NHL Hockey Player News

The Canadiens will start their 2025-26 campaign by turning to Montembeault between the pipes on the front end of a back-to-back set. The Canadiens are coming off a successful season in which they snuck into the playoffs, aided by a strong campaign from Montembeault, who posted a 2.82 GAA, a .901 SV%, and four shutouts in 62 appearances (31-24-7). The Canadiens will start the season on the road, entering their contest against the Toronto Maple Leafs as +135 underdogs.

Despite being absent from practice on Tuesday due to personal matters, Marchenko will suit up for the season-opening contest on Thursday against the Nashville Predators. The 25-year-old Marchenko had a breakout 2024-25 campaign, posting 74 points (31G / 43A) in 79 contests. He is expected to start the 2025-26 season on a line with Sean Monahan and Dmitri Voronkov.

Silovs was acquired in a trade from the Vancouver Canucks in the offseason to battle with Tristan Jarry for the Penguins' crease and appears to have a head start on opening night as he will tend the twine against the New York Rangers. The 24-year-old Silovs has limited NHL experience, having played a career-high 10 games with Vancouver last season (2-6-1), posting a 3.65 GAA and a .861 SV%. Expect the Penguins to alternate starts between their goaltenders unless one can establish themselves as the undisputed starter. The Penguins enter Tuesday's contest against the Rangers as +194 road underdogs.

Afanasyev was battling for an opening night roster spot on the Sharks but will likely start the 2025-26 campaign sidelined due to a lower-body injury. The 24-year-old spent the entirety of the 2024-25 season in the KHL, where he scored 21 points (7G / 14A) in 53 games with CSKA Moscow. He is considered day-to-day.

Thompson is battling a lower-body injury and will likely be unavailable for San Jose's season opener after being announced day-to-day on Tuesday. The 23-year-old defenseman played a career-high 31 games with the Sharks last season, tallying 10 points (4G / 6A).

Benn suffered a collapsed lung after a hit during a preseason game and is expected to be reevaluated at the end of October. The 36-year-old is entering his 17th NHL season and has only missed two games across the previous four years. In 2024-25, he had 16 goals, 49 points and 70 PIMs in 80 games played.

Erne joined the Stars for a PTO in training camp and has been rewarded with a one-year, two-way contract. With Jamie Benn and Oskar Back both on Injured Reserve, Erne could have an opportunity to crack the Stars' opening night roster on the fourth line. The 30-year-old Erne last played in the NHL in the 2023-24 season and has 91 points (41G / 50A) in 379 career games.

Samuelsson reaggravated an upper-body injury, sidelining him midway through training camp, but he could be ready to play in Buffalo's season opener after originally being ruled out. The 24-year-old is entering his sixth season with Buffalo after putting up career highs in goals (4), points (14), and games played (62) in 2024-25.

Woll has been away from the Maple Leafs for the past two weeks, tending to personal matters, and has no timeline to return. Woll started in exactly half of Toronto's games last season, posting a 2.73 GAA and .909 SV%, and was likely poised to see similar totals in 2025-26. The Maple Leafs claimed Cayden Primeau off waivers yesterday, but the crease should belong almost exclusively to Anthony Stolarz until Woll returns.

Sundqvist exited practice on Sunday due to a lower-body injury and has not practiced since. Blues' GM Doug Armstrong ruled Sundqvist out of the lineup for the next three games but isn't expecting the injury to linger for more than a week. The 31-year-old Sundqvist has 164 points (62G / 102A) in 493 career games.

Roy exited Saturday's preseason game against the Columbus Blue Jackets due to an upper-body injury and was absent from practice on Monday, but has confirmed he is good to go for the Capitals' season opener on Wednesday. The 30-year-old Roy is slated to start the season on Washington's second defensive pair alongside Rasmus Sandin after putting up 24 points (3G / 1A) in 69 games last season.

Coming off a disappointing 2024-25 season in which they missed the playoffs, the Rangers will hope to start the 2025-26 campaign on a positive note, likely turning to Shesterkin in their season opener against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Despite serviceable totals, the 29-year-old Shesterkin had the worst season of his career statistically in 2024-25, posting an average .905 SV% and 2.86 GAA and 61 outings (27-29-5). The talented netminder will aim for his seventh NHL season to be more aligned with the first five of his career, where he boasted a .921 SV% and 2.43 GAA in 213 games (135-59-17). The Rangers enter Tuesday's contest as sizable -219 home favorites against the Penguins.

Fresh off consecutive Stanley Cup championships, the Panthers will turn to Bobrovsky in their season opener on Tuesday against the Chicago Blackhawks. The 37-year-old Bobrovsky played well last season, posting a 2.44 GAA and .905 SV% in 54 appearances (33-19-2). With the Panthers facing several key long-term injuries in their forward group, they will need to rely on Bobrovsky to shut down the opposition's offense this season. The Panthers enter Tuesday's matchup as -266 home favorites against the Blackhawks.

Lowry underwent hip surgery earlier in the offseason with a five-to-six month recovery timeline. The 32-year-old Lowry is likely still several weeks away from his 2025-26 season debut after putting up 16 goals, 34 points and a +18 plus/minus in 73 games played in 2024-25.

Early in the offseason, Pietrangelo and the Golden Knights released a statement that Pietrangelo is dealing with a hip injury that would require bilateral femur reconstruction, with no guarantee of success. This week, the Golden Knights officially announced that he will be unavailable for the duration of the 2025-26 season and the playoffs. The 35-year-old Pietrangelo has 637 points (148G / 489A) in 1087 career games, leaving a notable void on the Golden Knights' blueline.

Perfetti suffered the ankle injury during the Jets' preseason finale after delivering a hit on Kevin Bahl in the second period. With Perfetti out to open the season, that opens a door in the Jets' top-6 and on the top power-play unit. Alex Iafallo is currently set to line up on the Jets' top powerplay unit.

Toews "tweaked something" in a preseason contest against the Minnesota Wild last Tuesday and finally returned to practiced on Sunday. After missing the entirety of the previous two seasons, recovering from injuries, Toews signed in the offseason with his hometown team. The veteran forward scored 31 points (15G / 16A) in 53 games in his most recent season in 2022-23.

Gregor joined the Panthers during training camp on a PTO that has materialized into a one-year, two-way contract. The 27-year-old Gregor split time last season between the Ottawa Senators and San Jose Sharks, playing a total of 52 games and scoring seven points (4G / 3A).

Lundell suffered an upper-body injury in the Panthers' preseason game last Thursday, but will be in the lineup for the opener vs. Chicago. Lundell is poised for a breakout season as he tries to help fill the shoes of Aleksander Barkov, who is expected to miss the entire season. Lundell will open the season on a line with Eetu Luostarinen and Sam Reinhart and PP2.