NHL Articles - Page 108

The Edmonton Oilers came as close as possible to winning Connor McDavid’s first Stanley Cup last season but fell to the Florida Panthers in Game 7. It was a tumultuous season for Edmonton, as they were the worst team in the league by record at the mid-point of the season, but went on a massive […]

The Nashville Predators caught fire in the second half of last season. In fact, they were one of the best teams in the league down the stretch. This second-half surge helped Nashville make the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2024. And while the Predators lost to the Vancouver Canucks, the front office saw the foundation of […]

The Pittsburgh Penguins missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the second consecutive season. This was a disappointing outcome after the Penguins went wild in 2023 NHL Free Agency. Pittsburgh sold at the NHL Trade Deadline, and could not salvage the season to play postseason hockey. The Penguins added depth in NHL Free Agency this year. […]

The Washington Capitals made the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2024, but there are some caveats. First, they did so with one of the most dreadful offenses in the league. The Capitals qualified with the lowest goal differential since 1991 among playoff teams. Furthermore, Washington had the distinct honor of being the only 2024 playoff team […]

The contract dispute between the Boston Bruins and restricted free agent Jeremy Swayman escalated on Monday when the goaltender’s agent, Lewis Gross, strongly refuted the team’s claims about the offer it made. During Monday’s season-opening press conference, team president Cam Neely suggested that the Bruins had offered Swayman a $64 million contract, indicating that he […]

The Ottawa Senators failed to make the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2024. In fact, they were never really in the race. Ottawa had an extremely disappointing season in 2023-24. This disappointing season led to the firing of DJ Smith as head coach during the year. In 2024-25, though, the team is ready to make a […]

The Tampa Bay Lightning failed to win the Stanley Cup in 2024. In fact, they failed to make it past the first round for the second year in a row. The Lightning lost to the Florida Panthers in the first round, barely avoiding a sweep. After three straight Stanley Cup Final appearances, Tampa Bay is […]

The Toronto Maple Leafs once again failed to win the Stanley Cup this past season. Toronto has made it out of the first round of the playoffs just once since 2004. In 2024, it was another loss to the Boston Bruins in the first round. And finally, the Maple Leafs made some changes around the […]

The Seattle Kraken’s inaugural season in 2021-22 was as expected—solid, but not spectacular, with the team missing the playoffs. However, they turned things around in their second year, making a surprising postseason run that included a first-round upset over the Colorado Avalanche and pushing the Dallas Stars to seven games in Round Two. Seattle regressed […]

The New York Rangers are the defending President’s Trophy winners after putting up the league’s best regular season record. They lost to the Florida Panthers in the Eastern Conference Final, falling short of the Stanley Cup again. Heading into 2024-25, the Rangers have a star-studded lineup and a great chance to make the playoffs and […]

The Boston Bruins and Jeremy Swayman are embroiled in a contract dispute. The team is ten days into training camp and has not had their starting goalie in practice yet. Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery told the media Monday that Joonas Korpisalo will likely start the opening game. “[Bruins GM Don] Sweeney notes that at […]

Despite leading the Edmonton Oilers in preseason scoring, Mike Hoffman was released from his professional tryout on Monday, the team announced. As the Oilers approach opening night against the Winnipeg Jets at home on October 9, the roster is getting smaller and smaller. Hoffman had a solid showing, recording a goal and three assists over […]

The New York Rangers enter 2024-25 with Stanley Cup aspirations. After a President’s Trophy-winning season, they fell in the Eastern Conference Final last year. Forward Jimmy Vesey was important to that team’s success but is on the shelf with a lower-body injury. Head coach Peter Laviolette announced the news on Monday. “Vesey out for ‘a […]

The Boston Bruins are in the midst of preseason action but they’re without a key piece in netminder Jeremy Swayman. The restricted free agent has yet to appear at camp as he seeks a new deal. By no surprise, reporters asked Bruins president Cam Neely about the situation and while he wouldn’t dive into it […]

The St. Louis Blues are looking to make a return to the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2024-25 after rare back-to-back misses. The Blues are coming off a solid campaign, finishing 42-33-6 and missing out on the second wildcard spot in the Western Conference by just six points. But the season is already off to a […]

The Boston Bruins added center Elias Lindholm to their championship-caliber roster this summer. The free-agent acquisition was in part to replace Patrice Bergeron, who retired after the 2022-23 season. While Lindholm is not the Hall of Famer Bergeron is, he is a great option in their top six. On Sunday, the Bruins got positive news […]

The Buffalo Sabres have missed the playoffs in 13 consecutive seasons entering 2024-25. They have a young roster full of potential looking to finally make the postseason. With new captain Rasmus Dahlin on defense, Tage Thompson up front, and Lindy Ruff behind the bench, the Sabres are set up for a solid regular season. We’ll […]

The Buffalo Sabres hired Lindy Ruff as head coach over the summer. Ruff takes over behind the bench after the Sabres fired Don Granato following the 2023-24 season. It’s a move that surprised some around the hockey world. But if there’s anyone who knows the Buffalo franchise inside and out, it’s Ruff. The veteran head […]

The Florida Panthers won the Stanley Cup for the first time in franchise history back in June. Florida suffered a heartbreaking loss to the Vegas Golden Knights in the 2023 Stanley Cup Final. However, they were able to reach the summit in 2024 after defeating the Edmonton Oilers in seven games. The Panthers are entering […]

The Detroit Red Wings barely missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2024. Detroit had its best season since 2015-16 when they last made the Stanley Cup Playoffs. However, they were eliminated on the final day of the regular season. The Philadelphia Flyers lost to the Washington Capitals, which eliminated Detroit from the playoffs. Detroit had […]

