NHL Player News

Schmaltz (lower body) isn't expected to play against San Jose on Saturday, and it's unclear when he will be ready to return, Brogan Houston of the Deseret News reports.

Schmaltz is poised to miss his second straight game after being injured in Wednesday's 5-3 loss to Vegas. The Mammoth expect to know more about his timeline soon. Schmaltz has nine goals, 20 points and 48 shots on net in 19 appearances this season.

Askarov will guard the road goal in Saturday's clash against the Mammoth, per Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now.

Askarov will draw his third consecutive start Saturday after anchoring the Sharks to an overtime loss against Pittsburgh on Wednesday. Overall, the 24-year-old netminder has a 5-8-1 record, a 3.12 GAA and an .894 save percentage across 14 outings this season. With Alex Nedeljkovic faring similarly to Askarov between the pipes this season, San Jose will likely continue to roll with the latter, as he holds the higher upside after posting 21 wins a season ago. Askarov is a decent streaming option in two-goalie fantasy formats for the time being.

Hellebuyck will defend the road net against Washington on Saturday.

Hellebuyck is coming off a 26-save performance in Thursday's 5-2 win over the Capitals. He has allowed only 12 goals on 143 shots during his season-opening six-game winning streak. Washington (10-7-0) ranks ninth in the league this campaign with 3.41 goals per game.

Kolyachonok (illness) will not play in Saturday's road clash against the Capitals, per Amanda Stein of the Devils' official site.

Kolyachonok is the second New Jersey blueliner to sustain an illness this week, as neither he nor Brett Pesce made the team's trip to Washington D.C. The 25-year-old Kolyachonok was effective in his season debut, finding the back of the net and posting a plus-2 rating in Thursday's 5-2 win over the Capitals. In his absence, Anton Silaev was called up from AHL Utica to skate on the team's third defensive pairing Saturday.

Pesce (illness) won't play against Washington on Saturday, Amanda Stein of the Devils' official site reports.

Pesce will miss his second straight game. He has recorded one goal, seven assists, 19 shots on net, 32 blocked shots and six hits in 19 appearances this season. Pesce has some extra time to recover ahead of Wednesday's matchup against Montreal, but it's unclear if he will be ready to return to the lineup by then.

Poirier was loaned to AHL Texas on Saturday for conditioning purposes.

After being a part of four different organizations to begin the 2026-27 campaign, Poirier is finally expected to see playing time in the AHL with Saturday's loan to Texas. The 25-year-old netminder is no stranger to finding success in the AHL, as he posted a 27-19-8 record, a 2.61 GAA, two shutouts and a .912 save percentage across 52 appearances during the 2025-26 regular season. Poirier can spend up to 14 days with Texas before his conditioning loan expires and requires him to return to Dallas.

Vejmelka is slated to patrol the home crease against San Jose on Saturday, Brogan Houston of the Deseret News reports.

Vejmelka is coming off a 22-save performance in Thursday's 1-0 shootout loss to St. Louis. He has a 6-6-1 record, a 3.02 GAA, an .876 save percentage and two shutouts in 14 appearances this season. San Jose (8-11-2) sits 29th in the league during the 2026-27 campaign with 2.43 goals per game.

Heiskanen (upper body) is doubtful for Sunday's matchup against Florida, per Mike Heika of the Stars' official site.

Heiskanen rotated into drills during Saturday's practice, but he will likely miss his fifth straight game against the Panthers on Sunday. He has already been ruled out for Saturday's matchup against Buffalo. Heiskanen has three goals, 11 points, 26 shots on net, 17 blocked shots and four hits in 15 appearances this season.

Wallstedt will guard the road goal against Boston on Saturday, according to Michael Russo of The Athletic.

Wallstedt has allowed only seven goals on 132 shots during his five-game winning streak. In 18 appearances this season, he has a 13-2-3 record, a 1.94 GAA and a .925 save percentage. Boston (13-5-1) ranks sixth in the league with 3.63 goals per game this campaign.

Daccord will defend the road net against Carolina on Saturday, per Ryan Henkel of The Hockey News.

Daccord has a 4-3-0 record in the 2026-27 campaign and has allowed 28 goals on 236 shots. Carolina (15-3-2) leads the league with 4.10 goals per game this season.