Vladar will defend the road cage in Pittsburgh for Game 1 on Saturday, Kevin Kurz of The Athletic reports. Vladar was a major reason why the Flyers are in the playoffs. He turned the Flyers' fortunes around, giving them solid netminding all season, as he posted a 29-14-7 record with a 2.42 GAA and a .906 save percentage across 52 regular-season contests. He struggled against the Penguins this season, going 1-1-0, allowing eight goals on only 50 shots.
Merilainen was called up by Ottawa on Friday. Merilainen had an 8-10-1 record, 3.51 GAA and .860 save percentage in 20 appearances with Ottawa during the 2025-26 regular season. He's joining Ottawa as the squad's No. 3 goaltender going into its first-round series against Carolina. Merilainen shouldn't be expected to man the net in a 2026 playoff game for the Senators unless Linus Ullmark and James Reimer run into injury problems.
Karlsson (lower body) isn't expected to participate in the 2026 postseason unless Vegas manages a long playoff run, general manager Kelly McCrimmon said Friday, per Danny Webster of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Karlsson hasn't been explicitly ruled out for the first round, but based on that outlook, it sounds like he shouldn't be expected to play in the opening series. Vegas is set to begin its playoff run against Utah with Game 1 scheduled for Sunday. Karlsson had four goals and seven points in 14 regular-season outings in 2025-26.
McCann underwent a procedure Thursday for his lower-body injury, per Mike Benton of the Kraken Audio Network. McCann missed the final three games of the regular season due to the injury, and he completed 2025-26 with 20 goals and 40 points in 52 outings. The 29-year-old expects to be available for the start of the 2026-27 campaign.
Murphy notched an assist, two shots on goal, five PIM and a plus-2 rating in Thursday's 6-1 win over the Canucks. Murphy picked up three helpers over the last nine games of the regular season. The 33-year-old blueliner totaled 17 points, 70 shots on net, 90 hits, 138 blocked shots, 71 PIM and a minus-2 rating over 80 outings between the Oilers and the Blackhawks in the regular season. He'll fill a shutdown role during Edmonton's playoff run.
Nurse notched an assist and two shots on goal in Thursday's 6-1 win over the Canucks. Nurse has three helpers over seven outings in April. He ends the regular season with 24 points, 164 shots on net, 137 hits, 167 blocked shots, 104 PIM and a minus-12 rating over 82 appearances. Nurse enters the playoffs on a 28-game goal drought, and while he should continue to see top-four minutes, he's coming off his worst regular season since 2016-17.
Wallstedt is expected to start on the road against Dallas for Game 1 on Saturday, per Michael Russo of The Athletic. Wallstedt finished the regular season with an 18-9-6 record, 2.61 GAA and .915 save percentage across 35 appearances. Minnesota's Filip Gustavsson appeared in more regular-season games (50), but he struggled down the stretch, posting a 4.25 GAA and an .836 save percentage across his final six outings, which helps explain why Wallstedt is getting this opportunity. In contrast to Gustavsson, Wallstedt is 4-2-0 with a 1.84 GAA and a .935 save percentage over his past seven appearances. The Stars will be a challenging adversary. They were ninth in goals per game during the regular season with an average of 3.33.
Hyman logged an assist and three hits in Thursday's 6-1 win over the Canucks. Hyman missed the previous five games, but he was able to return from an undisclosed injury prior to the playoffs. The winger saw 18:11 of ice time, so he looks good to go in his usual top-six role. He was productive in limited time this regular season with 31 goals, 52 points, 159 shots on net and 56 hits over 58 outings.