[Stallion]

Lots to bet on!!!

[hotcross]

Does it really matter since its going to be played without fans in attendance?

Ideally the venues should be where the biggest market opportunities exist, regardless of the fact fans will not be attending due to coronavirus.

However, I did miss the announcement that Vancouver reportedly pulled out of the running as a possible host city for the West, prior to my previous comment on the subject.

[yisman]

International Ice Hockey Federation chief Rene’ Fasel is encouraged after learning the NHL's pending labor deal opens the possibility of the world's best players returning to the Olympics.
Aside from the uncertainty raised by the coronavirus pandemic, Fasel told The Associated Press he doesn’t foresee any major stumbling blocks that could derail negotiations leading up to the 2022 Beijing Games.
“No, I don’t think there’s a deal-breaker,” he said Tuesday. “There are a lot of challenges. But I think in principle, I would say the news that that’s in the CBA, for me and especially international hockey, is very good news.”

[mr. leisure]

2020 NHL playoffs: 24-team tournament schedule could feature 6 games in a day

By Jordan Hall July 08, 2020 1:40 PM

Wednesday marked 119 days since the last NHL game was played before the 2019-20 season was put on pause because of the coronavirus outbreak.
For hockey fans, just one live game would be a sight for sore eyes at this point. Imagine six competitive, playoff-like games spread throughout one day?
Not complaining.
According to a report Wednesday by ESPN's Emily Kaplan, the NHL is eyeing such a plan for the beginning of its return-to-play 24-team tournament:


It would be like the playoff hockey version of the NCAA Tournament's opening days, when games are played from basically noon ET to midnight. In this scenario, with the targeted hub cities — Toronto (Eastern Conference) and Edmonton, Alberta (Western Conference) — a game would be played at noon ET for the East and 2 p.m. ET for the West, then 4 p.m. ET for the East and 6 p.m. ET for the West, and so on.
This plan is not yet official as it must be ratified by a number of parties, a vote that is currently taking place.

When could we see these busy days of games? The NHL has set Aug. 1 as the start date of the qualifying round, which includes the round robin featuring the Flyers, Bruins, Lightning and Capitals. July 13 is when clubs are scheduled to open formal training camp at their respective practice facilities and July 26 is when clubs are expected to travel to their respective hub city. Exhibition games will be played prior to the qualifying round (more on everything here).

6 games a day

[Stallion]

Once again lots to bet on!!!

[mr. leisure]

Ruff hired by Devils as coach, replaces Nasreddine

Fitzgerald remains New Jersey general manager

Lindy Ruff was hired as coach of the New Jersey Devils on Thursday.

Ruff replaces Alain Nasreddine, who was 19-16-8 with New Jersey before the NHL season was paused March 12 due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus. Nasreddine was named coach when John Hynes was fired Dec. 3.

Ruff coached 19 seasons in the NHL, 15 for the Buffalo Sabres and four with the Dallas Stars, before he was hired as an assistant by the New York Rangers on July 10, 2017. The 60-year-old is sixth in NHL history in wins (736) and seventh in games coached (1,493).

[yisman]

saw that scrolling on ESPN all night during boxing

I'm not sold on Ruff

[yisman]

FriedgeHNIC



·
17m









Hearing both NHL and NHLPA have voted to accept CBA/Return to Play protocols.

[mr. leisure]

I'm not sold on Ruff[/QUOTE]


Me either , get some new blood . Too old

[Stallion]

Anyone else got any futures ???

[mr. leisure]

Stamkos injured in Phase 2, expected to play for Lightning in Qualifiers

Forward will be limited during training camp with lower-body issue

Steven Stamkos sustained a lower-body injury during Phase 2 of the NHL Return to Play Plan, and though he will not be ready for the start of training camp on Monday, he's expected to be play in the Stanley Cup Qualifiers for the Tampa Bay Lightning.

