NHL Player News

The Lightning believe that Vasilevskiy (undisclosed) is in line to play in Saturday's preseason finale against the Panthers, Erik Erlendsson of LightningInsider.com reports.

Vasilevskiy has already been ruled out for Thursday's exhibition matchup against the Panthers, but he could have a chance for a final appearance before the start of the regular season. If he's healthy for the start of the 2025-26 campaign, Vasilevskiy remains in line to serve as the Lightning's No. 1 netminder.

Shesterkin is slated to start Saturday's preseason game on the road against Boston, Colin Stephenson of Newsday reports.

Shesterkin made 61 regular-season appearances last year and went 27-29-5 with a 2.86 GAA and .905 save percentage. He's set to enter the 2025-26 regular season as the Rangers' No. 1 netminder once again, and he'll have a final chance for a tune-up during Saturday's preseason finale.

Quick will patrol the home crease during Thursday's preseason game against the Devils, Colin Stephenson of Newsday reports.

Quick is set to play the full game Thursday, while Igor Shesterkin will start and play the full matchup during Saturday's preseason finale against Boston. Quick made 24 regular-season appearances last year and went 11-7-2 with a 3.17 GAA and .893 save percentage. He'll likely continue to serve as Igor Shesterkin's backup in 2025-26.

Merilainen will defend the road crease during Thursday's preseason game against the Blues, TSN 1200 Ottawa reports.

Merilainen is slated to play the full game in what will likely be his final tune-up ahead of the regular season. Once the 2025-26 campaign begins, Merilainen is expected to serve as Linus Ullmark's backup.

Stolarz will defend the home crease during Thursday's preseason game against the Red Wings, Luke Fox of Sportsnet reports.

Stolarz also started Saturday's preseason matchup against Montreal, but he's expected to play the full game Thursday in what will likely be his final appearance before the start of the regular season. He made 34 regular-season appearances last year and went 21-8-3 with a 2.14 GAA and .926 save percentage while splitting playing time with Joseph Woll (personal). If Woll remains away from the team to begin the 2025-26 campaign, Stolarz will likely see an uptick in playing time.

Vladar is expected to start Saturday's preseason game at home against the Devils, Charlie O'Connor of PHLY Sports reports.

Samuel Ersson is slated to play the full game during Thursday's exhibition matchup against the Islanders, but head coach Rick Tocchet said that Vladar is slated to handle goaltending duties for the entirety of Saturday's preseason finale. Vladar made 30 regular-season appearances for the Flames last year and went 12-11-6 with a 2.80 GAA and .898 save percentage, and he should serve as the No. 2 netminder in Philadelphia to begin the 2025-26 campaign after signing with the Flyers during the offseason.

Lindgren will defend the home crease during Thursday's preseason game against the Bruins, Sammi Silber of The Hockey News reports.

Lindgren will make his second start of the preseason during Thursday's matchup. He also started in Sunday's exhibition matchup against New Jersey and turned aside 20 of 22 shots in the shootout victory. Once the regular season gets underway, Lindgren will likely enter a timeshare with Logan Thompson for goaltending duties.

Ersson will serve as the starting netminder for Thursday's preseason game at home against the Islanders, Jordan Hall of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports.

In addition to drawing the start Thursday, Ersson is expected to play the full game against the Islanders. The 25-year-old will likely begin the campaign as the Flyers' No. 1 netminder once again, but he had a shaky performance last year, going 22-17-5 with a 3.14 GAA and .883 save percentage over 47 regular-season appearances.

Halverson is expected to start Thursday's preseason game at home against the Panthers, Erik Erlendsson of LightningInsider.com reports.

It's not yet clear whether Halverson will play the whole game Thursday, but this could be his final opportunity to tend the twine for the Lightning before the regular season gets underway. The 29-year-old has made just two regular-season appearances in the NHL and will likely spend the bulk of the 2025-26 campaign with AHL Syracuse.

Sorokin is expected to start on the road during Thursday's preseason game against Philadelphia, Stefen Rosner of NHL.com reports.

Sorokin will get the nod during the Islanders' preseason finale, and he previously indicated that he hoped to play in two full games ahead of the regular season, so it wouldn't be surprising to see him stay in net for the entirety of the matchup. The 30-year-old should serve as the Islanders' No. 1 netminder once the regular season begins after he went 30-24-6 with a 2.71 GAA and .907 save percentage over 61 regular-season appearances last year.