NHL Hockey Player News

The Sharks have won three straight, and four of their last five (4-1-0), and will turn to Nedeljkovic to tend the twine on Thursday against the Dallas Stars. The 29-year-old Nedeljkovic was solid in his most recent outing, saving 28 of 30 shots (.933 SV%) in a 3-2 overtime win over the Toronto Maple Leafs. He has been serviceable in a supporting role for the Sharks this season, posting a 2.50 GAA and .907 SV% in his last 13 games (5-7-1). The Sharks enter Thursday's contest as +169 home underdogs against a Stars team that defeated them 4-1 two weeks ago.

Bean has not played since suffering an injury on December 6th and will be sidelined for the foreseeable future after undergoing surgery. The 27-year-old Bean has two points (1G / 1A) and is averaging 15:57 time-on-ice in 16 games this season.

Othmann has only played one game with the Rangers this season and will draw back into the lineup for the first time since October 26th. He has 10 points (4G / 6A) in 19 games with the Hartford Wolf Pack.

The Rangers are amazingly coming off being shutout for the seventh time in 17 home games (4-10-3), but return to the road, where they have thrived this season (12-5-1). Shesterkin has allowed three or more goals in four straight games (1-2-1), posting a 3.30 GAA and .881 SV%, and hopes to return to the elite form that justified him becoming the highest-paid goalie in NHL history. The 29-year-old Shesterkin has a 2.55 GAA and .908 SV% in 27 games this season (13-11-3). The Rangers enter Thursday's contest as -131 road favorites against a Blue team that played last night, defeating the Winnipeg Jets 1-0.

Levshunov was a healthy scratch in Chicago's most recent game, resulting from a coach's decision after being late for a team meeting. He returns to the lineup on Thursday against the Montreal Canadiens. Strong play from Levshunov rewarded him with overtaking a role on Chicago's top powerplay unit, but he has cooled down lately. He has 14 points (1G / 13A) in 31 games this season, but has only one assist in his last seven games

After an uncharacteristically slow start to the season, with seven points (2G / 5A) in his first 14 games, Panarin has returned to his elite point-producing form in recent weeks, with 27 points (9G / 18A) in his last 21 games. Given the Rangers' struggles on home ice, Panarin has been especially productive on the road this season, including scoring 18 points (5G / 13A) in his last 10 road games. The Rangers have been running a five-forward top powerplay unit lately, but experimented with Scott Morrow on the point with Panarin absent from practice on Thursday.

Wolf was seemingly turning a corner, with a tremendous 1.45 GAA and .940 SV% in his last five games (4-1-0), his winningest stretch of the season, before allowing five goals on 25 shots (.800 SV%) in Tuesday's 6-3 loss to the San Jose Sharks. The 24-year-old Wolf has a 2.96 GAA and .896 SV% in 26 games this season (10-13-2). Still, the Flames enter Thursday's contest as -164 home favorites against a Seattle Kraken team that has failed to score more than three goals in 12 of their last 13 games (3-9-1).

Stuart Skinner struggled in his Penguins' debut, a 6-4 loss to his former team, the Edmonton Oilers, and as such, they will turn to Silovs on Thursday against the Ottawa Senators. Silovs has been inconsistent between the pipes for the Penguins this season, posting a 3.20 GAA and .890 SV% in 14 games (4-4-6). The 24-year-old Latvian goalie has lost six straight decisions (0-2-4) while posting a 3.35 GAA and .850 SV%. The Penguins enter Thursday's game as +146 road underdogs against a Senators team that has scored three or fewer goals in five of their last six games (2-4-0).

Boqvist has only played once in the last three weeks, but will return to the lineup on Friday against the Vancouver Canucks. The 25-year-old Boqvist is averaging 12:41 time-on-ice and has one assist in 11 games this season.

