January 22, 20187 yr Vegas is now first in the entire NHL going into today's games! After 46 games Vegas is an amazing 31-11-4 with 66 points. That's one point more than Tampa Bay, who has 65 points in 46 games: http://nhl.nbcsports.com/2018/01/21/expansion-golden-knights-are-officially-in-first-place/ To argue that Vegas is the best expansion team in NHL history is a foregone conclusion. Now Vegas is entering the realm of being the best expansion team in the four major sports leagues - EVER. This ESPN article delves into the history of expansion teams in the four major sports leagues of the NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL since 1960: http://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/21967950/nhl-vegas-golden-knights-best-expansion-franchise-ever How the previous 63 expansion teams among the four major sports since 1960 have performed: - - Teams with a winning record: 0 - Teams that made the playoffs: 5 - Teams that had the worst record in the league: 21 However, the part about five expansion teams making the playoff deserves a huge asterisk. One of those expansion playoff teams was the NBA's 1976-77 Denver Nuggets, one of several ABA teams that merged with the NBA that year. Denver finished first in their new NBA division after winning 60+ games in their final two ABA seasons. The other four expansion playoff teams came in the NHL's 1967-68 season. But that was because the NHL expanded from its 'Original Six' to 12 teams - and then placed all six expansion teams in the same division, which accounted for all four of those playoff spots.
February 2, 20187 yr Vegas won their 34th game last night. Which sets a new record for the most wins for an NHL expansion team. And there is still 32 remaining games on the Vegas regular-season schedule! https://www.nhl.com/news/vegas-golden-knights-enjoy-ride-to-historic-34th-victory/c-295541394?tid=277548856
February 14, 20187 yr Gary Bettman passed the 25-year mark this month in his tenure as NHL commissioner. ESPN posted an extensive recap of his lengthy reign: http://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/22273439/good-bad-ugly-gary-bettman-25-year-nhl-tenure Gary Bettman's tenure as NHL commissioner is notable in many ways. The first being that he is the first commissioner in NHL history. In the previous 75 years of the NHL, team owners simply selected one their own to be a league president. But as the league expanded from its "original 6" to 20+ in 1990's, that leadership structure became less tenable. So Bettmann was hired away from the NBA in 1993 at the youngish age of 40 for a league commissioner. His biggest task was replacing an "old boys' club" mentality with a business-oriented approach to grow the NHL. And in his 25-year tenure, the NHL has grown up: -- In 1993-94, NHL revenue was $732 million. In 2017-18, revenue was projected at $4.54 billion. -- In 1993-94, the annual player salary averaged $558,000. By 2015-16, that number was at $2.9 million. -- In 2003, the average NHL team was valued at $150 million. In 2016, the average value was $594 million. -- The Toronto Maple Leafs became the NHL's first billion-dollar team in 2012; the New York Rangers and Montreal Canadiens soon joined them, with Forbes valuing the Rangers at $1.5 billion. -- In 1993, it cost an expansion franchise $50 million to join the NHL. Last year the Vegas Golden Knights paid a $500 million expansion fee. -- 26 of the NHL's 31 teams have moved into new arenas during Bettman's tenure. Now as the above linked article notes, not everything has been smooth sailing during Bettman's tenure - most notably the three season stoppages due to labor issues during his 25 years. But despite the public boos that greet Bettman at most public appearances, I won't join them. The NHL has been nothing short of welcoming to Columbus and Blue Jackets franchise.
February 17, 20187 yr Seattle applies for NHL franchise Seattle has officially applied to be the NHL's 32nd team. The paperwork -- plus a $10 million down payment -- arrived Tuesday, nearly two months after commissioner Gary Bettman authorized an ownership group, the Oak View Group, to conduct a season-ticket drive in Seattle and invited the city to apply for expansion. The league set the expansion fee at $650 million, a steep increase from the $500 million the Vegas Golden Knights paid to enter the league this season. The goal is for the new franchise to enter the NHL for the 2020-21 season. ... The ticket drive should begin in the next few weeks and will determine whether the league accepts Seattle's bid. The NHL has long coveted Seattle, but the city never had a singular ownership group or arena, which hindered its chances -- until now. In December, the Seattle City Council approved a memorandum of understanding for the privately financed Oak View Group to move forward with a $600 million remodeling of Key Arena, paving the way for potential NBA and NHL franchises. MORE: http://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/22425683/seattle-makes-official-application-nhl-franchise
February 20, 20187 yr ugh... why did we ban players from the olympics... We have a miracle team that really hasn't pulled off any miracles... The Russians let theirs in, as a result Kovalchuck a former Atlanta Thrashers and NJ Devils player currently in the KHL, scored all 4 of Russia's goals against America, TBH we're lucky we just beat Slovakia and advanced to the quarter finals, but we face a tough challenge as Czechia has swept its full group including a win over Canada. Tough challenges ahead. If only Herb Brooks were here to see this 'maybe' happen.
