Räty, 23, who was selected by the Islanders in the second round (No. 52) of the 2021 NHL Draft, was dealt to the Canucks along with forward Anthony Beauvillier and their 2023 first-round pick in exchange for Bo Horvat, who is now the Islanders' captain.
The Finnish forward, who had just one goal in four games this season, was placed on waivers Wednesday but went unclaimed.
In 118 NHL games, Räty has 14 goals and 15 assists for 29 points.
James Reimer, the 38-year-old who has played in 539 career NHL games, signed a professional tryout agreement with AHL Hartford, the Wolf Pack announced Thursday. Reimer can play in up to 25 games before they’d need to make a call on his future, and Hartford’s depth has been thinned with Dylan Garand and Spencer Martin — who began the season as the Blueshirts’ top two AHL options — now in the NHL. Callum Tung and Gabriel Carriere have been the Wolf Pack’s goaltenders so far. The Rangers said Saturday that Korpisalo would miss another four weeks.
Reimer hasn’t started more than 25 games in a season at the NHL level since 2022-23. Last season, he appeared in 14 with the Senators — including 13 starts — while posting a 7-4-2 record, an .886 save percentage and a 2.42 goals against average. For his career, which began with the Maple Leafs in 2010-11, Reimer has recorded a .909 save percentage and 2.87 goals against average.
His is not a splashy name to drastically alter the Rangers’ goaltending picture, but Reimer will get a chance to carve out a place on the depth chart that has already experienced an overhaul since opening night. Before the Blueshirts’ second game of the season, Korpisalo was ruled out with a lower-body injury. Just over a week later, Shesterkin sustained a season-ending right knee injury.
The Rangers’ AHL affiliate Hartford has added veteran goalie James Reimer on a professional tryout. NHLI via Getty Images
That forced Garand — who’d lost the backup competition in training camp and was sent to Hartford after clearing waivers before getting recalled when Korpisalo sustained his injury — to become the starter.
Garand has thrived with his chance so far, winning both of his starts since Shesterkin’s injury entering Thursday’s match with the Devils. He has collected a .951 save percentage and 1.15 goals against average through his four appearances, with both numbers leading NHL goaltenders with at least three appearances.
Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin (31) is helped off the ice by Marcus Pettersson (26) and Sean Durzi (5) after suffering an injury during a game against the Washington Capitals on Oct. 9, 2026. NHLI via Getty Images
Back in 2024-25, two years before Justin Dowling centered the Rangers’ fourth line Thursday, he was in a similar spot with the Devils. An early-season injury led to his recall from the AHL. He capitalized on the opportunity, carving out a role on New Jersey’s fourth line and skating in a career-high 52 NHL games that season.
He’s facing a similar chance this year with the Blueshirts. Joe Veleno, who opened the season as the fourth-line center, was projected by the team Sunday to be out another 3-3 ¹/₂ months with a lower-body injury. Cole Beaudoin, the 20-year-old acquired in the Vincent Trocheck trade, skated in four games before getting assigned to the Wolf Pack on Wednesday — allowing him to log more minutes in the AHL.
That brought Dowling, who skated in two games with the Rangers last year, back to the Blueshirts as the next option. Oliver Bjorkstrand and Jaroslav Chmelar skated alongside him against the Devils.
“He’s a veteran guy,” head coach Mike Sullivan said. “He has some experience. He understands what he is. I think he can play within himself. He’s a smart player. He can move the puck. He sees the ice pretty well. He brings an element of experience, I think, that will help us.”
Matt Rempe and Scott Morrow were the Rangers’ scratches for Thursday’s game. … Garand made his third consecutive start.
When the Florida Panthers pulled the trigger on a Seth Jones trade, fans around the NHL had mixed reactions.
While Jones was a highly touted prospect heading into the 2013 NHL draft and was stellar in the early parts of his career, Jones failed to live up to expectations with the Chicago Blackhawks. Blackhawks and NHL fans heavily scrutinized him before the trade, which is why reactions were so mixed.
But since joining the Panthers prior to the 2025 trade deadline, all Jones has done is arguably perform as the Panthers' best defenseman.
Jones has taken over the top power-play unit and is the team's best offensive threat on the man advantage and at 5-on-5 from the blueline. In 80 regular-season games since joining the Panthers, Jones has notched 10 goals and 48 points. He also leads the team in average time on ice in that period, playing 24:12.
In 2026-27, his 25:52 of ice time ranks seventh in the NHL and leads the Panthers by more than four minutes. While Gustav Forsling deservedly earns praise for his defensive game, Jones has morphed into the team's No. 1 defenseman.
