Crosby and Dumoulin went into the protocol on Nov. 3. Sullivan joined them a day later as part of an outbreak that has seen eight Penguins and their longtime coach miss time. Acting head coach Todd Reirden said before Saturday’s game in Ottawa that he expects Sullivan to be back on the job when the […]
Continue readingDefensemen Chad Ruhwedel and Marcus Pettersson practiced Wednesday, and assistant coach Todd Reirden — who is filling in while Sullivan is in the protocol — said both will be game-time decisions Thursday night when Pittsburgh welcomes the Florida Panthers. The two defensemen went into the COVID-19 protocol Oct. 31 after testing positive. Both players said […]
Continue readingIt was inevitable that COVID-19 would impact the 2021 NHL season, but the Washington Capitals didn’t imagine it would impact them so early — or so hard. After their first road trip to Buffalo and Pittsburgh, goalie Ilya Samsonov tested positive for the coronavirus. The NHL’s contact tracing revealed the team’s four Russian players (captain […]
Continue readingThe NHL free-agent frenzy was unprecedented this offseason — and not just because it took place when the regular season is usually scheduled to start. The new collective bargaining agreement kept the salary cap flat at $81.5 million. Otherwise, it would have plummeted, just as team revenues have during the COVID-19 pandemic. The financial landscape […]
Continue readingThe word that typically defines free agency in the NHL is “uncertainty.” Players with expiring contracts enter a marketplace unsure of what their next deals will look like or where they’ll next call home. But in the 2020 free-agent frenzy, that uncertainty has reached previously unseen levels for players and teams. There’s a flat salary […]
Continue readingThe best part is looking through that bubble at the person standing across from you as the soapy curtain ripples in the air. The bubble changes what you normally see and perceive. The last month of Stanley Cup playoff officiating in two different bubbles is evidence of that. Trying to define the refereeing in this […]
Continue readingBoth are infamous for their fluctuation. Stock prices climb and fall and climb again. NHL teams and players exhibit the same streakiness from game to game. The goat on one night can become the G.O.A.T. by the end of the series. It’s the unpredictability that can enrich one’s life or turn one’s portfolio to trash. […]
Continue readingIn the two seasons since the team promoted top assistant Todd Reirden instead of giving Stanley Cup-winning coach Barry Trotz a raise, the Caps have been knocked out of the playoffs in the first round. On Sunday, the team fired Reirden days after losing their first-round playoff series to Trotz’s New York Islanders in five […]
Continue readingBraden Holtby might have played his last game with the Washington Capitals. “Certainly there’s a chance it is,” said the goaltender, whose team meekly exited the Stanley Cup playoffs with a 4-0 loss to the Islanders on Thursday night, as New York eliminated the Caps in five games. “But who knows? You live one day […]
Continue readingThis is it. It’s win or go home for the Chicago Blackhawks and Washington Capitals on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the defending champions can’t be counted out just yet, as the St. Louis Blues have tied their series at 2. And how about those Boston Bruins? A four-goal onslaught in the third period gave them a crucial […]
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