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Sean Keeler: Avalanche's Valeri Nichushkin has trust of Colorado teammates who can't win Stanley Cup without him
DENVER — If trust is a two-way street, Valeri Nichushkin needs to stop kicking Stanley Cups to the curb.
“We trust him. And that’s the management, the coaches — everybody trusts him,” Avalanche defenseman Erik Johnson told me this week before Colorado’s Stanley Cup playoff opener at Dallas on Saturday.
“If his teammates can trust...Read more
Kings wrap up regular season matching franchise records for points, wins
LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Kings were playing for history Thursday and the Calgary Flames were playing for pride. Pride won, with Nazem Kadri scoring twice and and Sam Morton, Zayne Parekh and Mikael Backlund also scoring to give the Flames a 5-1 win in the final game of the NHL regular season.
Taylor Ward, making his NHL debut, got the ...Read more
Sidney Crosby, Alex Ovechkin put on a show as Penguins win season finale
PITTSBURGH — Thursday was the 73rd matchup between longstanding rivals Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin. And health permitting, it won’t be the last time they face each other.
Ovechkin confirmed that in hilarious fashion Thursday morning in Pittsburgh. The Washington Capitals star was asked about playing against Crosby “one more time.”
...Read more
Flyers clinch fourth-best odds in NHL draft lottery with loss to Sabres
It’s been a trying few years for Flyers fans, but they got what they wanted on Thursday night, as the team lost its season finale, 5-4, in Buffalo, N.Y., to the Sabres, and with it, clinched the fourth-best odds in the upcoming NHL draft lottery. Entering the night, the Flyers knew a regulation loss would be enough to see them leapfrog the ...Read more
Red Wings end season on sour note with OT loss to Maple Leafs
And that'll be it for the Red Wings' 2024-25 regular season.
Fittingly, somewhat disappointing.
Toronto defenseman Chris Tanev scored his third goal of the season with two seconds left in regulation time to force overtime, then forward Scott Laughton — who scored four goals in a game against the Wings earlier this season while in ...Read more
Capitals' Alex Ovechkin gets standing ovation from Penguins crowd while being honored with video tribute
PITTSBURGH — The Penguins honored Capitals star Alex Ovechkin with a celebratory video during Thursday’s season finale, which created a surreal scene inside PPG Paints Arena.
Earlier this month, Ovechkin passed Wayne Gretzky to become the NHL’s all-time leading goal scorer. The Penguins showed respect to their longtime rival with that ...Read more
Connor Bedard says he's committed to Blackhawks but shies away from extension talk
CHICAGO — Connor Bedard faced his share of challenges in a turbulent season for the Chicago Blackhawks.
A second straight campaign left the Hawks near the bottom of the league.
Bedard went through a coaching change, a 12-game goal drought and a self-admitted crisis of confidence.
Want to sign up for more? Apparently, yes.
Bedard also ...Read more
Knights beat Canucks in regular-season finale; playoffs await
Eighty-two games are in the books. As Anakin Skywalker would say, this is where the fun begins.
The Golden Knights’ eighth regular season is in the books after a 4-1 win over the Vancouver Canucks on Wednesday at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia.
The next time the Knights take the ice will be in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Their ...Read more
Sharks' season ends with a whimper, and with glaring areas of need
SAN JOSE – Another season in which the San Jose Sharks have finished at the bottom of the NHL standings has, perhaps mercifully, come to a conclusion.
The Sharks hoped to finish the year on a positive note. But with their 3-0 loss to the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday night at SAP Center, they ended with just 20 wins and 51 points, only ...Read more
Red Wings continue late-season surge, defeat Devils
The Red Wings aren't simply checking off the final days of the schedule, they are closing the season on a positive note.
They continued an impressive season-ending run Wednesday with a 5-2 victory in New Jersey.
The victories aren't going to get the Wings into the playoffs — they were eliminated Saturday — but it'll enable the Wings to ...Read more
John Romano: Get out the gauze. The Lightning and Panthers are going at it again.
TAMPA, Fla. — Looking forward to the Eastern Conference final.
It begins here this weekend.