On Tuesday against the Columbus Blue Jackets, a former team of Jones, the 32-year-old recorded four assists, matching a franchise record.
This was just another great night in what's becoming quite routine for Jones.
“I’ve played with a lot of great players this year,” Jones said after the win. “I try to do my part and be the best player I can be out there – whether it’s 5-on-5 or special teams. I’m making some plays to some great players, and they’re putting the puck in the net.”
While Jones was modest in his response, coach Paul Maurice and teammate Brady Tkachuk were quick to acknowledge his stellar start to the season.
“He had a great summer of training with Aaron Ekblad,” Maurice said. “They spent the entire time here, for the most part, in Florida. They trained hard. He’s a fit, fit man. He’s a little faster with everything he does and has got a little more confidence.”
“He's been excellent all year,” said Tkachuk. “He's played some big minutes for our team.”
Jones has been eating up minutes for the Panthers, and he's had a positive impact. He's recorded one goal and seven points in seven games, ranking tied for fifth in points among defensemen.
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Somehow, some way, the Philadelphia Flyers need to find a way to win a game, especially after squandering a golden opportunity to come back against Seattle before ultimately falling to 0-5-3 on the season.
On Thursday night, the Flyers will face the 1-3-2 Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit at 7:30 p.m., a squad just one point ahead in the standings despite a -6 goal differential that is significantly better than Philadelphia's -21.
The Flyers are expected to return an unchanged lineup from Thursday's 3-2 shootout loss to Seattle, with the exception of Joseph Woll starting in place of Dan Vladar as the goalie rotation continues.
Of note, defensemen Cam York and Rasmus Ristolainen and forward Travis Konecny remain out for the undermanned Flyers due to injury, while the Red Wings will be without Marco Kasper, J.T. Compher, Mason Appleton, and Simon Edvinsson (RFA).
The Flyers are 2-3-0 in their last five games against the Red Wings, getting out-scored 20-16 across that span.
Alex DeBrincat - Emmitt Finnie - Michael Brandsegg-Nygard
Andrew Copp - Michael Rasmussen - Lucas Raymond
Andreas Englund - Sheldon Dries - Keegan Kolesar
Ben Chiarot - Moritz Seider
Anton Johansson - Axel Sandin-Pellikka
Albert Johansson - Justin Faulk
Daniil Tarasov (S), John Gibson
Flyers special teams
Power play: 2-for-24, 8.3% (31st)
Penalty kill: 25-for-31, 80.6% (16th)
Red Wings special teams
Power play: 4-for-20, 20% (16th)
Penalty kill: 14-for-21, 66.7% (28th)
How to watch the Flyers game
Thursday night's Flyers game can be found on Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+, and Sportsnet+.
Flyers player to watch
First-line forward Trevor Zegras played a big part in the Flyers getting at least a point against Seattle on Thursday night, scoring a goal, recording five shots on net, and starting beef with goalie Philipp Grubauer that injected some life into a lifeless team.
While head coach Rick Tocchet has already moved the 25-year-old back to left wing with Sean Couturier playing center, Zegras has shown that he can remain effective when provided with ample opportunity... and when his teammates are at least somewhat on their game.
In his career against the Red Wings, Zegras has five goals, six assists, and 11 points in 10 regular season games while averaging 18:50; Zegras played 21:43 against Seattle on Thursday.
If the Flyers are to ever get going offensively, Zegras, Matvei Michkov, and the dreaded power play will have to lead the charge.
Matching up with a mediocre Red Wings team that boasts an awful penalty kill unit, the Flyers are in as good a position as ever to earn their first win of the season, but they need to play like they smell the blood in the water.
The Sharks have been successful in overtime so far during the 2026-27 NHL season — but no one thought it would even come to that against the Nashville Predators on Thursday night at Bridgestone Arena.
But despite a deflating third period where San Jose easily could have given up, a heroic performance in net by Alexander Nedeljkovic and a determined score by Macklin Celebrini gave the Sharks a 3-2 shootout win.
“We just stuck with it. You know, I thought even when [the Predators] had some momentum throughout the game, not just in the third, throughout the game, we responded well with our own good shift in their end,” Nedeljkovic said on “Sharks Postgame Live” after the win. “And after [Nashville’s first goal], they were feeling it then. They had the momentum, the energy. The crowd was back into it, and we just stuck with it. Unfortunately, a little too much time left and they tied up there. But then in overtime, you know, we stick with it again.
“They’re going to get chances. We got some. We got our own chances. Got a few bounces, some blows tonight. You know, you got to be lucky to win in this league, and we just we stuck with it, found a way. … I thought that was probably our best game of the year.”
"We stuck with it, found a way."
