NHL Player News

Oettinger stopped 28 shots in Thursday's 5-1 win over the Predators.

Steven Stamkos opened the scoring early in the second period by sneaking a sharp-angle shot past Oettinger, but the 26-year-old netminder shut the door the rest of the way. His win streak stands at six, a stretch in which Oettinger has delivered a stellar 1.66 GAA and .947 save percentage as the Stars try to catch the Jets for the top seed in the Western Conference.

Annunen made 22 saves in Thursday's 5-1 loss to Dallas.

After a scoreless first period, Steven Stamkos potted the game's first goal to give Nashville a lead early in the second, but things fell apart for the Predators in the final frame. Annunen hasn't gotten into the win column since March 8, going 0-5-1 over his last seven outings with a 2.73 GAA and .891 save percentage, but with Nashville eliminated from the playoff picture, the team will give the 25-year-old netminder a longer look over the remainder of the schedule.

Tarasov turned aside all four shots he faced after replacing Elvis Merzlikins early in the third period of Thursday's 7-3 loss to the Avalanche.

The 26-year-old continues to be used sparingly, but that could be about to change. Tarasov hasn't given up more than three goals in an appearance since Jan. 23, posting a 2.50 GAA and .913 save percentage over his last six outings. Meanwhile, Merzlikins has a ghastly 5.11 GAA over his last five starts. With the Blue Jackets' playoff chances hanging by a thread, coach Dean Evason might have little choice but to give Tarasov a bigger workload.

Merzlikins gave up seven goals on 28 shots before being replaced by Daniil Tarasov early in the third period of Thursday's 7-3 loss to Colorado.

The Blue Jackets actually took a 3-2 lead when Boone Jenner scored midway through the second period, but the game was all Avs after that, with Merzlikins getting beaten on a number of long-range attempts before he got the hook. The 30-year-old netminder saw his three-start winning streak snapped, but he was hardly playing at an elite level -- Merzlikins has allowed at least three goals in five straight outings, stumbling to a brutal 5.11 GAA and .843 save percentage during that stretch.

Blackwood made 27 saves in Thursday's 7-3 win over the Blue Jackets.

The Avs actually fell behind 3-2 just before the eight-minute mark of the second period, but Blackwood shut the door the rest of the way while his offense took over. The 28-year-old netminder sports a 6-2-1 record since the beginning of March with a 2.31 GAA and .911 save percentage, but with Colorado unlikely to improve its playoff seeding, Blackwood could get a couple extra days off over the team's final five games of the regular season.

Romanov stopped 35 of 38 shots in Thursday's 3-2 loss to the Oilers.

While Romanov took a third straight loss, this was a pretty good showing against a tough, albeit injury-riddled, opponent. Romanov is now 0-3-0 with 16 goals allowed over four appearances this season. Alexandar Georgiev (upper body) is day-to-day, so the Sharks have temporarily been forced to go with Romanov and Gabriel Carriere as their goalie duo, as Yaroslav Askarov is just coming back from a lower-body injury with AHL San Jose. The Sharks have a couple of decent matchups ahead -- Saturday versus the Kraken and Monday versus the Flames -- but Romanov is a clear fade behind an inexperienced and often leaky defense.

Pickard stopped 27 of 29 shots in Thursday's 3-2 win over the Sharks.

The Oilers never had much breathing room in the contest, but Pickard's perfect third period helped them get the win. The 32-year-old reached the 20-win mark for the first time in his career, in part helped by Stuart Skinner's (head) recent absence. Pickard has allowed just six goals during his three-game winning streak and is now 20-8-1 with a 2.66 GAA and a .901 save percentage over 32 outings this season. He'll likely start again Saturday in a tough road matchup versus the Kings. It's a game that could have big implications on which of the two teams has home-ice advantage -- they're on a collision course to meet for the fourth straight postseason.

Comrie posted a 26-save shutout in Thursday's 4-0 win over the Golden Knights.

Comrie gave Connor Hellebuyck a breather in a tough locale and then proceeded to steal the show. This was the fourth shutout of Comrie's career, two of which have come this season as he continues to play well in the backup role for the Jets. The 29-year-old is now 9-9-1 with a 2.36 GAA and a .914 save percentage over 19 appearances, which matches his career high. He'll likely get another start or two over the Jets' final six regular-season games to help keep Hellebuyck fresh for the playoffs. He needs one more appearance and two more wins to set career highs in each category.

Schmid stopped two shots in the third period of Thursday's 4-0 loss to the Jets after he relieved Adin Hill.

This was likely a move to get Schmid some action ahead of the Golden Knights' back-to-back over the weekend, which would indicate Ilya Samsonov (undisclosed) probably won't be ready to return. The Jets were able to put away an empty-netter after Schmid was pulled for an extra attacker, but he didn't yield a goal in his second appearance of the season. The back-to-back includes stops in Calgary on Saturday and Vancouver on Sunday, so look for Hill and Schmid to split those starts.

Montembeault made 18 saves in a 4-1 win over Boston on Thursday.

Montembeault has been one of the top contributors for the Canadiens this season. He ranks ninth in the NHL with 28 wins, and his 22.93 GSAx (goals saved above expected) is elite -- he's also ninth in the NHL in that category. Montembeault has won three straight games, and most importantly, he has Montreal in a playoff spot. The team is two points ahead of the Rangers for the second wild-card spot.