March 30, 20187 yr Apparently a 36-year-old accountant who last played hockey in college at Western Michigan got to play as an emergency goalie for the Chicago Blackhawks last night for 14 minutes, stopping all 7 shots by the playoff-bound Winnipeg Jets. http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2767410-blackhawks-emergency-goalie-scott-fosters-nhl-debut-sparks-twitter-reaction The primary reason this must be fake news is that everyone knows there is no such thing as an accountant with 14 minutes to spare in late March.
April 3, 20187 yr http://nhl.nbcsports.com/2018/04/02/two-of-a-kind-sedin-twins-retire-from-nhl-canucks/ Henrik and Daniel Sedin (aka the Sedin twins) announced they will be retiring at the end of this season. Although many brothers and family siblings have played in the same sport, the identical Sedin twins are pretty unique in sports history. The only other time I can remember identical twins playing together is when the Burge twins played for the University of Virginia women's basketball team in the early 90's (at 6'-5", Heidi and Heather Burge were recognized in 1991 by Guinness World Records as the world's tallest female twins). But the 37-year-old Sedin twins have played at the top level of world hockey since joining the NHL in 1999. How they got to the NHL - and how they got to play for the same team - is also a pretty good story. The Vancouver GM made a series of trades to acquire both the #2 & #3 first-round picks in the 1999 draft, and also got an assurance from the team with the #1 overall pick that they would not pick one of the Sedins: https://globalnews.ca/news/2775878/how-brian-burkes-dealmaking-brought-the-sedins-to-the-vancouver-canucks/ The Sedin twins were back-to-back league MVP's in 2010 & 2011 and led the Canucks to the 2011 Stanley Cup - coming within one game of winning the title. In their 18 seasons with Vancouver, Daniel Sedin had 391 goals & 1,038 points in 1,303 regular-season games. While Henrik Sedin had 240 goals & 1,068 points in 1,327 regular-season games. Not quite identical numbers, but very close.
April 18, 20187 yr The amazing Vegas inaugural season continues. It's already been an historic season for the Golden Knights. They set a new record for the most wins (51 - going 51-24-7) and points (109) for an NHL expansion team. Then they won the Pacific Division to become the first expansion team in the NHL, NBA, NFL or MLB to win its division in its inaugural season (excluding mergers). Now Vegas has become the first franchise in NHL history to sweep a postseason series in its inaugural season. Vegas swept the L.A. Kings last night in the opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
April 18, 20187 yr I was curious about this, so I looked up the Golden Knights' payroll to see if they came in with a huge splash backed up by some big Vegas money. Big money, but par-for-the-course money for a team making a playoff push, as measured by remaining cap space: http://www.spotrac.com/nhl/cap/ They're over $74 million of the $75 million cap. But so are a lot of teams, including Columbus, Pittsburgh, and Philadelphia. Vegas is only 9th overall in the NHL, still well into the top half but not at all crazy for a playoff team. Seventeen teams are over $70 million. I didn't go back to see what the LV payroll was at the start of the season and/or up until the trade deadline.