Montreal Canadiens forward Patrik Laine was forced to leave Saturday night’s game at Bell Centre against the Toronto Maple Leafs after a knee-on-knee collision with Leafs forward Cedric Pare. Laine needed assistance to reach the bench and went straight to the dressing room for treatment. Canadiens defenseman Arber Xhekaj quickly came to his teammate’s defense, […]

The Washington Capitals made the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2024. And they did so with a shockingly bad offensive attack. In fact, they finished with the lowest goal-differential among qualifying postseason teams since 1991. Their offensive woes continued to plague the team as the postseason began. The Capitals could not run with the New York […]

The Minnesota Wild missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2024. It was a disappointing result for a team that entered the year with playoff ambition. Players such as Filip Gustavsson underperformed throughout the season. And a rough start to the campaign led to the firing of head coach Dean Evason. In saying this, the Wild […]

The New Jersey Devils traded for Jacob Markstrom during the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Markstrom comes to New Jersey as the expected savior in goal after the team struggled to keep pucks out of the net last season. The veteran netminder has not been with the team for a huge amount of time. However, he has […]

The New York Islanders have lost in the first round of the playoffs in each of the last two seasons. The consecutive defeats to the Carolina Hurricanes have shown that they are not at the level of their division opponents. The Islanders need improvements to make another deep run. Ahead of the 2024-25 season, we’ll […]

While Montreal Canadiens fans anxiously await an update on injured first-year Habs forward Patrik Laine, the NHL has taken disciplinary action against his teammate Arber Xhekaj for his actions following the injury. Xhekaj has been fined US$3,385.42, the maximum amount allowed under the Collective Bargaining Agreement, for grabbing Toronto Maple Leafs forward Cedric Pare and […]

Montreal Canadiens forward Patrik Laine has exited Saturday night’s preseason showdown versus the Toronto Maple Leafs at home with an apparent lower-body injury. The 26-year-old Laine was trying to control the puck and enter the offensive zone in just the opening period of the contest when he figured into a knee-on-knee collision with Maple Leafs […]

As the Toronto Maple Leafs gear up for the 2024-25 NHL season, they’re facing a challenging salary cap situation. Currently, they are over $1 million above the cap limit ($-1,069,667), meaning general manager Brad Treliving will need to make a move to become compliant. The Leafs are also grappling with significant financial decisions regarding the […]

There is a fairly high degree of intensity in the Pittsburgh Penguins training camp this season. Head coach Mike Sullivan and the Penguins failed to make the playoffs in each of the last two seasons and they have not made it past the first round of the playoffs since the 2017-18 season. While Sullivan wants […]

The Vancouver Canucks are entering the 2024-25 season off the back of a Pacific Division title and an impressive 50-win campaign, which was cut short in the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs by the eventual Western Conference champions, the Edmonton Oilers. Injuries struck at the worst time, with goaltender Thatcher Demko sidelined in […]

The ongoing contract dispute between the Boston Bruins and goalie Jeremy Swayman doesn’t appear to have an end in sight despite the NHL season beginning in less than two weeks, according to the latest rumblings from the Fifth Liners Podcast. “I think this is going to December 1st. I really think if we don’t see […]

After the Edmonton Oilers dealt with the news of left wing Evander Kane’s new timeline for recovery from surgery, they received good news regarding defenseman Darnell Nurse. Despite Edmonton’s defenseman missing four consecutive exhibition games, head coach Kris Knoblach is confident Nurse will be ready for the team’s regular-season opener against the Winnipeg Jets on October 9. […]

Kirill Kaprizov has been the heart and soul of the Minnesota Wild since he broke into the NHL fulltime in 2019-20. The Russian has emerged as one of the top wingers in the league, and he was especially exceptional last season, amassing 46 goals and 96 points in just 75 games. But The Athletic’s Mark […]

The Colorado Avalanche look likely to be one of the best teams in the NHL again heading into the 2024-25 campaign, and a big reason why is because they feature star players like Mikko Rantanen. There’s no doubt that the Avs want to keep Rantanen around for the long haul, but it may cost them […]

The Toronto Maple Leafs saw William Nylander exit their preseason game on Thursday night after a scary injury. Toronto forward Nick Robertson attempted to give Nylander a boost with his stick through the neutral zone. However, Nylander fell to the ice. His head then collided with an opponent’s knee. Nylander was held out of the […]

The New Jersey Devils are gearing up for a strong comeback in the 2024-25 season after a disappointing 2023-24 campaign. Despite reaching the second round of the playoffs in 2023, they failed to build on that success and didn’t even qualify for the postseason this past spring. However, with notable additions like the acquisition of […]

The Winnipeg Jets have a new head coach and are preparing for the 2024-25 NHL season. The Jets are finished with NHL Free Agency and are looking at top prospects in training camp. However, one of their more veteran players, Logan Stanley, is going to miss a bit of time due to injury. Stanley is […]

The Tampa Bay Lightning are prepping for the 2024-25 season, as they look to rebound from last season’s first round loss to the Florida Panthers. Longtime team captain Steven Stamkos left for the Nashville Predators on the first day of free agency, and former Carolina Hurricanes winger Jake Guentzel signed a seven-year contact with the […]

The Los Angeles Kings have high hopes for the 2024-25 NHL season. However, they have to begin the year without one of their star players. Drew Doughty left Wednesday’s preseason contest with an injury. And on Friday, the Kings learned he will miss time due to a fractured ankle. It’s certainly a major blow to […]