Ned joins Randy and Drew on "Sharks Postgame Live" after his heroic performance in tonight's win 🐐 pic.twitter.com/RqCTqF6avF
After San Jose led for 2 1/2 periods, things crumbled in the third as Nashville scored two goals, ending with an improbable game-tying, empty-netter with 0.8 seconds left in the third period to make it a 2-2 game and force OT.
Following a wild back-and-forth bout in extra time where neither side scored despite eight total shots, things went to a shootout that ended in a 3-2 win for San Jose — including a shootout score by Celebrini, who had two missed shots in OT, and a perfect three saves by Nedeljkovic. Nedeljkovic also had five saves in the OT period.
Before things got wild, the Sharks took an early 1-0 lead in the first period on Mason Marchment’s second goal of the season, with Tyler Toffoli and Alex Wennberg assisting.
San Jose scored again in the third period, making it 2-0 after Will Smith’s wrister found the back of the net with assists from Michael Kesselring and Igor Chernyshov.
Things quickly fell apart for the Sharks in the game’s final 10 minutes. Ryan O’Reilly put the Predators within one with 9:06 left on the clock before Steven Stamkos’ last-second goal played spoiler — but it was the Sharks who walked away with two points in the end and snapped a two-game skid.
After starring in the Sharks’ OT win against the St. Louis Blues with 24 saves during his first start of the season last week, Nedeljkovic excelled yet again Thursday with a stellar 32 saves, including the final, most important stop of the game.
“We could have easily just kind of folded and put our heads down and let them walk away with the extra points,” said Nedeljkovic, who described himself as “locked in” during his two starts this season. “So you never know this time of the year what’s going to come back to bite you in the butt in April. Obviously last year we left some points on the board in the first month of the season, so we’re finding ways to get those extra ones and get some wins now.”
With additional injury updates to Jared Spurgeon and Olli Maatta, the Wild have elected to recall an extra defenseman rather than an extra forward.
Kirkland is a 6-foot-3, 30-year-old center with 50 games of NHL experience. In his NHL career, he's scored 3 goals and 10 points. This season in the AHL, Kirkland has recorded two assists in four games.
As for Lambos, he will likely serve as the seventh defenseman tonight and until an injured defenseman is ready to return. Lambos has scored one goal and two points in four AHL games this season. The 23-year-old has only played one NHL game in his career and lost the battle for an NHL roster spot to fellow 23-year-old David Spacek.
With the injuries and call ups, the Wild's lines are a bit all over the place. The Wild's projected lines could appear as:
Kirill Kaprizov - Joel Eriksson Ek - Matt Boldy Blake Coleman - Danil Yurov - Maxim Shabanov Rieger Lorenz - Ryan Hartman - Bobby Brink Tyler Pitlick - Michael McCarron - Yakov Trenin
Quinn Hughes - Jonas Brodin Matt Kiersted - Zach Bogosian Daemon Hunt - David Spacek
The Wild take on the St. Louis Blues at home tonight, looking to get back in the win column.
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The Calgary Flames are back in action Thursday night as they travel to Las Vegas to take on the Golden Knights.
Calgary is coming off its first win of the season, a 3-2 victory over the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday. After opening the year 0-5-0, the Flames finally got rewarded for a more complete effort, showing better consistency at both ends of the ice.
Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images
They will look to build on that performance against a much tougher opponent in Vegas. The Golden Knights enter Thursday’s matchup with a 6-2-0 record, sitting atop the Pacific Division.
The Flames will also see a familiar face on the other side of the ice in defenceman Rasmus Andersson. The longtime Calgary blueliner was traded to Vegas last season and will face his former team for the first time this season.
Thursday’s contest marks the first of four meetings between the Flames and Golden Knights during the 2026-27 season.
Projected Flames Lineup
Calgary held an optional morning skate at T-Mobile Arena on Thursday. With limited lineup information available, the Flames are expected to stick with the same combinations, according to Derek Wills.
Optional morning skate at T-Mobile Arena, but it looks like #Flames will stick with same line-up vs. #VegasBorn ⬇️
For Dustin Wolf, the focus will be on building off the team’s first win and finding some stability early in the season. Meanwhile, the matchup against Andersson adds another storyline to a game that will test Calgary against one of the Pacific Division’s early frontrunners.
The Flames have their first win behind them. Now, they will look to turn it into something more.
There’s a sense of déjà vu in what’s happening with the Montreal Canadiens this season. As in the last campaign, the guy labeled the number-one choice goaltender just isn't delivering. Last season, Martin St-Louis and co. gave Samuel Montembeault plenty of opportunity to find his footing before finally turning to Jakob Dobes. So much so that by the time they turned to him, Dobes himself was going through a crisis of confidence. By the end of the season, though, he had regained his confidence and had wrestled the starting job away from Jacob Fowler.
