NHL Player News

Hildeby is expected to serve as the Lightning's No. 2 goaltender to begin the 2026-27 campaign, Benjamin Pierce of the Lightning's official site reports.

Tampa Bay acquired Hildeby from the Maple Leafs in early July. He's slated to be Andrei Vasilevskiy's primary backup, as the Lightning seek a trade for Jonas Johansson. Hildeby posted a 5-7-4 record with a 2.85 GAA and a .912 save percentage in 20 regular-season games with Toronto last year.

Vasilevskiy doesn't believe the shortened training camp will impact his readiness for the 2026-27 campaign, Eduardo A. Encina of the Tampa Bay Times reports Wednesday.

The NHL has reduced the number of preseason games each team plays to four to accommodate the increase in regular-season tilts from 82 to 84. The Lightning will naturally lean heavily on Vasilevskiy as they always do when he's healthy, and it wouldn't be surprising to see him reach 60 regular-season starts for the fifth time in his career. He fell just short of that mark in the 2025-26 regular season, posting a 39-15-4 record, 2.31 GAA and .911 save percentage in 58 appearances.

Blackwood arrived at training camp in the best shape of his life, according to head coach Jared Bednar, and will have the chance to earn the starting job, Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette reports Wednesday.

When asked if he planned to rotate his goaltenders again, Bednar told reporters they'd enter the season with a clean slate. The 29-year-old Blackwood played in only 38 regular-season tilts, but he posted a solid 23-10-2 record with a 2.50 GAA and three shutouts. The door appears to be open for Blackwood to earn the No. 1 job back from Scott Wedgewood this year, and in an ideal scenario, Bednar seems to be looking for that result.

Miner is dealing with an undisclosed injury, Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette reports Wednesday.

While the details of Miner's injury are unclear, it could cost him some preseason games. It's reasonable to believe the Avalanche won't push the matter for the sake of training camp, so even a minor injury he might have otherwise played through could keep him limited for now. The 25-year-old netminder is projected to start 2026-27 in the minors. Still, the Avalanche would likely call him up if Scott Wedgewood or Mackenzie Blackwood are unavailable at any stage of the campaign.

Talbot signed a one-year, $950,000 contract with Columbus on Monday, according to PuckPedia.

Talbot could earn another $700,000 if he meets performance bonuses for games played in the 2026-27 campaign. He posted a 12-9-6 record with a 3.19 GAA and an .883 save percentage over 34 regular-season appearances for Detroit in 2025-26. Due to the absence of Elvis Merzlikins (shoulder), Talbot could begin the upcoming campaign as Jet Greaves' backup.

Ingram announced his retirement from professional hockey Friday on his personal Instagram account.

Ingram suited up in 134 regular-season games, going 55-54-18 with a 3.01 GAA and a .901 save percentage over parts of five NHL seasons. He played for Nashville, Arizona, Utah and Edmonton. Ingram also played in nine playoff contests. Per Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, Ingram will go back to school to study psychology after battling with obsessive-compulsive disorder and depression during his playing career.

Demko (hip) still doesn't have a timeline for his return, per Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK on Tuesday.

Demko underwent hip surgery shortly after leaving a game against Toronto on Jan. 10, and he hasn't played since. He posted a record of 8-10-1 with one shutout, a 2.90 GAA and an .895 save percentage across 20 appearances in the 2025-26 regular season. If Demko isn't ready to start the 2026-27 campaign, Kevin Lankinen will likely get another crack at being the Canucks' No. 1 netminder.

Gustavsson is still recovering from his offseason hip surgery ahead of training camp, Michael Russo of The Athletic reports Friday.

While Gustavsson's teammates have moved past their injuries from late in the 2025-26 campaign, the netminder is still recovering from the procedure he underwent early in the offseason. The 28-year-old's recovery timetable isn't yet clear, and whether he'll be available for preseason action or the start of the regular season remains to be seen. Gustavsson lost out on playing time to Jesper Wallstedt late in the 2025-26 season, and Wallstedt will presumably have increased opportunities to earn the No. 1 goaltending job if Gustavsson is sidelined during camp, while Calvin Pickard will be available as a depth option.

Tokarski will serve in a scouting role for the Hurricanes, the team announced Friday.

Tokarski played for six teams over 10 NHL seasons, logging 86 games with a 27-36-12 record, a .902 save percentage, a 3.08 GAA, and three shutouts. The backstop's only postseason appearances came during the 2013-14 campaign, in which he logged five games for the Habs.

Vanecek could begin the 2026-27 campaign as the No. 3 goaltending option for the Islanders, Cory Wright of the Islanders' official site reports.

Vanecek signed a one-year, $1 million contract with the Islanders in early January and will likely have the opportunity to compete for a backup role during camp. However, Semyon Varlamov seems to be back to full health after missing all of last season, and he appears to be the favorite for the No. 2 job behind Ilya Sorokin. Vanecek made 22 regular-season appearances for the Mammoth last year, and he went 5-13-3 with a 2.94 GAA and .883 save percentage.