Peterka will miss his second straight game due to a concussion he suffered in Prague, but the Sabres anticipate that he'll be ready for Wednesday's game in Pittsburgh. With Peterka out, Jiri Kulich will remain in the Sabres' top-6 vs. the Panthers.
Levi allowed three goals on 37 shots in a loss to the Devils in Prague. It was an inspiring start to the season for Levi, who struggled with the Sabres in 2024. Tonight he'll face a Panthers team that will be without Aleksander Barkov. Buffalo are +118 home underdogs.
Shesterkin stopped all 31 shots that he faced in the Rangers' shutout win over the Penguins on opening night. It was a perfect start to the season for Shesterkin, who had the worst statistical season of his career in 2023-24. Tonight he'll face the Utah Hockey Club as a -200 home favourite.
Gustafsson had one assist and and a minus-2 rating in 20:11 TOI in his Red Wings debut on Thursday. He'll come out of the lineup to make room for Justin Holl, who was recalled from Grand Rapids this morning. Moritz Seider will replace Gustafsson on the Red Wings' top power-play unit.
Holl was recalled from Grand Rapids (AHL) this morning and is expected to make his season debut in place of Erik Gustafsson (healthy scratch). Holl played in just 38 games a season ago, tallying eight assists, 14 SOG and 59 hits.
Johansson was a second-round pick (No.60 overall) in 2019 and will replace Jeff Petry (upper-body) to make his season debut on Saturday. The 23-year-old blueliner spent the 2023-24 season in Grand Rapids (AHL), where he had 21 points (6G / 15A) in 66 games.
Brodzinski tallied one assist in 9:52 TOI in his season debut but will be replaced by Matt Rempe in the lineup on Saturday.
Rempe was a healthy scratch in the Rangers' season opener but he will replace Jonny Brodzinski in the lineup on Saturday. Rempe had two points (1G / 1A), 12 SOG, 50 hits and 71 PIMS in 17 games a season ago.
Heineman had two SOG and three hits in 9:40 TOI in the Canadiens season opener but was a healthy scratch in their second game. He'll replace Alex Barré-Boulet on the fourth line on Saturday.
Barré-Boulet failed to record a point and was a minus-2 rating in the first two games of the season. He'll be replaced by Emil Heineman on the Canadiens' fourth line.
Stolarz allowed one goal on 27 shots in the Maple Leafs' 1-0 loss in Montreal on opening night. Despite the loss, it was a strong showing for Stolarz, who could see extra playing time while Joseph Woll is out with a lower-body injury. The Maple Leafs are -195 home favourites vs. the Penguins on Saturday.
Kuemper had a tremendous performance on opening night, stopping 32 of 33 shots he faced in a win over the Sabres. This afternoon he's expected to face the Bruins, who have scored 10 goals in their first two games (5.0 GF/gm). The Kings are +140 road underdogs.
With Jeff Petry getting hurt in the Red Wings' season opener, Holl returns to the roster. It's unclear if Holl or Albert Johansson will draw into the Red Wings' lineup vs. the Predators.
Kessel will get the night off on Friday after playing in each of the Blues' first two games of the season. Pierre-Olivier Joseph will draw into the lineup and make his Blues debut.
Joseph will make his Blues debut in Vegas on Friday after sitting out the first two games of the season. The 25-year-old blue-liner spent the first four seasons of his career in Pittsburgh, totaling eight goals and 29 assists across 147 regular season games.
Texier was a late scratch on Thursday due to an upper-body injury and he will be sidelined again on Friday. Texier spent the first five seasons of his career as a Columbus Blue Jacket. The 25-year-old Texier had a career-high 30 points (12G / 18A) in 78 games last season.
The 24-year-old will have to fend off newcomer Ivan Fedotov for playing time this season, but Ersson appears to have the slight edge heading into game one of 82. Ersson had some bright moments in 2023-24 but struggled as a whole, posting an .890 SV% and a 2.82 GAA across 51 appearances. He draws a brutal first assignment against the Canucks, who scored five goals on 24 shots in their overtime loss to the Flames on Wednesday. The Flyers enter action as +160 underdogs in Vancouver.
On the tail end of a back-to-back set, the Blues will turn to Binnington in the crease on Friday night after Joel Hofer allowed four goals on 29 shots (.862 SV%) in a 5-4 overtime win against the San Jose Sharks last night. The 31-year-old Binnington was solid in the Blues' season opener on Tuesday, saving 30 of 32 shots (.938 SV%) in a 3-2 victory over the Seattle Kraken. The Blues enter action on Friday as +188 road underdogs against the Vegas Golden Knights.
Last season's Vezina trophy winner picked up where he left off, saving all 30 shots he faced for a shutout in a dominant 6-0 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday. The 31-year-old Hellebuyck has led the league in appearances amongst goalies in four of the last seven seasons and is expected to be amongst the leaders again this season. Hellebuyck will return to the crease on Friday against the Chicago Blackhawks. The Jets enter action as sizeable -266 home favorites against a Blackhawks team that was defeated 5-2 in their season-opening matchup against the Utah Hockey Club.
The Lightning will unsurprisingly turn to their franchise netminder for their season opener on Friday night. Vasilevskiy was uncharacteristically mediocre in 2023-24, though an early season back injury could be to blame. He posted a .900 SV%, a 2.90 GAA, and a 30-20-2 record across 52 starts. He'll be looking to regain his Vezina caliber form this season, but he draws a tough assignment on opening night. The Lightning enter action as +125 underdogs in Carolina.