Fast forward to the current season, and Dobes emerged as the number-one choice, the guy earmarked to start. Montembeault looked good in training camp, certainly good enough to be the backup, and Fowler, on his ELC, could be sent down to the Laval Rocket, so that’s what the Canadiens did.
Dobes had a strong first game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, but for some reason he struggled afterward. He posted a .929 save percentage on opening night and followed it with two subpar performances: a .800 SV against the Pittsburgh Penguins and a .844 against the Carolina Hurricanes. At that stage, the plan was for the backup to get a start, because your number one netminder can’t play 84 games, but Montembeault was injured.
As a result, Fowler was recalled and stepped into the crease, since Dobes wasn’t meant to start anyway. However, two nights later, Dobes didn’t get his net back; after losing his first game against the Nashville Predators, Fowler got a second straight game against the Detroit Red Wings and shut them out through 65 minutes and a six-round shootout. After that performance, St-Louis decided to put Fowler in net once again, and the youngster won again.
With a second game in as many days, the coach went back to Dobes on Wednesday night, and unfortunately for the Czech netminder, he struggled again. Giving up five goals in just 24 shots. With the next game only on Saturday, Dobes will probably have time to reset before the Habs take on the Sabres for a second time this season, but it seems the Canadiens have learned from last year’s debacle. They want to go with the hot hand; they won’t give Dobes as long a leash as they gave Montembeault because, in the end, the Quebecer ended up hanging himself with it, which Dobes won’t have the opportunity to do.
The Canadiens are no longer a rebuilding team; it’s not about development or the process anymore, it’s about getting the two points, climbing the standings, and ultimately being in as good a position as possible come playoff time. Come Saturday night, they need a win, so who are they likely to go to? The masked man oozing confidence right now, or the one who can’t seem to make the big saves when he needs to? The answer seems simple enough, but what happens when Samuel Montembeault returns from injury?
Kent Hughes said at the golf tournament that he didn’t want a “ménage à trois” this season. Sending Fowler down at the end of September was easy because he was on his ELC and hadn’t outplayed the others in training camp. Now, though, for a second season in a row, Fowler came to the rescue and grabbed his opportunity with both hands. Can Hughes really send him back down if he’s the one giving the Canadiens the best chance to win every night? It seems doubtful.
Having three goalies is far from ideal, but both Montembeault and Dobes would have to go through waivers to be sent down to the AHL. Fowler's play may force Hughes to move faster to solve his goaltender conundrum. The GM signed Dobes to a new contract; Fowler is earmarked as the goaltender of the future, and Montembeault’s contract expires at season's end. The answer seems simple enough…once he’s healthy, Hughes will ne need to find him a new home, because Fowler has now shown that he is the hot hand, the one who gives the team the best opportunity to win, and at the end of the day, this is a results-based league.
Could things change before Montembeault returns? Perhaps Dobes could rebound, but it seems unlikely Fowler will falter. As St-Louis often said about Montembeault last season, Dobes hasn’t forgotten how to play goal. However, the Canadiens have the luxury of a young netminder waiting in the wings to step into the number-one role; they shouldn’t hold him back. Will the pressure be too much when chatter about him as the number-one goaltender picks up? Time will tell, but he had no problem starting three games in a row…
To the surprise of very few people now, Joel Hofer is off to a fantastic start for the St. Louis Blues.
In four games, he's posted two wins, a .921 save percentage, a 1.76 goals-against average, a shutout, and 2.5 goals saved above expected. Hofer outduelled Jordan Binnington for the No. 1 role last year and is showing no signs of giving it up.
Hofer has been praised by St. Louis fans for quite some time now, as since the 2023-24 NHL season, Hofer hasn't posted a save percentage below .900. That's serving as the backup, then a tandem and now the No. 1.
But finally, the 26-year-old is starting to receive the nationwide respect his game deserves.
On Wednesday, after the Blues' dominant 7-2 win over the Ottawa Senators, former NHL goaltender and current TSN analyst Jamie McLennan sang Hofer's praises.
“A little bit of recency bias, but I’ve liked this kid since last year; Joel Hofer is Canada’s next goaltender,” McLennan said on TSN's radio show, Overdrive. “I had the chance to visit with Jordan Binnington, who is Canada’s goaltender right now. So St. Louis has Canada’s goaltender of right now, and I think of the future. This kid’s a player.”
Hofer has represented Canada internationally a few times now. Notably, he won a gold medal at the 2020 World Junior Championship, posting a .946 SP in six games and taking home goaltender of the tournament and All-Star Team honors. He's also played for Canada at the World Championships, winning gold in 2023 despite playing just two games.
