NHL Player News

DeSmith is slated to start Friday's preseason game on the road against Minnesota, Robert Tiffin of NHL.com reports.

DeSmith made his preseason debut at home against the Blues on Monday and turned aside 30 of 31 shots in the victory. Jake Oettinger (lower body) won't be available for Friday's preseason finale, so DeSmith will defend the road crease while Remi Poirier serves as the backup. Head coach Glen Gulutzan downplayed the severity of Oettinger's injury Thursday, but DeSmith could see increased playing time if Oettinger faces any limitations to begin the regular season.

D'Aigle (undisclosed) was designated for non-roster injured reserve Thursday.

D'Aigle was never going to make the Penguins roster coming out of training camp given the organizational depth ahead of him. Once given the all-clear, the 19-year-old backstop will likely link up with either AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton or ECHL Florida.

Seeley was placed on waivers by Carolina on Thursday, Walt Ruff of the Hurricanes' official site reports.

After making his NHL debut during an appearance with the Islanders in the regular-season finale last year, Seeley signed a one-year, two-way contract with Carolina in late July. While he could join the NHL club if the Hurricanes deal with injuries at some point, the 24-year-old is slated to begin the 2026-27 regular season in the minors if he clears waivers.

Tolopilo will start Thursday's preseason game at home against the Oilers, Canucks play-by-play announcer Brendan Batchelor reports.

Tolopilo drew the start during Saturday's preseason opener and played the entire game despite allowing four goals on 30 shots. He'll tend the twine once again during the Canucks' penultimate preseason game, but head coach Manny Malhotra wouldn't commit to whether Tolopilo will play the full game against Edmonton.

Nedeljkovic is expected to start in Thursday's preseason home game against Anaheim.

Nedeljkovic had an 18-14-4 record, 2.87 GAA and .896 save percentage in 40 regular-season appearances with San Jose in 2025-26. Although Yaroslav Askarov is likely to enter the campaign as San Jose's No. 1 goaltender, Nedeljkovic is expected to get a significant chunk of the workload and might even be able to capture the top job if he outperforms Askarov early in the campaign.

Duchene will not play in Friday's preseason finale against the Wild, Stars TV host Brien Rea reports.

Duchene continues to deal with an undisclosed injury that has limited his ability to get on the ice during camp. While it sounds like the veteran center will start practicing soon, at this point, fantasy players may want to consider him questionable for the season opener versus St. Louis on Oct. 2.

Lorentz will be placed on waivers by the Maple Leafs on Thursday, per Chris Johnston.

After playing a sizable role for the Maple Leafs in the 2025-26 campaign, Lorentz is currently on his way to the AHL via the waiver wire. The 30-year-old center appeared in 71 regular-season games during the 2025-26 campaign, where he posted seven goals, 18 points, 70 shots on net, 154 hits and 48 blocked shots. While the Leafs would ideally like to retain his rights in the AHL, he has proven to be somewhat effective in a bottom-six role at the NHL level, so there's a chance he could be scooped up over the next 24 hours. If he clears waivers, he'll likely open the 2026-27 campaign with AHL Toronto.

Head coach Jim Hiller said Thursday that Paul (undisclosed) is considered day-to-day, David Alter of The Hockey News reports.

Paul exited Wednesday's preseason game against the Senators due to his injury, and Hiller initially downplayed the severity of the issue. However, Hiller said during his press availability Thursday that he can't say with certainty whether Paul will be available for Tuesday's Opening Night matchup against Montreal.

The Penguins announced Thursday that Kindel (lower body) is undergoing further testing and is considered week-to-week, Josh Yohe of The Athletic reports.

Kindel suffered a lower-body injury during Monday's preseason game against the Sabres and was initially labeled as day-to-day. However, the team is seeking out further information about the injury, which now seems as though it could impact his availability for Opening Night against the Flyers on Wednesday. If Kindel is healthy to begin the regular season, he's expected to handle a third-line role for the Penguins.

Demidov (foot) was deemed day-to-day, but is not expected to miss the start of the regular season, per Stu Cowan of The Montreal Gazette.

While Demidov was originally planning to resume skating Thursday, he took a second therapy day to fully heal up after taking a shot off the foot in Monday's preseason game.The 20-year-old right winger is expected to be a large part of Montreal's future plans after signing an eight-year, $73 million contract extension back in July. He showcased his bundle of potential during the 2025-26 campaign, where he posted 19 goals, 62 points and 127 shots on net across 82 regular-season outings. Barring any setbacks, Demidov will likely make an impact in all fantasy formats to open the 2026-27 campaign.