April 18, 20187 yr I was curious about this, so I looked up the Golden Knights' payroll to see if they came in with a huge splash backed up by some big Vegas money. Big money, but par-for-the-course money for a team making a playoff push, as measured by remaining cap space: http://www.spotrac.com/nhl/cap/ They're over $74 million of the $75 million cap. But so are a lot of teams, including Columbus, Pittsburgh, and Philadelphia. Vegas is only 9th overall in the NHL, still well into the top half but not at all crazy for a playoff team. Seventeen teams are over $70 million. I didn't go back to see what the LV payroll was at the start of the season and/or up until the trade deadline. The cap hit Vegas carried this season is a bit deceptive. During the expansion draft, they made a number of deals to take on other teams injured-reserve players for high draft picks. The two biggest were David Clarkson from the Blue Jackets and Mikhail Grabovski from the New York Islanders. Both of the 34-year-old players are unlikely to ever play again, due to injuries. But because of NHL contract rules, they can't be cut and they're salaries still count against the league salary cap. So Vegas struck deals to acquire Clarkson and Grabovski for the Jackets and Islanders 2017 1st-round picks (they also got a 2nd & 3rd pick in later years from those teams). Vegas can carry that load currently because they got a number of a "bargain players" in the expansion draft. The biggest "bargain players" were Wild Bill Karlsson from Columbus who got 43 goals this season and only cost $1,000,000, and Jonathan Marchessault from Florida who got 27 goals and only cost $750,000! https://capfriendly.com/teams/goldenknights Also, being able to pick a great goalie like Marc-Andre Fleury doesn't hurt! But the real secret to Vegas' success was that they targeted players that can play the way today's NHL plays - fast. The days of the slow but ruggedly effective player in the NHL is over. Those kind of players are now an anchor to NHL teams and their salary cap structure. As an example, look at a once highly regarded player like 29-year-old Milan Lucic. Lucic was signed as a free-agent by the Edmonton Oilers to a 7-year, $42-million deal. Now at year 2 of that deal, his production plummeted to only 34 points - and he is still owed $6-mil/year for five more seasons! And every team has some type of "Lucic-type contract" on their roster. Which hampers their overall effectiveness. With this expansion draft, Vegas was able to start fresh with their roster to a degree that other teams couldn't. Plus Vegas made some very smart decisions in assembling their roster.
May 9, 20187 yr The Vegas Golden Knights expansion season story continues. Vegas has advanced into the Western Conference Finals and will face the winner of Thursday's Game 7 between Nashville and Winnipeg.
May 9, 20187 yr In the East, the Washington Capitals finally got past Pittsburgh and into the Eastern Conference Finals. (They'll face the Tampa Bay Lightning, who eliminated Boston in 5). The Caps have made the playoffs in 10 of the last 11 seasons. But despite finishing 1st in their division seven times and having the best regular-season record in the NHL three times over those 11 seasons, this is the first time they have advanced to the conference finals during the Ovechkin era. So this is a big roadblock they've overcome. It almost makes me feel better about the Caps eliminating my Blue Jackets in the previous round. Almost.
May 21, 20187 yr The amazing expansion season of the Vegas Golden Knights ... still continues!!! https://www.sbnation.com/nhl/2018/5/20/17374366/vegas-golden-knights-stanley-cup-final-first-season Vegas eliminated Winnipeg in five to win the Western Conference and advance into the Stanley Cup Final. Vegas will face the winner of the Tampa Bay/Washington Eastern Conference Final. (Tampa Bay leads Washington 3-2 going into tomorrow night's game)
May 21, 20187 yr The amazing expansion season of the Vegas Golden Knights ... still continues!!! https://www.sbnation.com/nhl/2018/5/20/17374366/vegas-golden-knights-stanley-cup-final-first-season Vegas eliminated Winnipeg in five to win the Western Conference and advance into the Stanley Cup Final. Vegas will face the winner of the Tampa Bay/Washington Eastern Conference Final. (Tampa Bay leads Washington 3-2 going into tomorrow night's game) Las Vegas vs Tampa Bay is about as bad as it gets for the NHL for me. Just fold half the Canadian cities and make it like the other three big North American sport leagues. Almost feels like Canada should start over with a new hockey league. The NBA has four teams in the conference finals which are so much more intriguing than what even expansion Vegas has to offer. Even a Cavs/GS IV Finals will blow the Stanley Cup out of the water in terms of ratings.
