Greg Wyshynski is ESPN’s senior NHL writer. Tom Brady and Tiger Woods attended a Winnipeg Jets practice recently. Full disclosure: Neither GOAT was actually in attendance. But two actual goats named in the sports legends’ honor by their owner, Jets star Mark Scheifele, made their presence known. “They were buzzing around on the ice, so that was pretty cool. I […]

The NHL postseason is officially here. Sixteen teams are set to begin the gauntlet of the 2021 Stanley Cup playoffs, and there’s no telling who will be the last club standing and drinking out of Lord Stanley’s Cup. The Central Division saw eight teams battle for four spots. The Hurricanes and Predators are squaring off alongside the first Sunshine Showdown. […]

The 2021 NHL playoffs will have a much different look from 2020. No bubble environment. Teams playing in their home arenas, many with fans in attendance. Teams traveling back and forth again. No conference vs. conference final. A Canadian team guaranteed to make the semifinals for the first time since 2018. Edmonton Oilers runaway points leader Connor McDavid, Toronto Maple Leafs […]

The St. Louis Blues know what they’re facing when their first-round playoff series against the Avalanche begins Monday night. They saw it in-person eight times during the regular season. Gabe Landeskog at the half-wall. Down to Nathan MacKinnon below the goal-line. Back to Landeskog while Mikko Rantanen lurked on the opposite circle. Back to MacKinnon outside the blue paint. One […]

They had coronavirus pauses of nine and seven days. They had 10 sets of back-to-backs. And they had to win their final five games to clinch home-ice advantage. It was all grinding stuff for the Avs. Now comes the fun part … and the hard part. The playoffs. Arguably as the favorite. Sixteen wins from glory. “This is going to […]

The abbreviated 56-game NHL schedule is still going on, but the league announced dates (along with some times and television) for the best-of-seven postseason series.  The Stanley Cup playoffs will open Saturday with the Boston Bruins at Washington Capitals as the lone game. There will be three games Sunday, including the Tampa Bay Lightning visiting the Florida Panthers to begin defense […]

Alex Newhook has been a point-per-game forward his entire hockey career. Give him another game or two with the Avalanche, and he just might be that at the NHL level, too. The 20-year-old rookie has three points in four games since being called up by the Avs — slightly off his usual production but certainly still something to build upon. […]

The 2021 NHL season is nearly over, and voting on the awards is about to begin. In a 56-game season with a condensed schedule, nothing has been normal. Usually, very team would play every other team at least twice, giving us a big sample size and ample opportunity to see how players perform against all manner of competition. This year, teams played […]

Chicago Blackhawks play-by-play announcer Pat Foley apologized Monday for making an on-air remark about putting "a bullet in my head" during the team's season finale against the Dallas Stars. Foley has been calling away games remotely this season for NBC Sports Chicago, and during the third period, he praised the players for playing through difficult COVID-19 protocols on the road […]

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