Knyzhov was a healthy scratch for the Sharks' season-opening loss to the Golden Knights but he will replace Henry Thrun in the lineup vs. Colorado. Knyzhov had one goal and no assists in 12 games with the Sharks last season.
The Oilers had to play a man short in their first game, so they waived Niemelainen to make room for Adam Erne to suit up as their 12th forward. Niemelainen spent most of the 2022-23 in the AHL, where he had seven points (2G / 5A) in 30 games with Bakersfield (AHL).
Desharnais had five PIMS and one shot on goal in the Oilers season opening loss in Vancouver. Desharnais will be scratched Saturday to make room for Mattias Ekholm (hip) to make his season debut.
Erne signed with the Oilers at the end of training camp and will make his debut on Saturday. Erne spent the last four seasons in Detroit and had 18 points (8G / 10A) in 61 games in 2022-23. He'll skat eon the fourth line with Derek Ryan and Mattias Janmark.
Ekholm missed the Oilers' season opener with a hip injury but is expected to play Saturday vs. the Canucks. Ekholm will help the Oilers blueline, which yielded eight goals on Wednesday. After joining the Oilers last season, Ekholm had 14 points (4G / 10A) and a remarkable plus-28 in 21 games.
Aston-Reese was recently signed and started the season in Grand Rapids, where he was held off the scoresheet in his debut. He was recalled ahead of Saturday's game with Robby Fabbri out, but he is not expected to play vs. Tampa Bay.
Granlund suffered a lower-body injury in the Sharks' season opener on Thursday and landed on IR on Saturday. The move to IR opened up a roster spot for the Sharks to recall Jacob Peterson, who will make his season debut Saturday vs. the Avalanche.
Peterson made a big impact with the Sharks at the end of last season, posting eight points (2G / 6A) in 11 games. He started the year in the AHL, posting one assist in his first game. He'll replace Mikael Granlund (IR) in the lineup on Saturday, as the fourth-line centre.
Cam Talbot started the Kings' season opener but they will turn to Copley in their second game on Saturday. Copley enjoyed success in 2022-23, going 24-6-3 with a 2.64 GAA and .903 SV%. As impressive as his win total was last season, he draws a dreadful matchup on Saturday and should be benched for better options.
DeSmith stopped all five shots that he faced after replacing Thatcher Demko (illness) during the Canucks' blowout win over the Oilers on Wednesday. Tonight he will make his first start with the Canucks, as he goes head-to-head with the Oilers again. This is a brutal matchup, so leave DeSmith on the waiver wire on a busy 14-game slate.
Bobrovsky allowed two goals on 21 shots in the Panthers' loss in Minnesota on Thursday. Bobrovsky was outplayed by Filip Gustavsson, but it wasn't a bad start for the veteran netminder. He struggled in two games against the Jets (.857 SV%) a season ago and was 10-11-1 with a 3.27 GAA and .892 SV% on the road.
Levi allowed four goals on 30 shots in the Sabres' loss to the Rangers on Thursday. Levi has quickly established himself as the Sabres' No.1, having gone 5-3-0 with a 3.07 GAA and .901 SV% in eight career NHL games. On Saturday he will face an Islanders team that was 23rd in GF/60 (2.92) last season.
Cam Talbot started the Kings' season opener but they will turn to Copley in their second game on Saturday. Copley enjoyed success in 2022-23, going 24-6-3 with a 2.64 GAA and .903 SV%. As impressive as his win total was last season, he draws a dreadful matchup on Saturday and should be benched for better options.
Levi allowed four goals on 30 shots in the Sabres' loss to the Rangers on Thursday. Levi has quickly established himself as the Sabres' No.1, having gone 5-3-0 with a 3.07 GAA and .901 SV% in eight career NHL games. On Saturday he will face an Islanders team that was 23rd in GF/60 (2.92) last season.
Skinner allowed four goals on 16 shots after replacing Jack Campbell in the Oilers' blowout loss in Vancouver on Wednesday. Campbell surprisingly got the start but didn't last long, however, Skinner didn't fare any better. The Oilers will get Mattias Ekholm back on the blueline tonight, which should help Skinner's cause, but the Oilers need to be much better as a team on Saturday. Skinner was 1-1-0 with a 3.05 GAA and .897 SV% in two games vs. the Canucks last season.
Binnington allowed one goal on 34 shots in the Blues' overtime loss in Dallas on Thursday. It was an outstanding start to the season for Binnington, who had the worst season of his career in 2022-23. Tonight he'll face the Kraken, who he was 1-1-0 with a 3.49 GAA and .883 SV% against last season.
Skinner allowed four goals on 16 shots after replacing Jack Campbell in the Oilers' blowout loss in Vancouver on Wednesday. Campbell surprisingly got the start but didn't last long, however Skinner didn't fare any better. The Oilers will get Mattias Ekholm back on the blueline tonight, which should help Skinner's cause, but the Oilers need to be much better as a team on Saturday. Skinner was 1-1-0 with a 3.05 GAA and .897 SV% in two games vs. the Canucks last season.
Joonas Korpisalo started the Senators' season opener, but they will turn to Forsberg in their second game of the season. Last year, Forsberg wasn't nearly as good as he was in 2021-22, going 11-11-2 with a 3.26 GAA and .902 SV% in 28 games (25 starts). This afternoon he'll face a Flyers team the won their season opener in Columbus.
Mrazek stopped 39 of 41 shots in the Blackhawks' come-from-behind win over the Penguins on opening night. It was a dazzling start to the season for Mrazek, who will face a ton of rubber behind a young Blackhawks team this season. Tonight he'll face a Montreal team that scored five goals in a 6-5 opening night loss in their season opener.