"He will be in camp. He's here. He's skating. He's been getting treatment," general manager Julien BriseBois said on Saturday. "He's been coming to Amalie [Arena], doing his dry-land work. But he will not be a full participant on day one of training camp."
BriseBois said he was optimistic that Stamkos would be able to play when the Lightning begin the round-robin portion of the qualifiers Aug. 3 against the Washington Capitals.
"Yes, I am," BriseBois said. "We don't have a specific timeline for when he will be a full participant in camp. But we expect he will be ready in time for games."
Training camps will open in the teams' local markets on Monday for the start of Phase 3 of the NHL Return to Play Program. The 24 participating teams will travel July 26 to the two hub cities -- 12 Eastern Conference teams to Toronto and 12 Western Conference teams to Edmonton -- where they will begin play Aug. 1 with the qualifiers, which is Phase 4.
The Lightning were 43-21-6 (.657 points percentage) and will play the Boston Bruins (44-14-12, .714), Capitals (41-20-8, .652) and Philadelphia Flyers (41-21-7, .645) to determine the top four seeds in the Eastern Conference for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Stamkos, who had 66 points (29 goals, 37 assists), played in 57 of the Lightning's 70 games this season and missed the final seven games before the pause. He had core muscle surgery March 2, before the season was paused March 12 due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus.
The forward missed three games with a lower-body injury in February and three in November, also with a lower-body injury.
Teams are limited to 30 skaters and an unlimited number of goalies for Phase 3. BriseBois said the Lightning would have 18 forwards, 10 defensemen and four goalies. When the season was paused, the Lightning had 25 players (14 forwards, nine defensemen and two goalies). The team will add goalies Spencer Martin and Scott Wedgewood, defenseman Cal Foote, forwards Mathieu Joseph, Alexander Volkov, Gemel Smith, and Luke Witkowski, who has the versatility to also play defense.
With Stamkos out, the Lightning will add Alex Barre-Boulet to the group as well.
BriseBois said no Lightning player has indicated he will opt out of the Return to Play Plan. Any player may choose not to participate in Phases 3 and 4 without discipline or penalty. The player must notify his team in writing within 72 hours of the completion of the ratification process in the Return to Play Plan, which was announced Friday.

[yisman]

Anyone else got any futures ???

Bruins and Caps I think I have, although I cashed some out due to having to wait 5 months

[mr. leisure]

Oilers' Mike Green, Stars' Roman Polak among players opting out of NHL return

Edmonton's Mike Green, Boston's Steven Kampfer, Vancouver's Sven Baertschi, Dallas' Roman Polak and Montreal's Karl Alzner on Saturday joined the list of players who won't be reporting to training camp for the resumption of the NHL season.
In the aftermath of a deal being struck to resume the season on Aug. 1, they joined Calgary defenseman Travis Hamonic among players choosing not to participate in the expanded 24-team playoffs.
"Due to the uncertainties surrounding COVID-19 and after much consideration, I've decided for deeply personal family health reasons not to participate in the return to play,'' Green said in a statement. After a trade from Detroit, the defenseman played two games for Edmonton before injuring his right knee.
Kampfer, who played 10 games with the Bruins this season, said his wife and son have a congenital heart defect that could cause complications with the virus and called it "one of the hardest decisions'' he has had to make.

[yisman]

Coronavirus cases spiking in the Las Vegas area contributed to the NHL choosing two Canadian cities to complete its season.
Deputy commissioner Bill Daly on Saturday called the rise a ''concern'' to the league. He adds that it was ''one of the reasons'' the NHL chose to put games in Toronto and Edmonton, Alberta. Las Vegas was long considered a front-runner.
Daly says one player testing positive when play starts isn't expected to shut down the playoffs, but an outbreak would change the equation. He didn't say what the league considered an outbreak.

[ApricotSinner32]

Oilers' Mike Green, Stars' Roman Polak among players opting out of NHL return


Edmonton's Mike Green, Boston's Steven Kampfer, Vancouver's Sven Baertschi, Dallas' Roman Polak and Montreal's Karl Alzner on Saturday joined the list of players who won't be reporting to training camp for the resumption of the NHL season.
In the aftermath of a deal being struck to resume the season on Aug. 1, they joined Calgary defenseman Travis Hamonic among players choosing not to participate in the expanded 24-team playoffs.
"Due to the uncertainties surrounding COVID-19 and after much consideration, I've decided for deeply personal family health reasons not to participate in the return to play,'' Green said in a statement. After a trade from Detroit, the defenseman played two games for Edmonton before injuring his right knee.
Kampfer, who played 10 games with the Bruins this season, said his wife and son have a congenital heart defect that could cause complications with the virus and called it "one of the hardest decisions'' he has had to make.