But Hofer has proved to be a star at every level. His international success is well known, and he was a star in the WHL and AHL before making his way to the NHL.
“This kid, I’m telling you, O (Jeff O’Neill), this kid's a player," McLennan continued. "6-foot-5, handles the puck like Hextall and makes great saves. I’m telling you, he’s a player."
Selected in the fourth round (107th overall) in 2018, Hofer has developed into an NHL star. Although the competition for Canada's international goaltending spot is notably weak right now, it's still nothing to scoff at. This is serious praise from a respected NHL analyst.
The next best-on-best events are the 2028 World Cup of Hockey and the 2030 Olympics. If Hofer shows he can consistently perform among the NHL's elite, he could very well find himself as one of the three goaltenders named to the rosters.
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The Chicago Blackhawks (2-5-0) are set to host the Winnipeg Jets (4-1-1) at the United Center on Thursday night. This will be the third game at home in a row for Chicago, as they look to improve on their 2-1 home record early in the year.
Winnipeg will be the second division rival to visit the United Center in the early going, and they are off to a much better season than anybody anticipated. It will be a tough match for the young Blackhawks, but not one that they see as an impossible feat.
Scouting Winnipeg
The Winnipeg Jets won't have Jonathan Toews in their lineup, as he famously retired after his one season playing for the hometown team. He has mostly been with the Blackhawks since his short stint in Winnipeg.
Toews' absence is not the reason that most saw the Jets as a non-playoff team coming into the year, however. It isn't only their lackluster season that they had a year ago, either. They are without superstar goalie Connor Hellebuyck.
Hellebuyck, who is one of the greatest goalies of all time, has requested a trade and is refusing to report to the Jets. He was respectful and private about the situation at first, but he felt the need to go public with it ahead of training camp starting.
Instead of letting this adversity get to them, the Jets have come out incredibly strong to begin the year. Is it possible that the wheels fall off at some point? Certainly. However, nobody told the players who did report that they must have a bad year.
Connor - Scheifele - Perfetti
Niederreiter - Björck - Vilardi
Rosén - Lowry - Iafallo
Namestnikov - Barron - Koepke
Samberg - DeMelo
Ferraro - Pionk
Fleury - Bauer
Skinner
Stevenson
Mark Scheifele, Cole Perfetti, and Kyle Connor are the usual suspects when it comes to their most dangerous players, but there are a couple of other faces involved that have been helping them get the job done.
A guy to keep an eye on is Viggo Björck, who was selected 8th overall in the 2026 NHL Draft. Some people had him as an option for the Blackhawks at 4th overall before they traded it to the Buffalo Sabres in the Bowen Byram deal.
Björck doesn't have an NHL point yet in six games, but it's coming soon. In this game, he'll be on a good second line with experienced veterans against a Blackhawks team that has been known to give up some chances.
Josh Morrissey, Winnipeg's most dynamic defenseman, is not expected to play after missing the last couple of games. He is an important piece for the Jets, but he is dealing with a wrist issue that has hindered him. As of now, consider him week-to-week.
Projected Lines, Defense Pairs, & Goalie For Chicago
The Blackhawks are going to be without Bowen Byram in this game. He is dealing with an upper-body injury and is considered day-to-day. Frank Nazar is back after serving a two-game suspension, which will get him right back into the mix as a center on the team.
Kantserov-Bedard-Kane
Bertuzzi-Frondell-Teravainen
Moore-Nazar-Donato
Smith-Greene-Greenway
Del Mastro-Levshunov
Vlasic-Cole
Kaiser-Rinzel
Knight
Nazar is notably not in the top six. While he was out, Anton Frondell was magnificent with Tyler Bertuzzi and Teuvo Teravainen. Also, Connor Bedard came back, so this will be the first game with both Bedard and Nazar in the lineup.
With Oliver Moore and Ryan Donato (who was fabulous against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday), this trio could give the Blackhawks the much-needed depth they were anticipating before the season began. Dominic Toninato is coming out of the lineup in favor of Nazar, and the fourth line will remain exactly the same.
Bedard sticks with Patrick Kane and Roman Kantserov. At even strength and on the power play, this trio got the job done against the Penguins.
Frondell's line saw a lot of Crosby last time out, and now they have the challenge of dealing with Mark Scheifele, who is also an incredible two-way center. Blashill will try to match those lines up a lot as the home coach.
With Byram out, Ethan Del Mastro is expected to draw in his place on the top pair with Artyom Levshunov. If Levshunov can keep up his much-improved play, especially in the offensive zone, they won't miss a beat. The other two pairs remain the same, which is what a team wants when one guy goes out for whatever reason.
