Greg Wyshynski is ESPN’s senior NHL writer. The NHL will have advertising on the front of team jerseys for the first time starting in the 2022-23 season, a source told ESPN. The league’s board of governors formally voted this month to approve jersey advertisements. The NHL had surveyed its teams and found the majority of them in favor of jersey […]

Hall of Fame goaltender Tony Esposito, who was a fixture for the Chicago Blackhawks, has died at the age of 78. Blackhawks owner Rocky Wirtz said in a statement that Esposito had a brief battle with pancreatic cancer. Chicago claimed Esposito from the Montreal Canadiens in what was then an intra-league draft in 1969. He became a Blackhawks institution. In […]

Greg Wyshynski is ESPN’s senior NHL writer. When the NHL released its 2021-22 regular-season schedule, it featured a Winter Olympics break from Feb. 7-22 with the caveat that “no final agreement or decision has been made regarding the possible participation of players.” If the NHL doesn’t send its players to the Beijing Games, it would switch to a revised schedule […]

Greg Wyshynski is ESPN’s senior NHL writer. The NHL free-agency frenzy of 2021 started 27 days later than the usual opening day of July 1, but it was as wild as any in recent memory, with more than $500 million spent on deals on the first day alone. A number of valuable players remain who have yet to make their […]

Avalanche free-agent addition Darren Helm won the Stanley Cup as an NHL rookie in 2008. The speedy forward played just seven regular-season games for Detroit in 2007-08, but 18 of 22 in the playoffs and all six in the Cup Final against Pittsburgh. Helm hoisted the Cup at age 21, and after 14 seasons with the Red Wings, he hopes […]

Greg Wyshynski is ESPN’s senior NHL writer. The NHL has rejected the free-agent contract the Seattle Kraken signed with goaltender Philipp Grubauer, a source confirmed on Sunday. Grubauer, an unrestricted free agent from the Colorado Avalanche, signed a six-year, $35.4 million deal with the expansion team on Wednesday, with an average annual value of $5.9 million against the salary cap. […]

Reigning Vezina Trophy winner Marc-Andre Fleury has agreed to play for the Chicago Blackhawks, a source confirmed to ESPN’s Emily Kaplan. The Blackhawks posted a flower emoji on their Twitter account early Sunday morning, then multiple reports said Fleury had decided to play for Chicago. The Blackhawks had acquired Fleury from the Vegas Golden Knights for minor league forward Mikael […]

Emily Kaplan is ESPN’s national NHL reporter. The New Jersey Devils agreed to a contract with free-agent defenseman Dougie Hamilton on Wednesday. Hamilton, one of the largest prizes in this free-agent class, signed a seven-year deal with a $9 million average annual value, a source confirmed to ESPN. Hamilton, 28, had 10 goals and 42 points last season for the […]

Emily Kaplan is ESPN’s national NHL reporter. The Seattle Kraken have made a splash in free agency, signing goalie Philipp Grubauer to a six-year deal worth $5.9 million annually Wednesday, the team announced. The deal comes after Grubauer and his former team, the Colorado Avalanche, were unable to come to a contract agreement. Those discussions carried over into Wednesday, sources […]

Typically, NHL free agency begins on July 1 each offseason: a cherished tradition on Canada Day up north, and a pre-Independence Day festival of commerce for those of us in the United States. On July 1, 2021, the Stanley Cup had yet to be awarded. But 27 days later, we are ready for the frenzy to begin. While the key […]