With David Pastrnak (undisclosed) and Pavel Zacha (undisclosed) added to a growing list of noteworthy injured players for the Bruins, Georgii Merkulov and Riley Tufte will draw into the lineup on Friday against the New York Rangers. The 25-year-old Merkulov has spent the entirety of the 2025-26 season campaign in the AHL, scoring 14 points (6G / 8A) in 17 games.
Zacha has missed only four games over the previous three seasons, but will not play on Friday against the New York Rangers, missing his first contest of 2025-26 due to an undisclosed injury and being listed as day-to-day. The 28-year-old Czech forward has 17 points (5G / 12A) and joins a growing list of noteworthy Bruins players sidelined due to injuries.
A Bruins team that is already without the services of several key players will also be without Pastrnak on Friday against the New York Rangers. The 29-year-old elite Czech forward has 29 points (11G / 18A) in 25 games, factoring in on 37 percent of Boston's goals this season. Pastrnak has played all 82 games in three straight seasons and will miss his first contest of 2025-26, out day-to-day.
Despite several major player departures since last season and several key injuries in 2025-26, the Bruins are off to a competitive 14-11-0 start, due in part to strong play between the pipes from Jeremy Swayman. That said, the Bruins will turn to Korpisalo on Friday afternoon against the New York Rangers. The 31-year-old Korpisalo has an ugly 3.43 GAA and .878 SV% in nine games (4-5-0) and will be hard-pressed for a Bruins’ victory with David Pastrnak (undisclosed) out of the lineup.
With Michael Rasmussen returning from a three-game absence due to an injury, Soderblom will be the odd-man out of the lineup as a healthy scratch. The 24-year-old Soderblom is averaging 10:31 time-on-ice and has one goal in 12 games.
Gustafsson made his Red Wing season debut in Detroit's most recent game and played 17:23 time-on-ice, including some powerplay deployment. The 33-year-old defenseman, an NHL veteran of 516 games, will return to the Grand Rapids Griffins of the AHL, where he has spent the majority of the 2025-26 season.
Bernard-Docker did not play Detroit's most recent game, but he will return to the lineup on Friday against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The 25-year-old defenseman has only played 12 games this season, averaging 12:55 time-on-ice and scoring one assist.
Rasmussen has missed the last three game games due to an injury, but he will draw back into the lineup on Friday against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The towering 6'6 forward is averaging 11:39 time-on-ice and has five points (2G / 3A) in 19 games this season.
Mittelstadt has not played in three weeks, recovering from an upper-body injury, but will draw back into the lineup on Friday against the New York Rangers. The 27-year-old forward is averaging 14:32 time-on-ice and has nine points (4G / 5A) in 15 games this season. With a myriad of injuries in Boston's top-six, Mittelstadt will likely be due for a sizeable increase in his deployment in his return to the ice.
With the return of Simon Edvinsson (illness), Hamonic will head to the sidelines as a healthy scratch. The 35-year-old Hamonic has been in-and-out of the lineup all season for the Red Wings. He is averaging 14:26 time-on-ice and has one assist in 15 games.
Edvinsson has missed the last three games due to an illness, but will re-enter the lineup on Friday afternoon against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The 22-year-old Swedish defenseman is averaging 21:32 time-on-ice and has six points (3G / 3A) in 21 games this season.
After a mediocre 3-3-0 start to the 2025-26 season, the Stars have switched gears and become one of the top teams in the NHL, going 12-2-4 in 18 games since. That said, the Stars still hope Oettinger can up his game to another level. The 26-year-old netminder has a 2.74 GAA and .900 SV% in 16 games this season (10-4-2). The Stars enter Friday’s contest as -130 home favorites against a Utah Mammoth team that is 3-4-3 in its last 10 games.
The Red Wings will turn to Gibson on Friday afternoon against the Tampa Bay Lightning, looking for stability in their crease after being outscored 18-9 in their last four games (1-3-0). The Red Wings acquired the 32-year-old Gibson in the offseason in hopes of solidifying their goaltending position, but he has left much to be desired, posting an ugly 3.46 GAA and .870 SV% in 12 appearances (4-6-1). That said, one of his best performances of the season came in a 2-1 overtime win over the Tampa Bay Lightning when he saved 21 of 32 shots (.969 SV%).
After a subpar start to the 2025-26 season, Tampa Bay finds itself atop the Atlantic Division and is riding a five-game winning streak. Vasilevskiy will return to the crease on Friday afternoon against the Detroit Red Wings, looking to build on a 2.28 GAA and .915 SV% through 17 games (10-5-2). The 31-year-old veteran netminder has been outstanding lately, allowing one or fewer goals in five straight games (5-0-0), posting an absurd .970 SV%.
The Blackhawks are coming off a disappointing 4-3 overtime loss to the Minnesota Wild and hope to snap a four-game losing skid (0-3-1) with Soderblom tending the twine on Friday against the Nashville Predators. The 26-year-old Soderblom is easily coming off his worst performance of the season, allowing nine goals on 31 shots (.710 SV%) in a 9-3 loss to the Buffalo Sabres. Soderblom has a 3.46 GAA and .881 SV% in seven games this season (3-3-1). The Blackhawks enter Friday's contest as slight -110 home favourites against a Predators team coming off a 6-3 win over the Detroit Red Wings.
