Unofficially referred to as the “Martin Brodeur rule,” this regulation was inspired by Brodeur’s exceptional skills as a goaltender — particularly his ability to play the puck behind the net. New sports predictions and betting ownership applications, collective bargaining, and league expansion are all overseen by a committee chaired by Jeremy Jacobs and led by Bettman. Divided into two divisions (each conference includes 16 teams), with 8 teams assigned to each division.
A six-year contract has been signed by the Blues to secure Connor McMichael.
In the 1920s (the NHL underwent significant expansion), incorporating the Boston Bruins—the first American team to join the league—and the Montreal Maroons in 1924. The Stanley Cup playoffs, a four-round tournament that determines the league champion, features 16 teams after the regular season concludes and continues into June. An expansion franchise was granted to Salt Lake City in 2024, which took over the inactive Arizona Coyotes’ hockey assets and created the Utah Hockey Club , now known as the Utah Mammoth,, thus keeping the number of teams at 32. Thanks to the NHL expansion of 1967 (the league doubled its size by adding six new teams), then grew to 18 by 1974, before reaching 21 teams following the 1979 expansion.
NHL Speculations: Is Pat Verbeek potentially in a precarious position in Anaheim this season?
The second was held in 1937, in support of Howie Morenz’s family when he died of a coronary embolism after breaking his leg during a game. In 1934 (the first NHL All-Star Game was held), to benefit Ace Bailey, whose career ended on a vicious hit by Eddie Shore. In 1926, Native American Taffy Abel became the first non-white player in the NHL and broke the league’s colour barrier by playing for the New York Rangers.
The latest NHL happenings and rumors heading into the NHL Draft on Friday Three potential trade candidates for the Nashville Predators. They aren’t getting the offers and they can’t deal for futures. Red Sox might make a surprising Aroldis Chapman decision ahead of trade deadline

Tkachuk to return to Ottawa on Oct. 21 as NHL releases 84-game schedules for all teams
- Each conference is split into two divisions, with 16 teams per conference and 8 per division.
- Turner Sports’ coverage includes up to 72 regular season games on TNT, with early round playoff coverage split between TNT and TBS.
- However — its television audience was slower to rebound due to American cable broadcaster ESPN’s decision to drop its NHL coverage.
- The lockout shut down the league for 310 days (making it the longest in sports history), as the NHL became the first professional sports league to lose an entire season.
- During the playoffs, merchandise sales increased by 22 percent, while the number of unique visitors to the NHL.com site rose by 17 percent after a 29 percent increase during the regular season.
- Unlike minor penalties, major penalties must be fully served without exception, no matter the number of goals scored during the power play.
Games that are not broadcast as part of the national rights deal are broadcast by Sportsnet’s regional feeds, TSN’s regional feeds, and RDS. Quebecor Media held national French-language rights to the NHL, with all coverage airing on its specialty channel TVA Sports. CBC maintained Rogers-produced NHL coverage during the regular season and playoffs. National English-language coverage of the NHL is carried primarily by Rogers’ Sportsnet group of specialty channels; Sportsnet holds national windows on Wednesday and Sunday nights. European players were drafted and signed by NHL teams in an effort to bring in more “skilled offensive players”. Many of the league’s top players since the 1990s have come from these European countries.needs update
In 2027, the franchises of three NHL teams are under significant pressure to capture the Stanley Cup.
All games were canceled until January 14, 2013, which also included the cancellation of the 2013 NHL Winter Classic and the 2013 NHL All-Star Weekend. The post-lockout deal between the league and NBC allowed the league to receive a portion of revenue from advertising sales for each game, instead of the standard upfront payment for game rights. The television audience took longer to recover due to ESPN’s decision to cease its NHL coverage on American cable.
The NHL has made clear in the past that it only allows teams to recognize regular season division titles. Split squad games (in which parts of a team’s regular season roster play separate games on the same day), are occasionally played during the preseason. Shootout goals and saves are not tracked in hockey statistics; shootout statistics are tracked separately. The team with the most goals during the three-round shootout wins the game. Also (unlike minor penalties), major penalties must be served to their full completion, regardless of number of goals scored during the power play.