NHL

7:00 AM ET On the back of Marc-Andre Fleury‘s goalie mask this season is a quote: “Mets ton oeil dessus. Tu joues comme tu pratiques. Amuse-toi.” Translated from French: “Keep your eye on it. You practice as you play. Have fun.” The quote is signed “Pa,” which is what Fleury called his father, Andre. “He’s

7:47 PM ET Associated Press DALLAS — Florida Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad was taken off the ice on a stretcher with a left leg injury midway through the second period against the Dallas Stars on Sunday. An aircast was applied to Ekblad’s left leg. Minutes earlier, Ekblad got caught up with Stars defenseman Esa Lindell

11:51 PM ET Associated Press BOSTON — Lexie Laing and Taylor Wenczkowski scored power-play goals, and the Boston Pride became the first two-time winners of the Isobel Cup with a 4-3 win over the defending champion Minnesota Whitecaps on Saturday night. It was an NWHL championship the Pride, who were regular-season champions, had hoped to

4:06 PM ET The Buffalo Sabres traded center Eric Staal to the Montreal Canadiens for two draft picks on Friday, ending a brief and disappointing run for the veteran star in Buffalo. The Canadiens sent 2021 third- and fifth-round draft picks to Buffalo for Staal. The Sabres retained 50% of Staal’s salary: $1.625 million of

8:50 AM ET The NHL trade deadline owes a debt of gratitude to the Canadian government. On Thursday, a league source confirmed to ESPN that the 14-day quarantine for NHL players traded from U.S. teams to Canadian teams would be reduced to seven days, with additional COVID-19 testing. This removes a roadblock for North Division

2:19 PM ET Associated Press Buffalo Sabres interim coach Don Granato and assistant Matt Ellis are headed back to work after being cleared from the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol. The Sabres announced Granato and Ellis are traveling to join the team in Boston after spending a night in self-isolation in Pittsburgh. Both were placed in the

12:18 PM ET Associated Press ST. LOUIS — Former St. Louis Blues defenseman Bob Plager likely died of a “cardiac event,” not injuries from a highway accident, the St. Louis medical examiner said Friday. Plager, 78, an original member of the Blues whose long association with the team continued until his death, was alone in

12:03 PM ET Calgary Flames star Matthew Tkachuk is the first NHL player to release his own official non-fungible token, auctioning the digital sports memorabilia to help raise money for two children’s hospitals. “I thought this was a new way to show digital art. To play a tiny, tiny part in bringing in donations, it’s

5:32 PM ET Associated Press Buffalo Sabres interim coach Don Granato and assistant Matt Ellis have been placed in the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol. The development leaves general manager Kevyn Adams taking over behind the bench for Buffalo’s game at Pittsburgh on Thursday night. The team made the announcement two hours before the opening faceoff. This

3:56 PM ET The Canadian government is expected to reduce its federal quarantine from 14 days to seven days for NHL players traded from American teams, a league source confirmed to ESPN on Thursday. The NHL league office has yet to receive official notification from the government, though it is expected ahead of the April

8:35 AM ET “You were the chosen one!” Every time I look at the stats for Philadelphia Flyers goalie Carter Hart this season, I think of Obi-Wan Kenobi screaming that line at Anakin Skywalker in “Revenge of the Sith,” and not just because Gen Xers like myself incessantly relate everything back to Star Wars. (It

7:00 AM ET As Carolina Hurricanes top-line center Sebastian Aho explained to ESPN in 2019: “Our team’s identity comes from Rod [Brind’Amour].” The team’s coach, who captained the Canes to their only Stanley Cup in 2006, is demanding, but he empowers his players. At 50, Brind’Amour still lives up to his nickname “Rod the Bod,”

7:06 PM ET Associated Press The Boston Bruins are resuming practice for the first time since having two games postponed after five players were placed in the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol. The team announced it will practice Wednesday night, a day before the Bruins are still scheduled to host the New York Islanders. The development comes

7:00 AM ET Francesco Pinelli had been looking forward to the 2020-21 hockey season his entire life. Pinelli, a 17-year-old from Hamilton, Ontario, is a top prospect for the 2021 NHL draft. In October, NHL Central Scouting named Pinelli to its preliminary players to watch list; the Kitchener Rangers (Ontario Hockey League) center was one

7:00 AM ET We’re past the midseason mark of this abridged 56-game 2021 NHL season, and the April 12 trade deadline is just around the corner. For this week’s NHL Power Rankings, we offer up bold predictions for all 31 teams. How we rank: The ESPN hockey editorial staff submits selections ranking teams 1 to

7:29 PM ET Associated Press MONTREAL — The NHL announced Tuesday that the Montreal Canadiens have had their games through Sunday postponed. The league made the announcement a day after the Canadiens’ game against the visiting Edmonton Oilers was postponed following the addition of Montreal forwards Joel Armia and Jesperi Kotkaniemi to the NHL’s COVID

12:52 PM ET The NHL board of governors has approved new rules for the NHL draft lottery that will help last-place teams but restrict perpetual losers from winning multiple lotteries, a source confirmed to ESPN on Tuesday. The rules will be implemented beginning with the 2022 lottery. TSN was first to report the approval. The

7:00 AM ET The coach on the other end of the phone scanned ESPN’s 2021 NHL position-by-position ranking player pools, his stress level increasing. “We’re talking about the best of the best,” he said, sighing. “Now you’re asking me to vote for the best of ‘the best of the best.'” Well, yeah, that’s sort of