May 21, 20187 yr Las Vegas vs Tampa Bay is about as bad as it gets for the NHL for me. Just fold half the Canadian cities and make it like the other three big North American sport leagues. Almost feels like Canada should start over with a new hockey league. Vegas vs Tampa Bay is as good as it gets ... if you like NHL hockey. Because both Vegas and Tampa Bay play the fastest most fun style of hockey in the NHL today. And don't feel bad for Canada - they've got plenty of canadians on both teams they will point to with national pride. As for the TV ratings: https://www.forbes.com/sites/davecaldwell/2018/05/16/nbc-hits-the-ratings-jackpot-with-the-vegas-golden-knights/
May 21, 20187 yr Even ESPN (which hasn't broadcast the NHL in years) is getting on the Vegas bandwagon:
May 21, 20187 yr The Golden Knights have 12 Stanley Cup playoff wins in their first season. The Jackets have 5 playoff wins since their inception in 2000. **** the Knights, imo. Very Stable Genius
May 21, 20187 yr The Golden Knights have 12 Stanley Cup playoff wins in their first season. The Jackets have 5 playoff wins since their inception in 2000. **** the Knights, imo. As amazing as the Vegas first season has been, I do think it would be for the best if they fell short of the Stanley Cup this season. And that's nothing against the Vegas fans - but if a team wins EVERYTHING in its first year, there's nowhere to go but down! Plus, as a Blue Jackets fan, I would like to see the CBJ win their first playoff series before Vegas wins their first Stanley Cup.
May 21, 20187 yr As long as the Lightning don't win, I don't care either way who wins the Stanley Cup. If Tampa wins the series, I will be rooting for the Golden Knights, though.
May 21, 20187 yr I'm a Red Wings fan. They knocked us out of the playoffs in 2015 and 2016. Games have gotten pretty heated in the last few years. I like Yzerman, so that will be the one positive outcome of a Lightning win. They've been one of the best teams in the NHL for the past few years, though. Definitely better than the Wings those two years they eliminated us.
May 22, 20187 yr ^ That's understandable. The Caps won last night to force a Game 7 at Tampa on Wednesday.
May 24, 20187 yr The Washington Capitals soundly defeated the Lightning in Tampa last night: https://www.nhl.com/news/washington-capitals-tampa-bay-lightning-game-7-recap/c-298766662?tid=297170866 The Caps have been exorcising their playoff demons this year. First, by advancing to the Conference Finals for the first time during the Ovechkin-era. Now, by advancing to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time during the Ovechkin-era. So its Vegas vs. Washington for the Stanley Cup -- "Sin City vs. The Swamp"?
May 24, 20187 yr ^ I'll root for the Swamp. I'm a firm believer that the LV fans don't yet deserve a championship. Not yet.
May 31, 20187 yr Vegas knows how to put on a show. And they've been putting on elaborate pre-game presentations during the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Below is the pre-game show they did for Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals:
May 31, 20187 yr As for the actual games, its all tied up going back to Washington on Saturday for Game 3. Vegas won a high-scoring Game 1. Then Washington fought back with a more StanleyCupian-type victory in Game 2 - which included this amazing win-preserving save with 1:59 left in the game: https://www.cbssports.com/nhl/news/nhl-playoffs-2018-braden-holtbys-save-to-preserve-capitals-win-is-worth-watching-on-repeat/
June 5, 20187 yr The Caps are now up 3-1 over Vegas. And with Washington on the verge of winning the series, this means that the greatest trophy in sports - The Stanley Cup - will be in the Vegas T-Mobile Arena for Game 5 on Thursday:
June 8, 20187 yr http://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/23728721/2018-stanley-cup-final-alex-ovechkin-washington-capitals-win-stanley-cup-nhl Ovechkin gets his Cup, in his 14th season, as D.C. celebrates its first sports title since 1992. The Caps won Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final, 4-3 on the road in Vegas, to close out the 2017-2018 season with their first Stanley Cup in franchise history. Very Stable Genius
June 8, 20187 yr No playoff choking this season for the Caps. So happy for them and Ovi: https://russianmachineneverbreaks.com/2018/06/08/these-gifs-of-alex-ovechkin-finally-raising-the-stanley-cup-will-give-you-all-the-feels/
June 10, 20187 yr And the CBJ started up 2-0 against them--on the road. Sigh. What might have been. Please don't remind me! :o
June 10, 20187 yr Trade alert...The Cavs and the Monsters go to Columbus and they give Cleveland the Blue jackets in return! I so wish. I just don't understand with all the high school hockey in the Northern part of the state how we only have a minor league team.