[batt33]

2020 NHL playoffs: 24-team tournament schedule could feature 6 games in a day

By Jordan Hall July 08, 2020 1:40 PM

Wednesday marked 119 days since the last NHL game was played before the 2019-20 season was put on pause because of the coronavirus outbreak.
For hockey fans, just one live game would be a sight for sore eyes at this point. Imagine six competitive, playoff-like games spread throughout one day?
Not complaining.
According to a report Wednesday by ESPN's Emily Kaplan, the NHL is eyeing such a plan for the beginning of its return-to-play 24-team tournament:


It would be like the playoff hockey version of the NCAA Tournament's opening days, when games are played from basically noon ET to midnight. In this scenario, with the targeted hub cities — Toronto (Eastern Conference) and Edmonton, Alberta (Western Conference) — a game would be played at noon ET for the East and 2 p.m. ET for the West, then 4 p.m. ET for the East and 6 p.m. ET for the West, and so on.
This plan is not yet official as it must be ratified by a number of parties, a vote that is currently taking place.

When could we see these busy days of games? The NHL has set Aug. 1 as the start date of the qualifying round, which includes the round robin featuring the Flyers, Bruins, Lightning and Capitals. July 13 is when clubs are scheduled to open formal training camp at their respective practice facilities and July 26 is when clubs are expected to travel to their respective hub city. Exhibition games will be played prior to the qualifying round (more on everything here).

6 games a day

Heck ya...Can't wait!

[hotcross]

Anyway...... I'm warming up to the idea the Canadiens could beat the Penguins in the Opening Round. Penguins looked like very serious contender during the regular season, but the break changes things, at least took away momentum. If Carey Price is ready AND the Canadiens play more strict defensively in front of him, I think they got a much better chance than the Series betting odds translate to.

Who else thinks so?

[yisman]

Anyway...... I'm warming up to the idea the Canadiens could beat the Penguins in the Opening Round. Penguins looked like very serious contender during the regular season, but the break changes things, at least took away momentum. If Carey Price is ready AND the Canadiens play more strict defensively in front of him, I think they got a much better chance than the Series betting odds translate to.

Who else thinks so?

I wouldn't be surprised by any outcome at this point.

Teams not playing for months, immediately thrown into a weird format...

[mr. leisure]

Agree , could see a lot of upsets .

[Stallion]

As a habs fan I see no reason to beat the Penguins; if you lose you have a shot at the # 1 overall pick, and they shouldn't have been in the playoffs anyways. If you win you get a lower draft pick. Montreal is re-building.

[yisman]

NHL leading scorer Leon Draisaitl of the Oilers, Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon and Rangers winger Artemi Panarin were named finalists for the Ted Lindsay Award on Tuesday.
The trophy goes to the league's most outstanding player as voted by fellow players. None of them have won the award before.

[hotcross]

As a habs fan I see no reason to beat the Penguins; if you lose you have a shot at the # 1 overall pick, and they shouldn't have been in the playoffs anyways. If you win you get a lower draft pick. Montreal is re-building.

you make a good point, but I have tried to play that "#1 draft pick" angle before

One came to mind SF Giants baseball game a couple years ago in the last game of the year, they were totally outplayed, and bottom of the 9th Pablo Sanchez of all people, if I remember correctly, hits a walk-off homerun to win the game.... and lose their pick position in the draft

[mr. leisure]

Exhibition schedule for Stanley Cup Qualifiers

Teams will play 12 games over three days in hub cities

Here is the exhibition game schedule for the 2020 Stanley Cup Qualifiers. All Eastern Conference games will be played at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto; all Western Conference games will be played at Rogers Place in Edmonton.

The Stanley Cup Qualifiers will begin on Aug. 1 in Toronto and Edmonton.
(All times ET; home team listed second)
Tuesday, July 28
Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Philadelphia Flyers, 4 p.m.
Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Montreal Canadiens, 8 p.m.
Edmonton Oilers vs. Calgary Flames, 10:30 p.m.
Wednesday, July 29
Tampa Bay Lightning at Florida Panthers, 12 p.m.
Colorado Avalanche vs. Minnesota Wild, 2:30 p.m.
Carolina Hurricanes vs. Washington Capitals, 4 p.m.
St. Louis Blues vs. Chicago Blackhawks, 6:30 p.m.
New York Islanders vs. New York Rangers, 8 p.m.
Vancouver Canucks vs. Winnipeg Jets; 10:30 p.m.
Thursday, July 30
Nashville Predators vs. Dallas Stars, 4 p.m.
Boston Bruins vs. Columbus Blue Jackets, 7 p.m.
Vegas Golden Knights vs. Arizona Coyotes, 10 p.m.

