he needs to get up to game speed in the minors. This likely means Frederik Andersen and Brandon Bussi will be the goalie tandem at the NHL level for a little longer. Expect Kochetkov to miss Saturday's game versus the Bruins at a minimum, though the team did not reveal how long his assignment will be.

Blackwood is slated to start in San Jose on Saturday, per Conor McGahey of Altitude TV on Friday.

Scott Wedgewood is expected to start in Vegas on Friday, so it makes sense for Blackwood to handle the second half of the back-to-back. The 28-year-old Blackwood hasn't played between the pipes for Colorado yet this season because of a lower-body injury, but he served as the backup goaltender for Tuesday's 8-4 win over New Jersey and is set to be the understudy again Friday. Blackwood had a 28-21-6 record, 2.55 GAA and .912 save percentage in 56 regular-season appearances between San Jose and Colorado last year. He did well when facing his former team in 2024-25, posting a 2-0-0 record, 2.51 GAA and .926 save percentage in his two starts against the Sharks.

Wedgewood is expected to start on the road against Vegas on Friday, per Jesse Granger of The Athletic.

Wedgewood will try to rebound after allowing at least three goals in each of his past four appearances. He has a 1-1-1 record, 4.70 GAA and .839 save percentage in that span. Vegas is far from an ideal assignment for a goaltender looking to bounce back. The Golden Knights are 6-1-3 and rank fourth in the league in goals per game with 3.70.

Lindbom will defend the home crease against the Avalanche on Friday, Jesse Granger of The Athletic reports.

Lindbom performed relatively well in his NHL debut in Tampa on Sunday, turning aside 26 of 28 shots (.929 save percentage) in the 2-1 overtime loss. He'll draw the Nevada Day start for Vegas on Friday but will face a tough test in his first action at T-Mobile Arena, as the Avalanche are tied for second in the NHL with 3.73 goals per game to begin the season.

Dostal will start Friday's home game against the Red Wings, Zach Cavanagh of The Sporting Tribune reports.

Dostal has had a solid start to the season, going 3-3-1 with a 2.84 GAA and .906 save percentage over seven appearances, and he'll draw a third consecutive starting nod Friday. The Red Wings have registered 3.45 goals per game to begin the year, which is tied for 10th in the NHL.

Hellebuyck stopped 21 of 24 shots in Thursday's 6-3 win over the Blackhawks.

Hellebuyck has won his last two starts despite allowing three goals each time, as the offense has provided him enough support. Hellebuyck remains a strong choice in all formats, but his recent outings haven't been the best -- at least for his lofty standards. He's posted a 3.00 GAA with a .901 save percentage while going 2-1-0 over his last three starts.

Knight stopped 26 of 32 shots in Thursday's 6-3 loss to the Jets.

Knight gave up a season-worst six goals in this loss. Although one bad outing won't define what he's done this season, it's worth noting that Knight might be trending in the wrong direction after posting a save percentage below .900 in his last two starts.

Kochetkov (lower body) was activated off injured reserve Friday.

Kochetkov has not played this season, as the Hurricanes have been relying on Frederik Andersen and Brandon Bussi for the first month of the campaign. Expect Bussi to be sent to the minors in the near future due to the eventual return of Kochetkov. Kochetkov could start as early as Saturday in Boston, but with the Hurricanes playing four games next week, including three games in four nights, look for Kochetkov to play at least twice over nine nights. Carolina placed K'Andre Miller (lower body) on injured reserve in a related transaction.