Utah Jazz owner Ryan Smith has officially landed a National Hockey League franchise.

Thursday afternoon, the league’s board of governors approved a plan to relocate the Arizona Coyotes to Utah for next season. In an unusual deal that helps the NHL avoid a potential arena crisis in Arizona, Smith and his wife Ashley bought the Coyotes’ ...Read more

PITTSBURGH — No, the top teams in the playoffs weren't "shaking in their shoes" with fear that the Penguins might sneak into the playoffs. And no, the Penguins weren't capable of making some magical Florida Panthers-like run to the Stanley Cup Final had they gotten into the tournament.

And, finally, no, this notion that this core group of old...Read more

TAMPA — Nikita Kucherov isn’t much for the spectacle, and he goes out of his way to shun the spotlight.

But the Lightning right wing couldn’t avoid it on Wednesday night in the regular-season finale, when he capped the best single-season performance in team history by joining one of the most elite clubs in hockey.

Whether Kucherov wins ...Read more

ATLANTA — Whether it happens that the NHL sets up shop in Atlanta for a third time remains to be seen. But the league and the owners of its 32 franchises know beyond a doubt that interest is strong.

Two groups, one based in Forsyth County and another in Alpharetta, are known to have reached out to NHL commissioner Gary Bettman to express ...Read more

The Golden Knights won their third straight game with a 3-1 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks at T-Mobile Arena on Tuesday.

Defenseman Brayden McNabb and right wing Michael Amadio scored for the Knights (45-28-8) to take a one-point lead over the Los Angeles Kings for third place in the Pacific Division with one game remaining. Nicolas Roy ...Read more

BOSTON — If the Bruins were looking to lower expectations heading into the playoffs, they did a good job of it the last two nights.

With the Atlantic Division title on the line for the second straight night, the Bruins again showed up to the rink with little pace and purpose early and paid the price for it on the scoreboard.

The B’s, who ...Read more

MONTREAL — The NHL playoffs will begin this weekend, but the Red Wings aren't going to be part of them.

But brother did they try.

Patrick Kane scored in the shootout, giving the Wings a 5-4 victory over the Montreal Canadiens. Still, it will be the eighth consecutive season without the playoffs for the Wings.

The Wings were eliminated ...Read more

SUNRISE, Fla. — The Florida Panthers have won the Atlantic Division, and their path for the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs is now set.

First up: The Tampa Bay Lightning.

With a 5-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday in their regular-season finale and a 3-1 Boston Bruins loss to the Ottawa Senators, the Panthers vaulted to the No. 1 spot ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — As Boyz II Men sang, “We’ve come to the end of the road.”

The Flyers did everything they could in a 2-1 loss against the Washington Capitals. They battled, forechecked, ate pucks, had timely saves — everything this group has done all season long to be in a meaningful game in the grand finale.

There is no denying the ...Read more

DETROIT — You really have to go to Patrick Kane, whose nickname "Showtime" pretty much says it all in terms of his ability to amplify the emotion on the ice after a goal, both home or away.

So to hear Kane give credit to young defenseman Simon Edvinsson on his celebration after his first goal of the season Saturday in Toronto, you know ...Read more

The Kings lost a game they needed to win Monday, falling to the Minnesota Wild 3-1 at Crypto.com Arena to muddy the team’s playoff outlook with one game left in the regular season.

The loss, the Kings’ first at home in nine games, leaves them with a one-point lead over Vegas for third place in the Pacific Division. If the Golden Knights ...Read more

The deck was stacked against the San Jose Sharks before Monday’s game with the Edmonton Oilers even began.

A handful of Sharks’ veterans were too banged up to make the team’s trip to Alberta, the team said, leaving a handful of inexperienced players to take on the world’s most dangerous forward in Connor McDavid and an Oilers offense ...Read more

DETROIT — The Red Wings keep surviving and staying in this playoff race in dramatic and remarkable fashion.

Lucas Raymond scored the overtime winner with 24.4 seconds left, after scoring the game-tying goal late in regulation time, giving the Wings an exciting 5-4 victory over Montreal.

Raymond came down with Dylan Larkin on a two-on-break ...Read more

PITTSBURGH — Sidney Crosby and the Penguins stayed alive Monday by beating the Nashville Predators, 4-2, at PPG Paints Arena. Crosby had two points in the must-win.

With the win, the Penguins jumped back ahead of the Philadelphia Flyers in the Eastern Conference standings. But they still remain one point back of the Washington Capitals and ...Read more

With just one game to go in the regular season, there’s one thing that’s becoming clear for the Bruins. The Washington Capitals would not be a fun playoff opponent for them.

The B’s had a chance to clinch the Atlantic Division title on Monday at Capital One Arena, but for the second time this season the Caps blanked the B’s, this time 2...Read more

The Kings and Ducks headed in opposite directions when they skated off the ice Saturday at Crypto.com Arena.

The Kings are going to the playoffs for a third consecutive season, the team’s longest run of postseason appearances in a decade. The Ducks, meanwhile, will be heading to the golf course again after Thursday’s regular-season finale, ...Read more

LAS VEGAS —

The Golden Knights, for 40 minutes, looked like they were the ones playing for the second straight day.

The Colorado Avalanche took the T-Mobile Arena ice with energy Sunday despite completing the second night of a back-to-back. But the Knights clicked into gear the final 20 minutes of regulation and first 1:23 of overtime to ...Read more

LAS VEGAS — Knights make furious comeback to defeat Avalanche in OT

Tomas Hertl scored 1:23 into overtime and the Golden Knights rallied from three goals down to defeat the Colorado Avalanche 4-3 at T-Mobile Arena on Sunday.

The Knights scored three goals in the third period. Two came from center William Karlsson, including the game-tying ...Read more