NHL Hockey Player News

Ullmark suffered an upper-body injury in the team's final game before the holiday break, exiting the contest after one period. The 31-year-old Ullmark was finally starting to play to his potential, posting an exquisite .954 SV% in nine games (8-0-1) before his injury. Ottawa has recalled goalies Mads Sogaard and Leevi Meilainen from the Belleville Senators (AHL), which is likely a sign that Ullmark's injury will keep him out of the lineup. Ullmark will not travel on Ottawa's upcoming road trip.

Merzlikins was battling an undisclosed injury, preventing him from playing the Blue Jackets' previous game, but he appears no worse for wear and will return to the crease on Friday against the Boston Bruins. Merzlikins allowed five goals on 30 shots (.833 SV%) in his previous outing, a 5-4 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers. He has a 3.13 GAA and .889 SV% in 22 games this season (10-9-3). The Blue Jackets enter Friday's contest as +141 home underdogs against a Bruins club they will play again on Saturday.

In their first game with new head coach Todd McLellan, the Red Wings will likely turn to Talbot between the pipes. The 37-year-old Talbot allowed three goals on 20 shots (.850 SV%) in his most recent outing, a 4-0 loss over the St. Louis Blues. He has a 2.79 GAA and .912 SV% in 18 games this season (6-8-2). The Red Wings enter Friday's contest as +132 home underdogs against a Toronto Maple Leafs club they defeated 4-2 on December 14th.

Severson was a surprise scratch on Monday, with his absence not being announced prior to warmups. The 30-year-old Severson is averaging 22:25 time-on-ice, recording 17 points (6G / 11A), 67 blocks, and 22 hits in 34 games.

Ostapchuk has been a lineup-regular for Ottawa lately, but regularly been a part of paper transactions, sending him down tot Belleville (AHL) for salary cap reasons. The 21-year-old Ostapchuk has played 14 consecutive games for Ottawa, recording two points (0G / 2A).

Ottawa has recalled goalies Mads Sogaard and Leevi Meilainen from the Belleville Senators (AHL), which is likely a sign that Linus Ullmark's injury will keep him out of the lineup. Ullmark suffered an upper-body injury in the team's final game before the holiday break, exiting the contest after one period.

Ottawa has recalled goalies Mads Sogaard and Leevi Meilainen from the Belleville Senators (AHL), which is likely a sign that Linus Ullmark's injury will keep him out of the lineup. Ullmark suffered an upper-body injury in the team's final game before the holiday break, exiting the contest after one period.

The Devils have won five of their last six (5-1-0) and will likely roll with Markstrom between the pipes on Friday against the Carolina Hurricanes. The 34-year-old Markstrom has been tremendous lately, allowing only three combined goals in his last five games (5-0-0), posting an outstanding .960 SV%. He is riding a two-game shutout streak and has a 2.12 GAA and .912 SV% in 26 games this season (18-6-2). The Devils enter Friday's contest as -125 home favorites in the front end of a back-to-back set against the Hurricanes.

The Sabres snapped a league-worst 13-game losing skid in their previous outing when Luukkonen saved 27 of 28 shots (.964 SV%) in a 7-1 win over the New York Islanders. It was only the second time in nine games that Luukkonen has allowed fewer than three goals in a game (1-6-2). He has a 3.03 GAA and .895 SV% in 24 appearances this season (9-11-23). The Sabres enter Friday's contest as -160 home favorites against a Chicago Blackhawks club amid a two-game losing skid.

DeSimone is an undrafted 30-year-old defenseman that has seven points (2G / 5A) in 38 career NHL games. He has three points (0G / 3A) in 12 games with the Utica Comets (AHL) this season,

Lycksell played one game with the Flyers this season but has predominantly been in the AHL. The 25-year-old forward has an impressive 24 points (9G / 15A) in 25 games with the Lehigh-Valley Phantoms (AHL).

Dobes was a fifth-round pick, 136th overall, of the Canadiens in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft. The 23-year-old goalie, a product of Ohio State University, has a 2.44 GAA and .910 SV% in 14 games (9-3-1) with the Laval Rocket (AHL).

The Hurricanes held a rare morning skate at their home facilities on Friday before heading out to New Jersey for their contest against the Devils later in the day. Kochetkov was stellar in his last game before the holiday break, saving 22 of 23 shots (.957 SV%) in a 3-1 win over the New York Rangers. The 25-year-old Kochetkov has a 2.43 GAA and .903 SV% in 21 appearances (14-6-0). He has allowed three or fewer goals in five straight (3-2-0), posting a solid .934 SV%. The Hurricanes enter Friday's contest as +112 road underdogs against a Devils squad they will face again on Saturday.

Just 10 games into his return from a preseason injury, Patrik Laine left Monday's game vs. Columbus with an upper-body injury and did not provide any updates post-game on the extent of the injury. Montreal's next game is Saturday vs. Florida where a further update should be provided. Laine has been a spark of energy since joining the team 10 games ago, with eight goals and nine points.

Carlsson was limited to only 11:41 time-on-ice before exiting Sunday's 5-4 win over Utah HC with an undisclosed injury. The second-year forward has 12 points (7G / 5A) in 26 games this season and has only one point (1G / 0A) in his last seven.

The Golden Knights are riding a three-game winning streak and will turn to Hill between the pipes on Monday against the Anaheim Ducks. Hill was solid in his previous outing, saving 19 of 20 shots (.950 SV%) in a 3-1 win over the Vancouver Canucks. He has a 2.69 GAA and .901 SV% in 21 games (14-5-2) this season. The Golden Knights enter Monday's contest as significant -325 home favorites against a Ducks squad that played yesterday, defeating the Utah Hockey club 5-4.

Pastrnak suffered the injury during the second period of Monday's game. We should receive an update on his status ahead of Boston's game in Columbus on Friday.

Hughes' status for Monday's game against the Sharks was suddenly put in doubt when Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet announced he was a game-time decision just a little over two hours before puck drop. Thankfully for Canucks fans, Hughes took full part in warmups and appears to be good to go for Vancouver's final game before the holiday break.

Demko will make his fifth start of the season when the Canucks host the Sharks on Monday. Demko turned in a solid performance his last time out, allowing three goals on 31 shots in a 3-2 overtime defeat in Utah on Wednesday. The 29-year-old netminder has posted a 1-1-2 record and an .887 SV% since returning from injury on December 10th. He draws a great matchup tonight as the Canucks enter action at -260 on the money line.