June 11, 20187 yr Trade alert...The Cavs and the Monsters go to Columbus and they give Cleveland the Blue jackets in return! If LeBron stays, we might have a deal! ;)
June 11, 20187 yr Trade alert...The Cavs and the Monsters go to Columbus and they give Cleveland the Blue jackets in return! If LeBron stays, we might have a deal! ;) I don't think he should stay if the Cavs go. Can he skate?
June 13, 20187 yr If anyone needed a reminder why NHL fans wanted to see the Caps win the Cup - here's a video of the Top 10 Alex Ovechkin Stanley Cup Trophy moments (so far) and a video of today's Stanley Cup celebration in D.C. that features Ovi dropping the f-bomb at the end!
June 19, 20186 yr Well, the good feelings didn't last very long for the reigning Stanley Cup Champs. In stunning news, Barry Trotz announced his resignation as Head Coach of the Washington Capitals: https://nhl.nbcsports.com/2018/06/18/barry-trotz-steps-down-as-capitals-head-coach/ Trotz was on the last year of his current contract going into the 2017-18 season. The Stanley Cup win triggered a two-year extension with a small salary raise. Reports are that Tortz wanted a bigger salary raise and a five-year extension from the team - but the team was hesitant to make that kind of commitment - leading to today's resignation announcement from Tortz: https://nhl.nbcsports.com/2018/06/18/contract-ask-led-to-breakup-between-barry-trotz-capitals/
June 22, 20186 yr Stanley-Cup winning head coach Barry Trotz didn't stay unemployed for very long. (less than a week, actually) The New York Islanders hired Barry Trotz to be their next head coach - and he will reportedly get the five-year term he was looking for from the Caps, at more than double his previous season's salary: Islanders hire Barry Trotz as head coach
June 22, 20186 yr The Barry Tortz hire is an interesting development for the Islanders. The Isles had a head coach vacancy because of a front office shakeup over this off-season. The Isles hired the legendary Lou Lamoriello as their President of Hockey Operations in May. In June he fired the Isles head coach and general manager, assuming the GM role himself. Now with the Barry Tortz hire, the Isles have a Stanley Cup winning head coach and a three-time Stanley Cup winning GM for the next season. These moves were made with an eye at keeping their franchise superstar center John Tavares from leaving to free-agency this summer. This would help the franchise's short-term prospects. Over the past year, the franchise helped their long-term prospects with a deal to build a new arena next to the Belmont Racetrack on Long Island. More about that in this thread: https://www.urbanohio.com/forum/index.php/topic,16112.msg885225.html#msg885225
June 22, 20186 yr The Barry Tortz hire is an interesting development for the Islanders. The Isles had a head coach vacancy because of a front office shakeup over this off-season. The Isles hired the legendary Lou Lamoriello as their President of Hockey Operations in May. In June he fired the Isles head coach and general manager, assuming the GM role himself. Now with the Barry Tortz hire, the Isles have a Stanley Cup winning head coach and a three-time Stanley Cup winning GM for the next season. These moves were made with an eye at keeping their franchise superstar center John Tavares from leaving to free-agency this summer. This would help the franchise's short-term prospects. Over the past year, the franchise helped their long-term prospects with a deal to build a new arena next to the Belmont Racetrack on Long Island. More about that in this thread: https://www.urbanohio.com/forum/index.php/topic,16112.msg885225.html#msg885225 This franchise is due for a resurgence. Lou's maybe got some magic left.
