BOSTON — At the top of the Bruins’ wish list for the offseason, as outlined by GM Don Sweeney on Wednesday, were speed, skill and a right-shot defenseman.

On Friday night, they checked the speed and skill box.

Shortly before the opening bell of the first round of the NHL draft, the Bruins added some scoring pop to their forward corps by ...Read more

With the seventh overall pick in the 2026 NHL draft, the Kraken took a defenseman in the first round for the first time. They selected righty Chase Reid from the Soo Greyhounds of the Ontario Hockey League on Friday at Buffalo’s KeyBank Center.

Reid was expected by many to go higher than seventh, but the 6-foot-2,195-pound defenseman was ...Read more

BUFFALO, N.Y. — The San Jose Sharks eschewed any trade offers and selected North Dakota right-shot defenseman Keaton Verhoeff No. 9 overall in the first round of the NHL draft on Friday.

The Sharks now have a forward and a defenseman early in this year’s draft, after they took Swedish-born winger Ivar Stenberg at No. 2 overall.

Verhoeff, ...Read more

ST. LOUIS — The Blues hope they've found a second-line center.

They paid a price to find out.

St. Louis traded two first-round picks (Nos. 15 and 29) to the Ducks to pick up Mason McTavish on Friday night, betting that the former No. 3 overall pick can bolster the Blues' center depth.

McTavish, 23, was a first-round pick in 2021 but fell ...Read more

BUFFALO, N.Y. — The San Jose Sharks added another immensely talented forward to their already overflowing class of young star players on Friday, selecting Swedish-born winger Ivan Stenberg second overall in the first round of the NHL draft at KeyBank Center.

The Sharks took Stenberg, NHL Central Scouting’s top-ranked international skater, ...Read more

DENVER — The Avs don’t win their last Stanley Cup without him. The Avs did not win the next two Cups because of him.

Valeri Nichushkin leaves a decorated and complicated legacy in Colorado.

There were long stretches, including during the last championship run, where he was one of the best two-way wingers in the NHL. And there were two ...Read more

RALEIGH, N.C. — It takes 16 wins to claim the Stanley Cup and the Carolina Hurricanes did just that.

With that in mind, 16 final thoughts, if you will:

— 1. The Canes having an “easy path” to the Cup narrative is lame. You play who’s in front of you. The Canes went 16-3 against the four teams in front of them. End of story.

— 2. ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Flyers chief Dan Hilferty and his wife, Joan, traveled to Italy during the Olympics to take in the Winter Games, especially the hockey games, since three Flyers and coach Rick Tocchet were involved. Star winger Travis Konecny did not make Team Canada, but he made the trip anyway. There, he ran into Hilferty.

After a little ...Read more

CHICAGO — The Chicago Blackhawks made their first move of the 2026 offseason on Tuesday night, announcing they acquired defenseman Bowen Byram and winger Jordan Greenway via trade with the Buffalo Sabres. In return, the Sabres received the Nos. 4 and 45 picks of the 2026 NHL draft along with defenseman Louis Crevier from the Hawks.

General ...Read more

SAN JOSE, Calif. — The San Jose Sharks traded forwards William Eklund, Kasper Halttunen and Brandon Svoboda on Tuesday to the Ottawa Senators for the ninth overall selection in this year’s draft.

The Sharks now own the second, ninth, and 27th overall selections in the first round of the draft, which is being held on Friday in Buffalo, N.Y. ...Read more

BOSTON — To the surprise of absolutely no one in the hockey world, former Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility on Monday.

Also going in are Keith Tkachuk (Malden Catholic, Boston University) and Stow’s Cindy Curley (Providence College, Team USA). Long-time executive ...Read more

MIAMI — The Florida Panthers on Sunday were reportedly close to acquiring forward Brady Tkachuk from the Ottawa Senators, a deal that, if completed, will unite star winger Matthew Tkachuk with his brother and bring yet another star hockey player to South Florida.

According to the Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the Panthers are sending four ...Read more

SEATTLE — The Seattle Kraken made their first deal of the summer Sunday, acquiring 23-year-old forward Mackie Samoskevich from the Florida Panthers.

Seattle paid Florida’s high price and dipped far into their draft capital, sending over both a first- and second-round draft pick. The first-rounder is the 2026 one they acquired from Tampa Bay...Read more

RALEIGH, N.C. — When the final horn sounded on the Carolina Hurricanes’ Stanley Cup championship, the players at the bench quickly hopped over the boards en masse to let the partying begin in Las Vegas.

All but Sebastian Aho. He turned in the opposite direction.

Aho’s first move was to jump back behind the bench and wrap Canes coach Rod ...Read more

RALEIGH, N.C. — By anybody’s guess, the Carolina Hurricanes’ victory parade drew a massive number of people jammed elbow-to-elbow for more than a mile, a sea of red so enormous it conjured thoughts of Woodstock.

But the official number wasn’t just eye-popping, it very likely broke Raleigh’s record for most people in one place: 150,000...Read more

RALEIGH, N.C. — Seconds after the puck dropped to start the 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs, Jordan Staal of the Carolina Hurricanes dropped his gloves. He had been challenged to fight by Brady Tkachuk of the Ottawa Senators, captain versus captain, and Staal didn’t back down.

When it was over, Staal was the one on top, the winner.

And that’s...Read more

CHICAGO — Jonathan Toews, who captained the Chicago Blackhawks to three Stanley Cup championships in six years, is retiring from the NHL after 16 seasons, leaving a legacy as one of the organization’s all-time greats.

Toews, 38, announced his decision at a news conference Friday in Winnipeg, Manitoba, where he played his final season in ...Read more

Jordan Staal was the first to lift the Stanley Cup, the Carolina Hurricanes captain letting out a few howling screams Sunday night at T-Mobile Arena.

Staal then skated toward his joyous teammates for the first handoff and gave the coveted trophy to … Frederik Andersen?

“I was surprised,” Andersen would say. “I was taken aback, a deer ...Read more

The Stanley Cup Final was settled Sunday night. And for the first time since the Florida Panthers watched the Golden Knights celebrate against them in Las Vegas in 2023, it wasn’t Florida hoisting the trophy.

The Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Golden Knights in six games, and finally, the 2025-26 NHL season came to its conclusion. The long ...Read more