NHL News

Wheeling and dealing as NHL entry draft nears; Leafs get goalie By Marcus Hondro In the calendar year right now is the beginning one of the more interesting times in the NHL. Just days ahead of the entry draft, teams are starting to make trades and while off-season stuff doesn't match games, it can come pretty close.

Gordie Howe, the sport's beloved 'Mr. Hockey,' dies at 88 By Nathan Salant Detroit - Detroit's Gordie Howe, a young Saskatchewan farmer who left rural Canada to become one of the best ice hockey players of all time, died Friday at the home of one of his sons in the United States. He was 88.

Op-Ed: NHL fan tattoos a Gary Bettman face on butt after Twitter boast By Marcus Hondro Guys, would you promise to get another man's face tattooed upon your rear-end because, on a whim, you said you would if a certain event took place? And if it took place would you follow through? Isn't that something only, well, only an ass would do?

Maple Leafs beat Flames, youth leads way as Toronto wins 4 of 5 By Marcus Hondro The Toronto Maple Leafs may have in effect been out of the playoff race before the puck dropped on the 2015-16 season but of late they've looked like a contender. The Leafs latest win was well-earned and helps them continue an impressive run.

NHL clears Patrick Kane, says sex assault allegations 'unfounded' By Marcus Hondro Four months after the prosecutor in the case decided not to recommend charges against Patrick Kane, the NHL has completed its own investigation into the allegations and found them to be "unfounded." The league released its results on Wednesday.

Bo knows short side: Bo Horvat scores twice, Canucks win in OT By Marcus Hondro The Vancouver Canucks made sure they did not waste a wonderful performance in goal Friday night as, despite giving up a late goal, they scored in overtime to beat the Carolina Hurricanes, 3-2. The Canucks were led by goalie Jacob Markstrom and Bo Horvat.

Op-Ed: Vancouver Canucks on a losing streak, heading for high draft pick By Marcus Hondro If there are any Vancouver Canuck fans, any hockey fans anywhere, who are of the opinion the Canucks have any chance whatever of winning the Stanley Cup this year then state your case in the comments section below. Or forever hold your peace.

Op-Ed: Lou Lamoriello named new Maple Leafs GM By Mark Shiffer Toronto - The Toronto Maple Leafs have hired veteran Lou Lamoriello as their new general manager. Now they have a talented front office but need to show improvement on the ice.

Op-Ed: Unwise Canucks GM Benning ignored offers on Miller to trade Lack By Marcus Hondro Vancouver Canucks fans did not want Eddie Lack traded, period. There was a website devoted to begging GM Jim Benning to keep him and after Lack was traded there was anger. That anger has grown with news the Canucks could have dealt Ryan Miller instead.

Op-Ed: Gary Bettman needs to accept hockey will never work in Arizona By Ben Morris Glendale - When Glendale voted to break the lease between the City and the Arizona Coyotes; more off ice drama hit a franchise that's been rife with instability. Yet Gary Bettman insists Arizona can thrive as a hockey market when the facts show that's not the case.

Op-Ed: Blackhawks vs Lightning: Who'll hoist Lord Stanley's grand prize? By David Goehst Tampa - It's Toews versus Stamkos, Quenneville versus Cooper and fate versus perseverance as two elite NHL franchises in Chicago and Tampa Bay collide when the Stanley Cup final begins Wednesday night.

Op-Ed: Hockey analysts show bias in comments about Alex Burrows By Marcus Hondro Alex Burrows did not get suspended for his hit upon Paul Gaustad but for most of us it was never an issue. Suspended for what? Skating in his lane and looking for a pass? Some hockey pundits have allowed their dislike of Burrows to cloud their brains.

Op-Ed: Toffoli gets away with Burrows hit as NHL fumbles puck yet again By Marcus Hondro NHL disciplinary gurus fell asleep at the Zamboni wheel again recently after their failure to suspend L.A. Kings forward Tyler Toffoli. Toffoli did exactly what the NHL has said you can no longer do — he hit Alex Burrows from behind into the boards.

Report: The 5 cities NHLers don't want to play in By Michael Thomas A new report says that cities like Winnipeg and Edmonton are the most common places on no-trade clauses by NHL players. Canada in general fares pretty badly.