A defenseman will not take Byram's spot on the power play. They are going to go with five forwards on the top unit whenever they draw a penalty and play 5-on-4, which is becoming a trend in the NHL lately.
Teuvo Teravainen, who is coming off his best game of the season, will quarterback the top unit. It's a lefty with experience running a man-advantage group, and a chance for Teravainen to continue feeling good about his offensive game. This move gives them the best chance to carry on the momentum that the top unit built in the win over Pittsburgh.
Spencer Knight will start again, making it his third straight. This breaks the mold of Arvid Soderblom going in every Thursday game, but the Blackhawks do consider Knight the number one who will play when they feel he is rested enough.
How To Watch
You can hear the game locally on AM 720 WGN in the Chicagoland area. You can see it locally on CHSN. Nationally, you can stream it on ESPN+. The puck will drop shortly after 7:00 PM CT.
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The Detroit Red Wings made a major move on Wednesday, officially inking forward Alex DeBrincat to a seven-year, $91 million extension, taking care of one of the most important matters of business they were facing.
However, there still remain multiple other issues that remain unsolved, the most pressing of which is the status of unsigned RFA defenseman Simon Edvinsson.
Edvinsson, who completed his three-year entry-level deal, is in the midst of a stalemate with the Red Wings despite reporting to Training Camp without a contract; Edvinsson returned to his native Sweden, reportedly frustrated with the lack of progress on an extension.
However, the Swedish blue liner has since returned to North America, but as of now, there haven't been any reports of the two sides bridging their gap.
Interim Red Wings GM Shawn Horcoff, who held a media availability session in the wake of DeBrincat's extension on Wednesday, made it clear that he has "no intention" of trading Edvinsson despite the defenseman's alleged preference to be moved.
As far as what kind of deal that Horcoff prefers to ink Edvinsson to, he indicated that they have to be open-minded to all possibilities.
“I think we’re open to anything,” Horcoff said. “I think the details of it we’ll still keep to ourselves, but again, when you’re trying to sign a player, you have to be open-minded to kind of all options. And we certainly are.”
Horcoff also reiterated in no uncertain terms that the preference of the club, who selected Edvinsson with the sixth overall pick in the 2021 NHL Draft, is to get him signed.
"I think Simon is someone that’s very hard to come by," Horcoff said. "We’ve spent a lot of time developing him, we drafted him. And again, he’s a player that we value here, that I value especially, and I know everyone in that locker room does as well."
So far in his NHL career, Edvinsson has skated in 175 games, and has tallied 19 goals with 41 assists, while racking up 158 penalty minutes.
His size and reach make him a valuable commodity for the Red Wings - and naturally, there are plenty of other NHL teams that would line up to acquire him if given the chance.
The Red Wings have until December 1 to extend Edvinsson, as they still own his rights as an RFA; otherwise, he'll be ineligible to play in 2026-27.
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Matias Maccelli will start the New York Islanders' game against the Ottawa Senators on the top line alongside Bo Horvat and Kyle Palmieri. That's how the Islanders ended their Tuesday night on Long Island with a 3-2 win over the Vancouver Canucks.
The 26-year-old recorded his first goal as an Islander while also earning the primary assist on Kyle Palmieri's go-ahead tally at the 5:38 mark of the third period:
“Maccelli started on the fourth line, and he was buzzing, so we moved him up, and he created the winning goal," Islanders head coach Pete DeBoer said on Tuesday night. "
Maccelli takes Emil Heineman's spot up there, with the Swedish forward skating alongside Casey Cizikas and Simon Holmstrom on their fourth line.
The 26-year-old, whom the Islanders signed July 1, is riding a four-game point streak into Thursday's game, with a goal and four assists over that span. He was held scoreless in the Islanders' season-opening 2-1 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs and in their home-opening 6-0 win over the New Jersey Devils a few days later at UBS Arena.
The Islanders didn't change any other lines, including the defense, as they'll keep Matt Kessel in there for a second straight game. He recorded a point in 13:51 minutes of ice time, earning the primary assist on Palmieri's opening goal on Tuesday.
Semyon Varlamov will make his second start of the season:
Varlamov to make second start of the season.
Thought he was off his angle a few times vs. #NYR.
Still looking to find his game after so much time away. Reps is the only way to do that. #Isles have to tighten their game up a bit. https://t.co/k1jn1JQqSz
PITTSBURGH, PA - MARCH 31: Sidney Crosby #87 talks with Rickard Rakell #67 of the Pittsburgh Penguins during the game against the Detroit Red Wings at PPG PAINTS Arena on March 31, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images
If there was any positive to take out of the Pittsburgh Penguins game against the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday night, it is the fact Sidney Crosby scored two goals. They were not only his first two goals of the season, they were quite honestly the first time that the captain really made a noticeable impact on a game this season.