[yisman]

Right wing Troy Terry has agreed to a three-year, $4.35 million contract extension through the 2022-23 season with the Anaheim Ducks.

[mr. leisure]

CHICAGO -- Corey Crawford was ruled "unfit to play" and is not practicing with the Chicago Blackhawks at training camp.

Crawford, who has missed three practices, also did not take part in any of Chicago's voluntary workouts that started June 8, but he is one of the five goalies on its training camp roster.
The 35-year-old, who had been healthy after missing 80 games over the past two seasons because of concussions, was 16-20-3 with a 2.77 goals-against average this season, and among goalies to play at least 40 games, he was tied for fifth in the NHL with a .917 save percentage.
Crawford split time for the majority of the season with Robin Lehner, but after the latter was traded to the Vegas Golden Knights on Feb. 24, he started Chicago's final eight games before the NHL season was paused March 12 due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus and was 5-3-0 with a 2.65 GAA and .921 save percentage.
"The way we're handling this, we're looking at the guys who are here and ready to play, and when Corey's in that group, then we can talk about Corey," Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman said Monday. "The focus today was to get ourselves back going. We have four goaltenders here (Malcolm Subban, Collin Delia, Kevin Lankinen, Matt Tomkins), and the goal is to be prepared when the time is right. We have some time, certainly. Our first game isn't for several weeks."
The Blackhawks, who were 32-30-8 (.514 points percentage), enter the Stanley Cup Qualifiers as the No. 12 seed in the Western Conference. They will play the No. 5 seed, the Edmonton Oilers (37-25-9, .585), in one of eight best-of-5 series that will begin at Rogers Place in Edmonton on Aug. 1. Edmonton is the hub city for the 12 Western teams.
Blackhawks coach Jeremy Colliton said Subban, who was acquired in the Lehner trade, Delia and Lankinen will rotate while Crawford is out.
Of those three, Subban has the most NHL experience. He is 30-23-7 with a 2.97 GAA and .899 save percentage in 66 games (60 starts) with the Boston Bruins, Golden Knights and Blackhawks, including 9-7-3 with a 3.17 GAA and .890 save percentage this season.
Delia is 7-5-3 with a 3.65 GAA and .906 save percentage in 18 NHL games (16 starts), all with the Blackhawks. Lankinen, who was Delia's backup for Rockford of the American Hockey League this season, has never played an NHL game.
Asked what happens if Crawford, who won the Cup with the Blackhawks in 2013 and 2015, is unable to play, Colliton said, "We told [the three rotating goalies] it's going to be based on how they perform and they're all going to be given equal opportunity. We have Matt Tomkins here as well. He's done a good job at AHL and ECHL levels, so it's an opportunity for him to compete as well. At the end we'll have to make a decision, but we want those to make it as difficult as possible.
"The opportunity now is for those other guys to compete. It's a great opportunity for us to evaluate them. We expect a lot of competition and we have confidence in all three of those guys."

[yisman]

Columbus’ John Tortorella, Philadelphia’s Alain Vigneault and Boston’s Bruce Cassidy were revealed Wednesday as the finalists for the Jack Adams Award as NHL coach of the year.
Colorado’s Cale Makar, Vancouver’s Quinn Hughes and Chicago’s Dominik Kubalik are the finalists for the Calder Trophy as the top rookie. All three Jack Adams finalists come from the Eastern Conference, while all three Calder Finalists play in the West.