July 1, 20186 yr NHL free-agency opened today and the Islanders lost their franchise superstar center John Tavares to Toronto. The Maple Leafs signed signed Taveres to a 7-year deal, which he called a childhood dream to play for his hometown team. Of course, the prospect of pairing with a bevy of young offensive stars - led by the generational talent of Auston Matthews - and the prospect of winning a Stanley Cup for the "Center of the Hockey Universe" probably didn't hurt either: https://nhl.nbcsports.com/2018/07/01/john-tavares-signs-with-maple-leafs-to-live-childhood-dream/
July 6, 20186 yr That blockbuster P.K. Subban for Weber trade keeps looking worse and worse for the Habs: https://nhl.nbcsports.com/2018/07/05/shea-weber-expected-to-miss-5-6-months-after-knee-surgery/
September 14, 20186 yr Training camps start today for the 2018-19 NHL season. On the eve of this, the Ottawa Senators traded away their franchise defenseman Erik Karlsson to the San Jose Sharks. Karlsson's is on the final season of his current contract and will be an UFA at the end of this upcoming season - if he doesn't sign an extension - which he said he would not sign with Ottawa. It's easy to see why Karlsson wanted out of Ottawa. The Sens were a playoff team in 2016-17 with a 44-28-10. But in 2017-18, they backslid to 28-43-11, 2nd worst in their division, the Eastern Conference and the entire NHL (only the slightly more pitiful Buffalo Sabres kept them from dead last). With the Ottawa front office in turmoil, the team is on a cost-cutting binge and their 2018-19 prospects look just as bad as last season's. Tearing down a roster to acquire draft picks and prospects is a time-honored rebuilding strategy in the NHL. However, one big hole in that strategy is that Ottawa traded away their 2019 1st-round draft pick to acquire disgruntled center Matt Duchene from Colorado early in 2017-18 season. So if Ottawa completely tanks and gets the #1 overall draft pick for 2019, it will go to Colorado! San Jose acquired Karlsson for a 2019 or 2020 first-round pick, a 2019 second-round pick and a collection of mid-level NHL players and prospects - kind of a quantity over quality return for Ottawa. Adding Karlsson to a San Jose team that went 45-27-10 last season is going to make them one of the Stanley Cup favorites in the West. Karlsson was the premier offensive defenseman in the Eastern Conference. San Jose's Brent Burns was the premier offensive defenseman in the Western Conference. Now they're on the same team, along with solid offensive talent and solid goaltending. https://nhl.nbcsports.com/2018/09/13/erik-karlsson-dealt-to-sharks-as-senators-continue-roster-teardown/
September 28, 20186 yr I wrote in the CBJ thread about the Blue Jackets adventures in mascotting when they introduced an alternative mascot some years ago that was such a bomb that after the initial unveiling was never seen again. The Philadelphia Flyers might be doing to same thing when they recently introduced a new mascot for their NHL team called "Gritty":
September 28, 20186 yr So far, the reviews haven't been good. A sampling from http://www2.philly.com/philly/sports/flyers/gritty-philadelphia-flyers-mascot-social-media-reaction-fans-20180924.html Even Philly Flyers forward (and former Blue Jacket) Jake Voracek got roped into the "grittiness": Although, some have made a "so bad its good" argument for Gritty and it could be perfect for social media. However, Gritty slipped and fell down multiple times in its first time on the arena ice. So they might want to fix that - because he's a hockey mascot - and hockey's played on ice:
September 29, 20186 yr Seattle one step closer to NHL after arena plan approved The Seattle City Council unanimously approved plans for a privately funded $700 million renovation of KeyArena on Monday, clearing one of the last major hurdles in the city’s bid to land an expansion NHL franchise. The 8-0 vote was the last step needed to strengthen Seattle’s expansion application and it means a team could be playing in the new building during the 2020-21 season. The next phase in the arena/franchise process comes next week when Seattle Hockey Partners, the ownership group attempting to land the expansion team, presents before the NHL Board of Governors’ Executive Committee. ( . . . ) The vote ended a debate that began in the mid-2000s when Howard Schultz, then the owner of the Seattle SuperSonics, said the city-owned KeyArena needed renovations. The lack of luxury amenities and a challenging lease agreement ultimately led to the Sonics leaving following the 2008 season and moving to Oklahoma City. ... Numerous arena plans have been presented since but none had gotten to this point. And while the vote didn’t provide healing for fans hurt by the Sonics move, it did create the likelihood that the city will land an NHL team soon and could one day see the NBA return. For now, the NHL is the priority. The pitch to the Executive Committee next week should be mostly straightforward. Seattle is the largest market in the United States that doesn’t have a winter professional sports team. The local economy is booming and season ticket deposits for the prospective team were cut off at 33,000 earlier this year after a swell of interest. ... The goal is to have the building ready by the fall of 2020 so a team could start that season. MORE: https://nhl.nbcsports.com/2018/09/24/seattle-one-step-closer-to-nhl-after-arena-plan-approved/
