NHL Player News

Saros will protect the home goal versus the Blue Jackets, Brooks Bratten of the Predators' official site reports.

Saros will predictably get the nod for Opening Night. The 30-year-old's numbers have regressed in each of the last two years, but he'll be looking to turn things around in 2025-26. Even if he doesn't fully bounce back, Saros should still get enough playing time to help fantasy managers.

Dobes is expected to start in Thursday's road clash against Detroit, per Arpon Basu of The Athletic.

Dobes is getting his first start of the season after Sam Montembeault stopped 22 of 25 shots en route to a 5-2 loss to Toronto on Wednesday. The 24-year-old Dobes had a 7-4-3 record, 2.74 GAA and .909 save percentage in 16 regular-season outings with Montreal last year. He's starting the campaign as Montreal's backup netminder, and Dobes has his work ahead of him in order to steal starts from Montembeault.

Soderblom will protect the road goal Thursday versus the Bruins, Scott Powers of The Athletic reports.

Soderblom will get his first start of the season in the Blackhawks' second game. The 26-year-old goalie is looking to build upon his 3.18 GAA and .898 save percentage, from 36 games last year, all of which were career-best marks. Soderblom will likely fill the backup role behind Spencer Knight, but it's possible this crease becomes a timeshare if neither goalie finds consistency.

Lyon will guard the home goal versus the Rangers on Thursday, Heather Engel of NHL.com reports.

Lyon is set to hold onto the No. 1 job in goal until Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (lower body) is healthy. Thursday will mark Lyon's debut with the Sabres after he signed a two-year deal at the start of free agency.

Korpisalo is set to start at home against Chicago on Thursday, per Belle Fraser of the Bruins' official site.

Korpisalo is getting his first start of the campaign after Jeremy Swayman turned aside 35 of 36 shots en route to a 3-1 win over Washington on Wednesday. Swayman is expected to get the bulk of the workload in net for the Bruins this year, which will likely leave Korpisalo with 20-30 opportunities to play between the pipes.

Oettinger will defend the road crease during Thursday's Opening Night matchup against Winnipeg, Owen Newkirk of DLLS Sports reports.

Oettinger has been stellar for Dallas over the past few years and remains firmly entrenched as the team's No. 1 goaltender for the 2025-26 campaign. He made 58 regular-season appearances last year, going 36-18-4 with a 2.59 GAA and .909 save percentage.

Dostal (lower body) will defend the road net in Anaheim's season opener against Seattle on Thursday, per Zach Cavanagh of The Sporting Tribune.

Dostal had a 23-23-7 record, 3.10 GAA and .903 save percentage in 54 appearances in 2024-25. He should get the bulk of the starts this year, especially after the Ducks dealt John Gibson over the summer. However, Anaheim isn't entering the campaign as a favorite to earn a playoff berth, and the quality of the team in front of him might limit Dostal's fantasy value this campaign.

Vejmelka was the first goaltender off the ice at morning skate, Cole Bagley of KSL Sports reports, and will get the Opening Night assignment in Colorado on Thursday.

Vejmelka took a huge step forward last season, posting a 26-22-8 mark with a 2.58 GAA and a .904 save percentage, far superior to 2023-24 when he went 13-19-2 with a 3.35 GAA and an .895 save percentage. The Avalanche won their first game of the season Tuesday, finding the back of the net on four occasions in a road win over Los Angeles.

Nedeljkovic will get the Opening Night assignment at home versus Vegas on Thursday, per Curtis Pashelka of The San Jose Mercury News.

Nedeljkovic played the last two seasons with Pittsburgh, posting a 14-15-5 record with a 3.12 GAA and an .894 save percentage across 38 regular-season appearances in 2024-25. He was dealt to San Jose in the offseason and his role in San Jose is likely as the backup to Yaroslav Askarov this season. The Golden Knights lost their opener Wednesday, falling 6-5 in a shootout to the Kings.

Daccord was the first goalie off during Thursday's morning skate, Mike Benton of the Kraken Audio Network reports, indicating that he'll draw the Opening Night start at home against the Ducks.

Daccord has made at least 50 regular-season appearances for the Kraken in each of the last two years, and he's poised to serve as Seattle's primary netminder once again during the 2025-26 campaign. Over 57 regular-season outings last year, he went 27-23-5 with a 2.75 GAA and .906 save percentage. He should have a relatively favorable matchup to begin the year, as the Ducks averaged just 2.65 goals last season, which was the third-worst mark in the NHL.