NHL Player News

Villalta was assigned to AHL Tucson on Wednesday.

Villalta spent the past few weeks in the NHL, but he made just one appearance for Utah, turning aside 28 of 31 shots (.903 save percentage) en route to a win over Nashville on Monday. However, he'll head back to the minors now that Utah's regular season is over.

Kochetkov is expected to start on the road against Montreal on Wednesday, per Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports.

Kochetkov has surrendered at least three goals in each of his past six appearances, going 2-4-0 with a 4.06 GAA and an .830 save percentage over that stretch. He's 27-15-3 with a 2.59 GAA and an .897 save percentage in 46 outings this season. The Canadiens, who will be looking to earn at least one point Wednesday to secure their postseason berth, rank 17th in goals per game with 2.95.

Knight saved 34 of 37 shots on goal in Tuesday's 4-3 overtime win over the Senators.

Knight was excellent Tuesday as he allowed just one goal at even strength early in the first period. After the Senators scored two power-play goals in the second period, Knight tended a clean final frame before the Blackhawks would take the win early in the extra period. Overall, the 23-year-old netminder wraps up the season with a 17-16-3 record, a 2.72 GAA and a .902 save percentage across 38 appearances. Knight posted 72 saves across his last two starts. He has one year left in his current contract, making him the safe bet to be the Opening Night starter for Chicago next season.

Forsberg saved 12 of 16 shots on goal in Tuesday's 4-3 overtime loss to the Blackhawks.

While he kept Chicago off the scoresheet for the rest of regulation after the 2:24 mark in the second period, the Ottawa netminder allowed the game-winning tally 48 seconds into overtime. The 32-year-old Forsberg will probably wrap up the regular season with an 11-12-3 record, a 3.72 GAA and a .901 save percentage in 30 appearances. Even though Forsberg ended with a tough performance, he improved his GAA and save percentage by a sizable margin in 2024-25 from his previous campaign.

Hellebuyck was the first goalie off during Wednesday's morning skate, Mitchell Clinton of the Jets' official site reports, indicating that he'll draw the home start against the Ducks.

Hellebuyck has picked up wins in each of his last three starts, posting a 1.62 GAA and .931 save percentage during that time, a span that includes a shutout win over Dallas last Thursday. He made a home start against the Ducks on Jan. 2 and turned aside 20 of 24 shots (.833 save percentage) in an overtime loss.

Daws was recalled from AHL Utica on Wednesday.

The Devils have already clinched a spot in the postseason, so Daws will join the NHL club ahead of the regular-season finale at home against the Red Wings on Wednesday. The Devils haven't yet announced a starter for Wednesday's matchup, but it wouldn't be surprising to see Daws tend the twine if Jacob Markstrom and Jake Allen need some rest ahead of the playoffs. Daws will presumably head back to the minors before postseason play begins.

Montembeault will get the starting nod at home versus Carolina on Wednesday, Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports reports.

Montembeault has dropped two straight games, and he posted a 0-1-1 record and 3.37 GAA during that time. The 28-year-old backstop has already reached the 30-win mark this year but will need to secure his team at least a point if the Habs are going to lock themselves into the final wild-card spot.

Head coach Dean Evason said that Merzlikins (upper body) skated Wednesday but won't be available for Thursday's regular-season finale against the Islanders, Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers reports.

Although the Blue Jackets could be competing in a win-and-in situation during Thursday's matchup, Merzlikins will be unavailable for a fifth consecutive game due to his upper-body injury. Jet Greaves has been dominant in Merzlikins' absence, and he'll likely get the starting nod against the Islanders at home.

Ersson made 31 saves in Tuesday's 3-0 loss to the Blue Jackets.

The 25-year-old goalie got very little help from his teammates, and after Ersson kept Columbus off the board in the first period he couldn't do much to stop a Dante Fabbro blast from the top of the faceoff circle early in the second. Ersson has given up at least three goals in six straight starts, and if he's not between the pipes for Philly's regular-season finale Thursday against the Sabres, he'll close the books on the 2024-25 campaign with a 22-17-5 record, 3.14 GAA and .883 save percentage.

Greaves turned aside all 29 shots he faced in Tuesday's 3-0 win over the Flyers.

The 24-year-old netminder has become a folk hero in Columbus over the last week, winning four straight starts since being recalled from AHL Cleveland and allowing a total of only three goals on 123 shots, picking up two shutouts along the way. Greaves' hot streak has improbably kept the Blue Jackets alive in the playoff race, and they now need a regulation win in their regular-season finale Thursday against the Islanders -- plus a regulation loss by the Canadiens on Wednesday against the Hurricanes -- to claim the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. Regardless of the availability of Elvis Merzlikins (upper body), Greaves seems certain to get the start Thursday if the game still means something for Columbus.