It has not only been a shockingly quiet start for him, it has been a disturbingly quiet start for the entire first line. Even after Bryan Rust was put back into his usual spot alongside Crosby and Rickard Rakell, the line just isn’t moving the needle.
Objectively speaking, it’s been the Penguins’ least productive line combination this season, and it really hasn’t been close.
Crosby, Rakell and Rust have played 35 minutes together so far this season across four games.
The Penguins are being outscored by a 3-2 margin in those minutes, and getting absolutely crushed defensively despite that trio getting the heaviest offensive zone start usage on the team (23 offensive zone starts for that group; only three defensive zone starts).
When none of those three are on the ice together, the Penguins are outscoring teams by a 10-6 margin, while their expected goal share nearly doubles, going from 34.9 percent up to 59.4 percent.
Individually, Crosby had zero goals and two assists in his first six games before scoring the two in Chicago.
Rakell has zero goals and only two assists in his first seven games.
Rust has two goals in four games.
In the cases of Crosby and Rakell, slow starts to a season are not something that is totally out of the ordinary.
This isn’t even the worst seven-game start to a season for either player in their careers. It’s not even Rakell’s worst start as a Penguins player.
Crosby had one goal in seven games to open his season two years ago. In 2021-22 he had two points in seven games. He had three points early in 2015-16 through seven games.
Sometimes it takes these guys a little bit to get rolling.
At least in Crosby’s case, I am not quite ready to say he has completely lost it offensively.
Having said that, these guys are 39, 34 and 33 years old. There can not be an older top line anywhere in the NHL, and while Crosby might still have some offensive juice to his game that is just waiting to be unlocked this season, there is going to come a point where both Rust and Rakell do start to slow down. Every player ages differently, and every “decline” portion of a career is going to look differently. A declining Crosby is still going to be really productive because he’s starting from a much higher level and is a superior talent. When an all-time great starts to slow down they’re still going to put up a lot of points. They might go from 100 or 90 points to 60 or 70 points. Still useful. Still productive. When a second-tier player starts to decline, that looks a lot different just based on where they’re starting from.
But what concerns me more than the lack of actual goal production from that trio, is the fact they are also just simply getting outplayed and not taking advantage of their situations. The Penguins are doing everything they can to put them into offensive spot, and they are not only not scoring, they are giving up way more than they are generating from a chance perspective.
It seems like every time they are on the ice they are pinned back in their own zone and on their heels defending.
And it’s usually not going well.
The results aren’t great. Neither is the process.
The only time the Crosby-Rakell duo looked good, and produced good results, was over the first two-plus games when they had Nicholas Robertson on their wing.
Just look at how much better that trio was (small sample size warning) vs. the other versions of that top line (also small sample size warning).
Line Combination
Minutes Played
GF
GA
GF/60
GA/60
GF%
xGF/60
xGA/60
xGF%
Crosby-Rakell-Robertson
32.30
3
1
5.54
1.85
75.0
5.40
3.00
64.3
Crosby-Rakell-Rust
35.40
2
3
3.36
5.04
40.0
2.07
3.85
34.9
Crosby-Rakell-Lapierre
6.50
0
2
0.00
17.40
0.0
2.56
8.31
23.5
It creates a couple of interesting questions and situations.
I get why the Penguins went back to the old trusted formula up front. It has worked well in the past, and all three players have a track record of success. You don’t want to overreact to early season noise and small sample sizes. There is a chance, and maybe even a good chance, they get it together and start producing more.
But even if that happens, that line has had some increasingly hard-to-ignore defensive issues over the past few years that are getting more concerning.
Are you going to get enough offense from them to make up for that?
The other question: Do you ever give Robertson a chance on that line again? That game against Winnipeg, and specifically that turnover from Robertson that led to a goal against, seemed to be the only margin for error he had in that spot.
On one hand, the Robertson-Blake Lizotte-Connor Dewar line has been absolutely sensational in the few games they have played together. They are outplaying every line they go up against, and are doing so in some of the toughest minutes a line could get. They are also getting more ice-time with each passing game. It might be the fourth line on the lineup sheet, but over the past two games there has been very little difference in terms of how many minutes each line is getting. In a couple of those games, the Robertson-Lizotte-Dewar line was actually third out of the four lines in terms of 5-on-5 minutes.
If it is working, and it is producing results, do you really want to break that up?
But on the other hand, is it more important to have a good fourth line, or is it more important to try and give your top line a spark?
