NHL Player News

Eklund tallied a goal, dished out an assist, put three shots on net and recorded three hits in Thursday's 5-3 loss to Carolina.

Eklund helped keep Thursday's contest competitive by tying the game at three goals apiece late in the second period. With his twine finder, the 20-year-old forward is up to four goals, seven points, 22 shots on net, a plus-4 rating and 42 hits across 15 outings this season. The young winger has displayed a lot of promise not only with the puck, but also without it, as he currently ranks just outside the league's top-25 skaters in hits. He also appears to be heating up offensively with five points over his last seven outings, which makes him a solid streaming option in banger leagues for the time being.

Aho recorded two assists, went plus-3 and launched four shots on net in Thursday's 5-3 win over the Islanders.

Aho picked up an assist on each of the goals scored by his two linemates, Andrei Svechnikov and William Carrier. With the pair of apples, Aho is up to 14 assists, 23 points, 53 shots on net, a plus-10 rating and 14 hits over 18 outings this season. In half of his 12 most recent games, the 29-year-old center has recorded a multi-point effort. He remains an elite fantasy option in all formats and is trending towards his fourth campaign over the last six seasons with 80-plus points.

Iafallo scored a power-play goal in Thursday's 6-2 victory over Vancouver. He also delivered four hits.

It was his first goal in nine games (one assist). It was also his first power-play point of the season. Iafallo doesn't have a high-skill tool belt, but he makes up for it with pure hard work. He has 23 hits this season and six points in 17 games. That puts Iafallo on pace to replicate his 29-point, 120-hit campaign of 2025-26.

Kotkaniemi tallied a goal, fired three shots on net and recorded two hits in Thursday's 5-3 win over the Islanders.

Kotkaniemi fed off the early momentum generated by Logan Stankoven's goal under a minute into regulation with a tally of his own at the 3:20 mark. Overall, the 26-year-old Kotkaniemi now has five goals, eight points, 17 shots on net, a plus-5 rating, 18 shots on net and eight blocked shots across 16 games this season. He's starting to heat back up in the goal-scoring department with two tallies over his last three games. However, his ceiling in fantasy is capped from the Hurricanes' fourth line.

Stankoven scored a goal and put three shots on net in Thursday's 5-3 win over the Islanders.

Stankoven wasted no time finding the scoresheet Thursday, as he scored just 57 seconds after opening puck drop. The 23-year-old center now has 11 goals on the year, which is tied for fifth in the NHL. Overall, he's up to 17 points, a plus-14 rating, which is tied for sixth across the league, 55 shots on net and 12 blocked shots over 18 games this season. He's currently on an 11-point, seven-game run and has shown no signs of stopping soon, making Stankoven a staple for fantasy lineups in all formats for the time being.

Chatfield tallied a goal and distributed an assist in Thursday's 5-3 win over the Islanders.

Chatfield found the back of the Isles' empty net Thursday to seal the 5-3 win. He also chipped in with a secondary helper on Jesperi Kotkaniemi's goal in the first period. Overall, the 30-year-old Chatfield is up to two goals, six points, a plus-7 rating, 24 shots on net, seven hits and 20 blocked shots over 18 games this season. His inclusion on the team's top defensive pairing alongside Jaccob Slavin is noteworthy, but Chatfield is best left on waivers until he can make performances like Thursday's commonplace.

Carrier scored the go-ahead goal, tallied an assist, placed two shots on net and dished out four hits in Thursday's 5-3 win over the Islanders.

Carrier's first goal of the 2026-27 season arrived with impeccable timing, as he struck the back of the net with just over five minutes remaining to give the Hurricanes to Thursday's win. Overall, the 31-year-old winger is up to 10 points, 29 shots on net, a plus-2 rating, 55 hits and nine blocked shots across 18 appearances this season. His placement on Carolina's top line has helped him achieve a point pace that could help him challenge his career high of 25 points from the 2022-23 regular season. His attachment to the Hurricanes' stars makes him a decent streaming option in deep banger leagues.

Svechnikov notched a goal, recorded an assist, posted a plus-3 rating and launched seven shots on net in Thursday's 5-3 win over the Islanders.

Svechnikov was active in Thursday's contest, as he fired a season-high seven shots on goal. Additionally, he came through for the reigning champs in the clutch, sliding the primary helper on William Carrier's game-winning goal. With Thursday's pair of points, Svechnikov now has seven goals, nine assists, a plus-8 rating, 51 shots on net and 37 hits across 17 outings this season. The 26-year-old winger appears to be trending towards a new career high in shots on goal if he can surpass the 249 attempts he placed on net across 78 regular-season games during the 2021-22 season. Expect him to be an elite fantasy option in all category-based formats for the foreseeable future.

Varlamov turned away 34 of 38 shots on net in Thursday's 5-3 loss to the Hurricanes.

Varlamov faced a high volume of shots Thursday, and he ultimately kept the Islanders in the contest until William Carrier's go-ahead goal with just over five minutes remaining. With Thursday's loss, the 38-year-old Varlamov now has a 1-2-2 record, a 2.72 GAA and an .892 save percentage across five appearances this season. He's been one of the more serviceable backups across the league this season while appearing roughly once a week to spell Ilya Sorokin. Varlamo has a proven track record of success at the NHL level, and he's displayed enough gas left in the tank to be a serviceable spot start for fantasy managers in a pinch.

Bussi stopped 24 of 27 shots on net in Thursday's 5-3 win over the Islanders.

Bussi struggled in Thursday's second period, as he allowed all three of the Islanders' goals in that span. However, he earned the win through solid play in the first and last stanza. The 28-year-old backstop now holds a 3-2-2 record, a 3.23 GAA and an .869 save percentage across seven appearances this season. While he's been outplayed by Pyotr Kochetkov across the first quarter of the 2026-27 campaign, Bussi still holds some fantasy value as a handcuff to Kochetkov or as a standalone third option in deep leagues. However, his appearances have been infrequent as of late, making him a difficult fantasy option to consider in standard formats.