NHL Articles - Page 135

The San Jose Sharks may face a major setback to their 2024-25 season before it officially begins, as first-overall draft pick Macklin Celebrini was injured in the second period of Tuesday’s game at SAP Center against the visiting Utah Hockey Club and did not return to action. Celebrini lost his balance and slid hard into […]

The Boston Bruins are deep into their exhibition schedule, but one key player is still missing from the ice. Goaltender Jeremy Swayman remains a restricted free agent, having missed all of training camp and every preseason game. And there is no indication that this situation will be resolved before the start of the regular season. […]

The New York Rangers already endured an injury scare earlier this exhibition season when star forward Artemi Panarin left a game against the New York Islanders, though fortunately, it wasn’t serious. However, Panarin has once again exited an exhibition contest, and the latest update from the Rangers suggests this time, the situation may be more […]

The Chicago Blackhawks have faced a challenging transition, missing the postseason for several consecutive years. Yet, few sympathize with them given their dominant run of three Stanley Cup titles in seven seasons, along with two additional trips to the Western Conference Final. With former franchise cornerstones Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane gone, 2023 No. 1 […]

The Montreal Canadiens are already dealing with serious injuries during the pre-season. Defensive prospect David Reinbacher is out five-to-six months after undergoing knee surgery. In the same game, Patrik Laine suffered a leg injury. The team announced that Laine will not need surgery on his knee. L'attaquant Patrik Laine souffre d'une entorse au genou gauche […]

Over the last half-decade, the Carolina Hurricanes have established themselves as a contender in the East. Building through the draft and seeing improved results under Rod Brind’Amour, the Hurricanes have at times looked like a legitimate Stanley Cup favorite. But after an offseason highlighted by key departures, Carolina may be looking at a bit of […]

The New Jersey Devils missed the playoffs with a stellar roster last season. Injuries took Jack Hughes and Dougie Hamilton out of the lineup and coach Lindy Ruff lost his job. Entering 2024-25, the Devils have a new goalie in Jacob Markstrom and renewed playoff and Stanley Cup hopes. Let’s look at the projected roster […]

The Montreal Canadiens have injuries piling up this pre-season. In the same game that Patrik Laine went down, defenseman David Reinbacher suffered a knee injury. Daily Faceoff insider Frank Seravalli reported Tuesday that the former fifth-overall pick will be out for months. “Canadiens announce defenseman David Reinbacher underwent surgery on his left knee this morning. […]

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 […]