NHL News

5:44 PM ET ESPN News Services PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Penguins enjoyed a strong six-goal start after a lengthy layoff. A third-period lull allowed the San Jose Sharks back into the game, but Evan Rodrigues and Bryan Rust came through when Pittsburgh needed it most. Rodrigues and Rust both finished off hat tricks in the

8:45 PM ET ESPN News Services NEW YORK — Florida Panthers forward Sam Bennett was suspended three games without pay by the NHL on Sunday for an illegal check to the head of Montreal Canadiens forward Cedric Paquette during a game Saturday. Bennett, who scored twice during Florida’s 5-2 win, injured Paquette with his hit

4:45 PM ET ESPN News Services COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Carolina Hurricanes, one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference all season, have bigger plans for later in 2022, like perhaps competing for the franchise’s second Stanley Cup championship. For now, though, they’ll settle for any type of momentum builder they can get, and

8:25 PM ET The St. Louis Blues face the Minnesota Wild on Saturday night in the Winter Classic, the NHL’s annual New Year’s Day game played outdoors. Target Field, usually the home of the Minnesota Twins, is where the two teams will play. 1 Related Per the Weather Channel website, Saturday’s high in Minneapolis is

10:14 PM ET Jamal Collier The Toronto Raptors and Maple Leafs will begin hosting home games without selling tickets to fans for the next three weeks starting Friday following a decision by the province of Ontario to limit venue capacities. Ontario’s government capped attendance at concert venues, arenas and theaters to 1,000 people or 50%,

12:37 PM ET Associated Press New Jersey coach Lindy Ruff tested positive for COVID-19 hours before the Devils’ game against the Edmonton Oilers on Friday and was isolated from the team. The Devils made the announcement roughly 45 minutes after Ruff did not show up for a pregame news conference. When the news conference started,

7:40 AM ET The concept of “can’t” hasn’t really applied to the NHL during the COVID-19 pandemic. When faced with adversity, it has shown undeniable and admirable ingenuity. This is a league that halted its 2019-20 season, restarted it in two Canadian “bubble” cities and rewrote its postseason rules to allow 24 teams to participate

4:49 PM ET Associated Press EDMONTON, Alberta — When Brigette Lacquette first heard from the Chicago Blackhawks, she didn’t think the message was real. It was, and it arrived at a perfect time. Lacquette became the first Indigenous woman to scout for an NHL team when she was hired by the Blackhawks this year. Making

4:00 PM ET The IIHF announced on Wednesday that it has canceled the remainder of its 2022 World Juniors Championship because of a rising number of COVID-19 cases among players. IIHF officials held a meeting Wednesday afternoon to discuss how to keep the tournament going despite COVID issues, but those present decided cancellation was the

6:05 PM ET Associated Press TORONTO — Montreal Canadiens first-round pick Logan Mailloux will be reinstated to the Ontario Hockey League on Saturday. Mailloux was suspended indefinitely by the OHL on Sept. 2 because of an incident that took place while the London Knights’ defenseman was on loan to SK Lejon in Sweden in November

7:00 AM ET The Winter Classic has been the NHL’s signature outdoor event since 2008, when the Pittsburgh Penguins and Buffalo Sabres played through picturesque snow and launched an institution. The game between the St. Louis Blues and Minnesota Wild scheduled for Target Field on Jan. 1, 2022, will be the 13th edition of the

7:40 AM ET ESPN staff Dave Sandford/NHLI via Getty Images The NHL returns to action Tuesday after the league took an extended holiday break due to increased COVID-19 cases. There haven’t been any games played since Dec. 21. The ESPN+ exclusive schedule continues on Tuesday with the Tampa Bay Lightning hosting the Montreal Canadiens and

11:46 PM ET ESPN News Services EDMONTON, Alberta — Ville Koivunen scored twice as Finland routed Austria 7-1 on Monday at the world junior hockey championship. Brad Lambert had a goal and two assists for Finland (2-0), while Kalle Vaisanen, Samuel Helenius, Kasper Simontaival, and Topi Niemela also scored. Goalie Juha Jatkola made eight saves.

7:30 PM ET Associated Press CHICAGO — A lawsuit filed against the Chicago Blackhawks by a former Michigan high school student who said he was sexually assaulted by ex-assistant coach Brad Aldrich has been dismissed, an attorney said Monday. Susan Loggans, who represents the former student, told The Associated Press that an order in the

7:00 AM ET Kevin Sousa/NHLI via Getty Images Every NHL team has one — the player it can’t win without. With the league on pause until at least Tuesday, we’ve combed through each roster to find the player having the biggest impact. Sometimes it was easy to spot that player, in other instances, a closer

5:26 PM ET Associated Press The NHL will emerge from an extended holiday break with taxi squads and other roster revisions, a move made to guard against more disruptions to the season amid more players and coaches going into COVID-19 protocol Sunday. Each team will be allowed to have a taxi squad of up to

5:27 PM ET Associated Press CALGARY, Alberta — The Calgary Flames have pulled out of a deal with the city for a new arena because of increased costs. John Bean, president and chief executive officer of Calgary Sports and Entertainment, said Wednesday that there is no viable path forward to complete the 19,000-seat Event Centre.

3:42 PM ET The retirement of Willie O’Ree’s No. 22 by the Boston Bruins will be a landmark moment, happening 64 years to the date that he became the first Black player in the NHL. A summit scheduled around the event is intended to honor the power of that moment while trying to make hockey’s