The Islanders fell to the Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday, with Sorokin allowing three unanswered goals on 21 shots (.857 SV%) in a 3-2 loss. Despite his most recent effort, Sorokin has been solid between the pipes for the Islanders, posting a 2.05 GAA and .930 SV% in his last 14 games (9-5-0). Sorokin and the Islanders will match up against a Vancouver Canucks team that has surprisingly outscored their opposition 5-1 in two games (2-0-0) since trading away their captain, Quinn Hughes.

Fabbri signed a PTO with the Charlotte Checkers (AHL) two weeks ago and immediately drew into the Blues' lineup after signing a one-year, two-way contract. The 29-year-old Fabbri has played well in his return to the NHL, including first-line deployment, and has scored two points (0G / 2A) in four games. Matt Luff will draw into the lineup as Fabbri's replacement.

Robby Fabbri will be a healthy scratch on Thursday against the New York Rangers, allowing Luff to re-enter the lineup. The 28-year-old Luff recently made his season debut and is averaging 9:35 time-on-ice, scoring one goal through four games this season.

Matthew Kessel will be a healthy scratch on Thursday against the New York Rangers, allowing Tucker to re-enter the lineup. The 25-year-old Tucker is averaging 13:09 time-on-ice and has five points (1G / 4A) in 30 games this season.

Tyler Tucker will return to the Blues' lineup on Thursday against the New York Rangers, resulting in Kessel being a healthy scratch. The 25-year-old Kessel is averaging 11:40 time-on-ice and has two goals in 18 games this season.

Joseph Woll played well in his return from a lower-body injury in Tuesday's 3-2 win over the Chicago Blackhawks, but the Maple Leafs seem to be easing the often-injured netminder back into action, turning to Hildeby on Thursday against the Washington Capitals. The 24-year-old Hildeby struggled in his most recent outing, allowing six goals on 32 shots (.813 SV%) in a 6-3 loss to the Edmonton Oilers. That said, the Swedish netminder had been excellent between the pipes, posting a 1.85 GAA and .933 SV% in 10 games (3-4-3) before his blip against the Oilers. The Maple Leafs enter the action on Thursday as +135 road underdogs against a Capitals team that has been outscored 10-1 in their last two games (0-2-0).

Minnesota has been firing on all cylinders lately, with outstanding goaltending and the recent acquisition of elite defenseman Quinn Hughes, and they have been catapulting up the Western Conference standings. The rookie Wallstedt leads the league with four shutouts and is coming off another terrific performance, saving 34 of 36 shots (.944 SV%) in a 3-2 win over the Ottawa Senators. He has a 1.95 GAA and .937 SV% in 12 games this season (9-1-2). Minnesota enters the action on Thursday as -115 road favorites against a Columbus Blue Jackets team that snapped a five-game losing skid (0-4-1) in Tuesday's 4-3 overtime win over the Anaheim Ducks.

Joel Hofer has outplayed Jordan Binnington lately and recorded his third shutout of the season last night in a 1-0 win over the Winnipeg Jets. That said, the Blue will turn to the veteran Binnington on the tail end of a back-to-back on Thursday against the New York Rangers. The 32-year-old Binnington is coming off an ugly 7-2 loss to the Nashville Predators, where he allowed six goals on 25 shots (.760 SV%). He has an ugly 3.49 GAA and .869 SV% in 21 games this season (7-8-5). The Blues enter Thursday's contest as +125 home underdogs against a Rangers team that is a solid 12-5-1 on the road this season.

Regula has been a regular in Edmonton's lineup lately and has recorded his first two points of the season (0G / 2A) in his last three games. The 25-year-old defenseman is averaging 15:16 time-on-ice through 20 games this season. Riley Stillman will draw into the lineup as Regula's replacement on the blueline.

Alec Regula (undisclosed) will not play on Thursday against the Boston Bruins, allowing Stillman to enter the lineup. The 27-year-old Stillman has 26 points (4G / 22A) in 163 career NHL games, but has primarily played in the AHL for the past three seasons.