Henrik Sedin gets 200th NHL goal as Canucks clip Red Wings By Marcus Hondro It wasn't a classic but Henrik Sedin's empty-net goal, the milestone 200th goal of his NHL career, did help nail down his team's 4-1 win over the visiting Detroit Red Wings Saturday. Sedin soon after scored number 201, again into an empty net.

Leafs look to continue hot streak against slumping Devils By Nate Smith The Toronto Maple Leafs seek their fifth win in six games, and third in a row, Thursday when they welcome the New Jersey Devils to the Air Canada Centre for a 7:30 p.m. puck drop.

Oilers drop 11th straight, 3-2 (OT) in Winnipeg By Nate Smith Despite leading in a game for just the fourth time since Remembrance Day, the Edmonton Oilers lost again Wednesday night — a crippling 3-2 overtime defeat in Winnipeg.

Forbes: Toronto Maple Leafs tops in NHL value, teams' value rises By Marcus Hondro Blame it on the deal with Rogers Communications, if you want to find a reason for the average worth of NHL franchises vaulting all the way up to $490 million. That and the value of the Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Rangers and Montreal Canadiens.

NHL stars of week: Jamie Benn, Jannik Hansen, Tomas Tatar By Marcus Hondro The National Hockey League named its three stars of the week on ending Nov. 23 on Monday and two of the players players aren't big stars. Jamie Benn is a star, okay, but not Jannik Hansen and Tomas Tatar.

New 4D technology to enhance the way hockey fans watch game By Ben Morris San Jose - Since hockey first appeared on TV screens, fans have craved for a more realistic experience while sitting on the couch, and drinking beers. Now one NHL team has announced they are taking home viewing to a new level.

Toronto Maple Leafs seek fourth straight win as they host Boston By Nate Smith The Toronto Maple Leafs are out to collect their sixth point in three games Wednesday when they host rival Bruins from Boston in a national televised matchup.

Op-Ed: The seven best 7th round picks in NHL history By Ben Morris Detroit - Drafting your next crop of players is not easy. Every team has believed they drafted their next big piece to see that player fail to meet expectations. Those picks, integral to building competitive teams make G.M's look like fools or geniuses.

Ads on front of NHL jerseys are coming, league exec says By Marcus Hondro For many NHL fans this is going to be really bad news: jersey ads are coming. It's not known when, or what they'll look like, but NHL chief operating officer, one John Collins, said that sooner or later they'll be here.

Vancouver Canucks home sellout streak ends at 474 - narrowly By Marcus Hondro The Vancouver Canucks had quite the sellout streak going but it ended Saturday night. The game against the Tampa Bay Lightning marked the first time the Canucks did not sell out a regular season game in 474 games, a streak dating back to Nov. 14, 2002.

Ducks goalie John Gibson temporarily reassigned By Nate Smith The Anaheim Ducks have reassigned young, emerging netminder John Gibson to its American Hockey League Affiliate, the Norfolk Admirals, the club announced this week.

Florida Panthers losing history being blamed for poor attendance By Ben Morris Sunrise - It is a picture that went viral for all the wrong reasons. An early season game between the Ottawa Senators visiting the Florida Panthers had such little attendance, many have called for the re-location of the Florida Panthers.

Op-Ed: The 5 dumbest moves made by the old Winnipeg Jets By Ben Morris Winnipeg - The original Winnipeg Jets had very little success. The glory days of the WHA were replaced by years of futility. The Jets had some success in the mid 80s,with Dale Hawerchuk but bad personnel decisions played a part in the move to Phoenix in 1996.

Op-Ed: Montreal's George Hainsworth: The forgotten great By Ben Morris Montreal - He played for a franchise that arguably has the greatest goaltending in the history of the NHL. While legends like Roy, Dryden, and Plante get the glory, one old time Montreal Canadien gets little to no recognition.

NHL’s Pacific Division features frontrunners and rebuilding teams By Fedor Fedin As the beginning of the NHL season looms, it’s time to review the teams' off-season moves as well as take a glimpse of what the 2014-15 NHL season may hold for them. Here’s a quick breakdown of how the Pacific division teams spent their summer.

Op-Ed: Islanders good bet to be most-improved NHL team By Mark J. Allan Many NHL teams are upwardly mobile, but only one will be the most-improved squad during the coming season, likely helping its coach to the Jack Adams Trophy.

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