How much longer do you wait? Will the top-line break through and start producing more and give the Penguins the type of balance and depth that made them so good a year ago?
That brings up an interesting point I saw my good friend Dan Hopper make about a week ago: The narrative around the 2025-26 Penguins was that Sidney Crosby dragged a bad roster into the playoffs, willing them back into contention. It made for a good narrative, but it was not close to the reality of the situation that was actually unfolding on the ice. Crosby was simply a really good player, on a really good team, that had a lot of really good depth. The Penguins’ play when Crosby was not on the ice, and especially when he was out of the lineup entirely, illustrated that.
Crosby had better, more impactful years than last year and it didn’t produce a playoff result because the rest of the team wasn’t any good.
Last year’s team was pretty good, whether it was intended to be or not. That was the difference between making the playoffs and not making the playoffs.
That’s the new reality that you have to expect with a 39-year-old No. 1 center and captain. He might still be really good. But he’s not going to carry them the way he used to.
But they still need him, and his line, to be good to make it all work given the minutes they are still getting. So far, they have not been getting that from them. Right now it is arguably one of the things that is holding them back the most.
The Robertson line has been really good. The Kindel line has been really good. The Malkin line has been a little up-and-down, but for the most part, has been very solid.
The first line has simply been the weakness.
Getting that line going, whether through patience and letting them work through their early slumps, or by shaking things back up and giving them a different look, has to be a priority right now.
The Florida Panthers received a welcomed sight when they hit the ice for Thursday’s morning skate.
Back in South Florida after a quick road back-to-back earlier this week, the Cats’ were out at the Baptist Health IcePlex in Fort Lauderdale gearing up for their game that night against the Vancouver Canucks.
Joining the team for their morning skate was starting goaltender Jacob Markstrom.
It was on Monday in Buffalo when Markstrom started the game, but after stopping 9 of 11 shots during the first period, he did not return for the second or third.
Backup Akira Schmid played well in Markstrom’s stead, doing his best to hold down the fort in Buffalo before picking up a gutsy win the following night in Columbus.
For the game against the Blue Jackets, Florida called up goaltender Cooper Black from AHL Charlotte to serve as Schmid’s backup.
That’s how Florida’s goalie tandem will remain for at least the next couple games.
Speaking after the morning skate, Panthers head coach Paul Maurice said that both Markstrom and injured defenseman Radko Gudas could return for Tuesday’s game in Ottawa, if not sooner.
“Both are making improvements,” Maurice said. “Jake was back on the ice, Radko might get to a point where he can play Saturday, but we’ve got three days on the other side of it so it may just make more sense to get him right. He’s purely day-to-day, he’s walking around, he’s fine, he’ll be on the ice soon. We would expect both of them to be able to play in Ottawa.”
Schmid was named the starting goaltender against Vancouver, and it’s likely he’ll remain between the pipes when Florida hosts the Seattle Kraken on Saturday night in Sunrise.
Here are the Panthers projected lines and pairings for Thursday’s contest with the Canucks:
Brady Tkachuk – Sam Bennett – Matthew Tkachuk
Carter Verhaeghe – Sam Reinhart – Lars Eller
Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Sandis Vilmanis
The New York Rangers suffered a huge blow when superstar goaltender Igor Shesterkin went down with a serious injury, sidelining him for the rest of the season. With that, the Rangers are scrambling for depth in goal, especially after having a very good start to the year with a 6-2-0 record.
Rangers GM Chris Drury has looked to the Toronto Maple Leafs to help bandage New York's goaltending situation. Even with Shesterkin out, Joonas Korpisalo is also out of the picture for the next few weeks.
As a result, TSN's NHL insider Darren Dreger hinted on the Ray and Dregs Podcast that the Rangers have poked around Anthony Stolarz.
"I think they've actually kicked tires on Anthony Stolarz," Dreger said on Wednesday's episode when discussing the Rangers' goaltending options.
In the meantime, the Blueshirts have had no choice but to rely on Dylan Garand, and he's stood tall for the Rangers with a 4-1-0 record, a .951 save percentage and a shutout. Regardless, the 24-year-old Garand only has seven total games of NHL experience, and the hot hand can only last so long.
Stolarz is Toronto's backup netminder behind Sergei Bobrovsky, and his new contract just took effect this season. Stolarz is on a four-year agreement at $3.75 million per season and has a 16-team no-trade list on his deal.
In total, the New Jersey native has registered an .875 SP and a 3.32 goals-against average for Toronto.
Last year, Stolarz posted an .893 SP and a 3.28 GAA over 26 games. The year before that was one of the best of his NHL career, recording a .926 SP and a 2.14 GAA, which is where Stolarz earned his current contract.
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