Of course, that’s not how the NHL sees it. Nor anyone north of the Florida border. The official version is that the playoff series between Tampa Bay and Florida is no different than any other first-round matchup in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
But, c�...Read more
3 takeaways: Knights lose in shootout; 1st-round playoff opponent set
The Golden Knights have nothing left to play for in the regular season.
They clinched the highest possible seed they could heading into the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and their first-round opponent is set.
But the Knights still have to play 82 games like everybody else, and Game 81 ended with a 5-4 shootout loss to the Calgary Flames on Tuesday at ...Read more
Knights lose to Flames in shootout; 1st-round playoff opponent set
The Vegas Golden Knights clinched the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference in a 5-4 shootout loss against the Calgary Flames at Scotiabank Saddledome on Tuesday.
Left wing Brandon Saad had a goal and two assists, and right wing Pavel Dorofeyev scored for the Knights (49-22-10).
That’s not the important news to come out of this game, however....Read more
Wild rally past Ducks 3-2 in overtime, clinch playoff spot
ST. PAUL, Minn. — The journey here didn’t have to be this tough.
Had the Minnesota Wild stayed on the trajectory that lifted them to one of the best starts in franchise history and atop the NHL into mid-December while Kirill Kaprizov was the early MVP favorite, they would have reached their destination much sooner.
Instead, they were ...Read more
Blues secure postseason berth with 6-1 win over Utah, will open vs. Jets
ST. LOUIS — The Blues are playoff-bound.
For the first time since 2022, the Blues will play postseason hockey thanks to a 6-1 win over the Utah Hockey Club on Tuesday night at Enterprise Center.
Brayden Schenn, Pavel Buchnevich, Jimmy Snuggerud, Zack Bolduc and Jordan Kyrou (twice) scored for the Blues, who secured the second wild-card spot ...Read more
Bruins drop season finale to Devils, 5-4 in OT
BOSTON — The Bruins showed some fight in their season finale on Tuesday at TD Garden, but in the end they just couldn’t finish the job.
The result was emblematic of their season.
The B’s wiped out a two-goal deficit only to see Brian Dumoulin beat Jeremy Swayman from the top of the left circle in overtime to lift the playoff-bound New ...Read more
Flyers are shutout by Blue Jackets, 3-0, in final home game of season
PHILADELPHIA — And so it goes, and so it goes, and so soon will the Flyers season, as you know.
Skating in Game 81, the Flyers closed out the home slate with a 3-0 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets. They finished 20-20-1 at the Wells Fargo Center and moved to 5-2-1 under interim coach Brad Shaw.
Columbus needed a win to keep their postseason...Read more
Sharks' Logan Couture officially ends NHL playing career
SAN JOSE, Calif. — San Jose Sharks captain Logan Couture officially ended his NHL playing career on Tuesday, unable to get over a groin-area injury that robbed him of a chance to leave the sport he’s loved since he was a young boy on his own terms.
Couture and general manager Mike Grier held an afternoon news conference on Tuesday at SAP ...Read more
Regulation loss to Rangers gives Panthers one piece of clarity with their playoff picture
MIAMI — The Florida Panthers will officially begin their Stanley Cup playoff run — and their chance to win back-to-back titles — on the road.
With their 5-3 regulation loss to the New York Rangers on Monday at Amerant Bank Arena, a game in which they blew a two-goal second-period lead, the Panthers (47-30-4) are locked into the No. 3 seed...Read more
Red Wings close home schedule with 6-4 win over Stars
DETROIT — The Red Wings gave the fans at Little Caesars Arena something to cheer about in the home finale for this season.
Goals from Jonatan Berggren, Moritz Seider (power play) and Lucas Raymond in the third period rallied the Wings to a 6-4 victory over the Dallas Stars.
Goaltender Cam Talbot stopped 25 shots and Raymond, Seider and Dylan...Read more
Popular Stories
- Kings wrap up regular season matching franchise records for points, wins
- Sean Keeler: Avalanche's Valeri Nichushkin has trust of Colorado teammates who can't win Stanley Cup without him
- Sidney Crosby, Alex Ovechkin put on a show as Penguins win season finale
- Flyers clinch fourth-best odds in NHL draft lottery with loss to Sabres
- Connor Bedard says he's committed to Blackhawks but shies away from extension talk
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