[mr. leisure]

NHL restart arena Rogers Place suffers water damage in storm




Rogers Place in Edmonton -- one of the two arenas the NHL is using as a hub to restart its season this summer -- suffered water damage Thursday night as a significant storm came through the city.
In a statement, Oilers Entertainment Group said it was assessing the damage and "at this time are confident that it will not hamper our planning and preparation and we will be ready to host the return of NHL hockey as hub city."
Western Conference teams are scheduled to travel to Edmonton on July 26, with exhibition games beginning July 28 and meaningful games beginning Aug. 1. Edmonton also will host the conference finals and Stanley Cup Finals, absorbing the remaining Eastern Conference teams, which are beginning the restart in Toronto.
According to arena management, the initial damage was in the "terminus of Ford Hall," which is a foyer off the entry way, as well as "some other leaks in other parts of the building."
The NHL had narrowed its list to 10 potential hub cities but ended up selecting two in Canada -- snubbing Las Vegas, a rumored favorite -- because it felt more comfortable staging games in areas where the coronavirus was under better control. Edmonton has had only 15 COVID-19 deaths since the NHL paused March 12.
Rogers Place is only 4 years old. The NHL is creating an "Olympic village"-type setup in a district around the arena. Teams are staying at a hotel connected to Rogers Place and other walkable hotels. It is unclear whether the hotels also sustained damage in the storm.

[yisman]

Andrei Vasilevskiy of the Tampa Bay Lightning has been selected as a Vezina Trophy finalist for the third consecutive season, with a shot at becoming the first back-to-back winner of the NHL’s top goalie award in 12 years.
Winnipeg’s Connor Hellebuyk and Boston’s Tuukka Rask rounded out the list of finalists released on Friday following a vote by the league’s general managers.

[hotcross]

you make a good point, but I have tried to play that "#1 draft pick" angle before

One came to mind SF Giants baseball game a couple years ago in the last game of the year, they were totally outplayed, and bottom of the 9th Pablo Sanchez of all people, if I remember correctly, hits a walk-off homerun to win the game.... and lose their pick position in the draft

Pablo Sandoval obviously, that happened on Oct.1, 2017

Looked it up to refresh my memory

Giants lose that game and get the #1 draft pick, instead it went to the Detroit Tigers

[yisman]

surprised Canada is letting the NHL play

favoritism

they kicked the Blue Jays out of the country

Canada loves hockey

[revnecro1273]

....

[revnecro1273]

surprised Canada is letting the NHL play

favoritism

they kicked the Blue Jays out of the country

Canada loves hockey

it is because of the back and forth travel...playing in a home stadium without fans isn't even that important..can literally play anywhere...nhl is allowed because of the bubbles...no constant border crossings

[hotcross]

Just locked in Montreal +190 to win the opening round series against Pittsburgh. Have a feeling they will win. Today's news pushed me to act now.....


Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby did not practice Sunday, a day after leaving a team scrimmage with an undisclosed health issue.


The team captain and two-time NHL MVP scored during an organized scrimmage Saturday. Coach Mike Sullivan declined to offer specifics on what happened to Crosby in the immediate aftermath, saying he was "not permitted to comment."


On Sunday, assistant coach Mark Recchi sidestepped a question about Crosby's status.


"You're trying the wrong guy," Recchi said. "I think you know the league's stance right now. Sorry about that."


Crosby, playing alongside Jake Guentzel and Conor Sheary, scored a goal for the black team during a 7-0 romp over the white team.


Although he left the scrimmage early, there was no indication of a serious issue, according to ESPN's Emily Kaplan.


The Penguins are about two weeks out from facing Montreal in the qualifying round of the 24-team NHL postseason. Pittsburgh will be in the Toronto pod when play resumes.

[mr. leisure]

Just locked in Montreal +190 to win the opening round series against Pittsburgh. Have a feeling they will win. Today's news pushed me to act now.....


Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby did not practice Sunday, a day after leaving a team scrimmage with an undisclosed health issue.


The team captain and two-time NHL MVP scored during an organized scrimmage Saturday. Coach Mike Sullivan declined to offer specifics on what happened to Crosby in the immediate aftermath, saying he was "not permitted to comment."


On Sunday, assistant coach Mark Recchi sidestepped a question about Crosby's status.


"You're trying the wrong guy," Recchi said. "I think you know the league's stance right now. Sorry about that."


Crosby, playing alongside Jake Guentzel and Conor Sheary, scored a goal for the black team during a 7-0 romp over the white team.


Although he left the scrimmage early, there was no indication of a serious issue, according to ESPN's Emily Kaplan.


The Penguins are about two weeks out from facing Montreal in the qualifying round of the 24-team NHL postseason. Pittsburgh will be in the Toronto pod when play resumes.

Good luck Hotcross

[yisman]

Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby did not practice on Sunday, a day after leaving a team scrimmage with an undisclosed health issue.