The five worst contracts signed in 2026 NHL free agency so far Who is the Maple Leafs’ ideal defensive partner for Darren Raddysh? The five best contracts signed in 2026 NHL free agency so far Can you name every player selected in the Vegas Golden Knights expansion draft? Three-time Stanley Cup champion Steve Yzerman stepping down as GM marks needed leadership change for Red Wings
Flyers Sign Trevor Zegras To Four-Year Contract
In 2010 — the Stanley Cup playoffs attracted the largest viewership in the sport’s history, following a regular season characterized by unprecedented commercial success, primarily driven by the NHL’s approach of engaging fans through significant events and strong digital initiatives. This progress prompted NBC and the cable network Versus to enter into a 10-year broadcasting agreement, which grants them both American cable and broadcasting rights for US$200 million annually; this arrangement is expected to enhance television exposure on NBC channels. The inaugural exhibition match featuring an NHL team against a European club (excluding teams from the former Soviet Union) occurred in December 1977, with the New York Rangers competing against Poldi Kladno from the Czechoslovak First Ice Hockey League. Besides the Russian teams — several international club exhibitions and contests also involved NHL teams competing against various clubs based in Europe. In 2021, the league’s out-of-market streaming package was integrated into ESPN+ under the terms of ESPN’s agreement for viewers in the United States.
Coverage by Turner Sports encompasses as many as 72 regular season games on TNT, while the early rounds of the playoffs are distributed between TNT and TBS. Between the NHL lockout of 2004–05 and 2021, NBC and OLN (which was later rebranded as Versus, then NBCSN) held the national broadcasting rights in the United States. Since 1981, the NHL was predominantly available only on cable television, featuring broadcasts on ESPN, the USA Network, and SportsChannel America at different times. Prior to 1995, the league’s broadcasting partnerships in America had experienced considerable instability for several decades.
A six-year agreement has been secured by the Blues with Connor McMichael
The Bedford (New York), native set career highs across the board with 26 goals and 67 points in 81 games, then added six points in 10 playoff contests as the Flyers https://bardumusee.com reached the postseason for the first time since 2020. The league’s regular season is typically held from October to April, with each team playing 82 games. He is coming off career bests of eight goals and 32 points and a strong two-way season. He finished the year with just 14 goals and 46 points, while posting a 43.0 faceoff percentage – exactly in-line with his career average.
The Sabres are trying to remain competitive after making the playoffs for the first time in 14 years. After a long professional hockey career, it feels very fitting to see this scenario play out where Kane ends it where it all began. The Sabres lost a hometown kid in Alex Tuch to the Capitals, who was the key return in the Jack Eichel trade a few years ago.
Organizational structure
Sometimes the biggest news in hockey isn’t a trade or a signing. The debut of the Winter Classic, an outdoor regular season NHL game held on New Year’s Day in 2008, was a significant success for the league. Unlike the Ice Hockey World Championships and the Olympic tournament, the World Cup of Hockey is played under NHL rules and not those of the IIHF. The annual Ice Hockey World Championships is held every May — at the same time as the Stanley Cup playoffs. No NHL club had played a Soviet or Russian-based club from the end of the Super Series in 1991 to 2008 when the New York Rangers faced Metallurg Magnitogorsk in the 2008 Victoria Cup. The first international club competition was held in 1976 (with eight NHL teams playing against the Soviet Championship League’s HC CSKA Moscow), and Krylya Sovetov Moscow.
Goaltenders are permitted to handle the puck solely within the trapezoidal area or in front of the goal line; playing the puck behind the goal line and outside this area results in a two-minute minor penalty for delay of game. The rules established by the NHL serve as the foundation for regulations governing the majority of professional and major junior ice hockey leagues across North America. Among the two standard sets of professional ice hockey regulations globally, the NHL’s rules represent one, while the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) rules, utilized in events like the Olympics, constitute the other.
The Flames underwent monumental roster changes in the summer of 2022 (watching Matthew Tkachuk and Johnny Gaudreau head elsewhere while bringing in Nazem Kadri), Jonathan Huberdeau and MacKenzie Weegar. As much as it might pain some Canadiens fans, Hughes has built up the credibility to be trusted in this situation based on his track record. It’s entirely possible that prices drop later in the summer or midway through the season, when teams are out of contention and may opt to move on from certain players. Hughes has talked about pursuing big trades in the past, but has walked away when the prices exceeded his comfort level. This was a huge gamble for the Blackhawks, and it’s easy to see why Hughes didn’t have interest in these types of trades. Hughes has said the Canadiens have been in active trade discussions (as they were leading up to the NHL Trade Deadline), but much like early March, Montreal has been able to make any big moves.
This has significant effects on the league, as elite players have suffered from the aftereffects of concussions (such as Sidney Crosby being sidelined for approximately ten and a half months), which adversely affects the league’s marketability. The league’s post-lockout agreement with NBC gave the league a share of revenue from each game’s advertising sales — rather than the usual lump sum paid up front for game rights. With no new agreement in hand when the contract expired, league commissioner Gary Bettman announced a lockout of the players union and closed the league’s head office for the 2004–05 season. A lockout at the start of the 1994–95 season forced the league to reduce the schedule from 84 games to 48, with the teams playing only intra-conference games during the reduced season. In 1958, Willie O’Ree became the first black player in the league’s history when he made his debut with the Boston Bruins. In 1948, Asian Canadian Larry Kwong became the first Asian player in the NHL by playing for the New York Rangers.
That scoring pace (0.65 points-per-game), put Dach on pace for 20 goals and 54 points across 82 games. Just ask the Calgary Flames and Nashville Predators, who both won the previous summer only to fall apart during the regular season. Some might disagree and point to the Noah Dobson trade as an example of the opposite, but at this time, it’s hard to call a winner in that move.
Instead (multiple sudden-death), 20-minute five-on-five periods are played until one team scores. Whichever team ultimately wins the shootout is awarded a goal in the game score and thus awarded two points in the standings. If the game is still tied at the end of overtime, the game enters a shootout. The policy provides for a twenty-game suspension for a first positive test (a sixty-game suspension for a second positive test), and a lifetime suspension for a third positive test. Fighting in the NHL leads to major penalties while IIHF rules, and most amateur rules, call for the ejection of fighting players. Since the 2013–14 season, the league trimmed the goal frames by 4 inches , 10 cm, on each side and reduced the size of the goalies’ leg pads.
Approval was granted to the Chicago-based Hoffmann Group last month for the acquisition of the Penguins, marking a significant advancement from their previous experience in the hockey domain, which involved ownership of the Everblades. Santala, a Finnish player with a distinguished lineage, is the son of Tommi, who had a lengthy and fruitful professional career as a center in the NHL, Finland, Switzerland, and had even played in the KHL. Emerging from Kiekko-Espoo, Santala amassed 12 points across 25 games while playing with athletes who were three years older than him, ranking him 12th on the team. With the aftermath of last month’s NHL draft still unfolding (it is anticipated that when discussions about 2027 commence), Santala’s name will be prominently featured.