October 3, 20186 yr The NHL Board of Governors’ executive committee recommended proceeding with Seattle’s expansion application, with an eye on voting to approve the league’s 32nd franchise in December. When the board next meets Dec. 3-4, Commissioner Bettman expects a full report on Seattle expansion and said the goal is to for the governors to vote at that time, with 24 of 32 needed for approval. It’s conceivable the board votes to give Seattle the green light for 2020, contingent on their arena being ready, with the option to push things back to 2021 if necessary: https://nhl.nbcsports.com/2018/10/02/nhl-is-moving-forward-with-seattle-expansion-bid/ https://www.cbssports.com/nhl/news/nhl-expansion-in-seattle-gary-bettman-gives-mayor-green-light-after-ownership-group-makes-its-case/
October 3, 20186 yr The 2018-19 NHL season begins tonight. The 2018 Stanley Cup Champs will be hosting the first game of the U.S. broadcast schedule. The Caps will get to raise the Stanley Cup banner before their opening night game against the Boston Bruins. Earlier this week they received their championship rings and got to finally see their names engraved on the Cup:
October 4, 20186 yr The Washington Capitals rose their 2018 Stanley Cup banner to the rafters and began their defense of that championship with a surprising 7-0 rout of the Boston Bruins last night. But they were missing a key player from last season's Stanley Cup team. Tom Wilson was given a 20-game suspension by the NHL prior to the 2018-19 season opener. It was for an illegal hit to the head delivered by Wilson in a preseason game. -- Article about the suspension: https://nhl.nbcsports.com/2018/10/03/message-sent-nhl-suspends-tom-wilson-for-20-games/ -- NHL Department of Player Safety video on the suspension: https://www.nhl.com/video/wilson-suspended-20-games/t-277440360/c-61556003 As bad as that preseason hit was, Wilson received the 20-game suspension as much for his cumulative history of taking head shots and causing injuries then for just that one hit. Wilson is a 6'-4" winger who plays a tough physical game. He's not a "goon" in the classic hockey sense of a goon being a player with limited hockey skill - Wilson had 14 goals and 21 assists last season and 15 points in Washington's 21 playoff games. But the 24-year-old Wilson's resume of questionable/illegal hits has added up over the past two seasons: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Wilson_(ice_hockey)#Suspensions As the wikipedia page shows, in the 2017 preseason Wilson received a two preseason game ban for an illegal hit. He was then suspended for the first four games of the 2017-18 regular season for an illegal hit in the final 2017 preseason game. In the 2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Wilson was suspended for three playoff games for an illegal hit in the Pittsburgh series (and this was after he delivered a very questionable head shot to the CBJ's Wennberg in Game One of the previous WASH/C-BUS series - knocking Wennberg out of this series - that did not receive a suspension). Then Wilson delivers the illegal hit in the 2018 preseason game to got him this latest suspension - which was after being ejected from a previous preseason game for another illegal hit. This 20-game suspension was the NHL's message to Wilson that he either stops with the headhunting, or he'll be suspended from the league. It was noted that because Wilson is a repeat offender, his next offense would likely be a half-year 41-game suspension. (Something that was given to past repeat offender Raffi Torres in 2015 - after Torres received a 21-game suspension)
November 6, 20186 yr If you don't think that NHL head coaches are looked at as disposable commodities - I give you Joel Quenneville: http://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/25194160/blackhawks-fire-coach-joel-quenneville The Chicago Blackhawks fired Quenneville after a slow start this season. Quenneville is the second-winningest coach in NHL history and has been with Chicago since 2008 and won three Stanley Cups with the Blackhawks (2010 - 2013 - 2015). Last season the Blackhawks missed the playoffs for the first time in a decade - mostly because they were without starting goaltender Corey Crawford for most of the season. So when the management thought they needed to gin up the team after a slow start, they pulled the old "fire the head coach" card - even when that coach led you to three Stanley Cups!
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