NHL

7:00 AM ET ESPN.com staff The NHL returns to the ice on Tuesday night, and for the first time since the 2003-04 season it’s back on ESPN! At 7:30 p.m. ET, we’ll watch the Tampa Bay Lightning raise another Stanley Cup banner before taking on the Pittsburgh Penguins. Then at 10:15 p.m., the Vegas Golden

10:35 PM ET Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby will not play in Tuesday’s season opener against the Tampa Bay Lightning, he told Steve Levy in an interview that aired on Monday Night Football. Crosby, 34, made the trip to Tampa Bay and has begun practicing with the team, but he is still recovering from surgery

4:34 PM ET Associated Press SEATTLE — The Kraken are expected to be without five players for the season opener at Vegas due to COVID-19 protocols — awful timing on the eve of the first game in franchise history. Forwards Jared McCann, Joonas Donskoi and Marcus Johansson, and defenseman Jamie Oleksiak were placed on the

7:00 AM ET The Tampa Bay Lightning ended an unprecedented NHL season full of modifications and adjustments forced by the COVID-19 pandemic in July by hoisting the Stanley Cup for the second straight year. They’ll go for the three-peat in a 2021-22 campaign that sees the league revert to its normal alignment but features big

12:56 PM ET Associated Press The New York Rangers and top center Mika Zibanejad have agreed to an eight-year contract worth $68 million. Zibanejad, 28, will count $8.5 million against the salary cap beginning next season and through 2029-30. He was a point-per-game player last season with 24 goals and 26 assists in 50 games.

1:17 PM ET Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby practiced Saturday for the first time since undergoing surgery on his left wrist in early September. The two-time Hart Trophy winner, who had been dealing with the wrist injury for years, opted for surgery after all minimally invasive options had been exhausted. At the time of the

8:42 PM ET Associated Press WASHINGTON — Alex Ovechkin left the Washington Capitals‘ preseason finale against Philadelphia on Friday night with what the team called a lower-body injury and is set to be examined further Saturday. Ovechkin bumped into Flyers forward Travis Konecny midway through the first period and then went down to the ice.

8:43 PM ET Associated Press TORONTO — Ontario’s major indoor professional sports teams have been given the green light to host capacity crowds. The NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators and the NBA’s Toronto Raptors will be able to play in front of full arenas when their seasons start this month, Ontario Sports Minister

10:52 AM ET The Florida Panthers have secured their franchise center with a blockbuster contract. Aleksander Barkov has agreed to an eight-year, $80 million contract with the Panthers, a source told ESPN on Friday. The majority of the contract consists of signing-bonus money. It’s the largest contract in total dollars ever handed out by the

7:00 AM ET The 2021-22 NHL season is being called a return to normalcy. Last season was an unprecedented one for the NHL due to the COVID-19 pandemic: Four geographically realigned divisions, including one solely comprising Canadian teams; teams playing only opponents within those divisions; and a new playoff format that eschewed wild-card teams. But

8:50 PM ET Associated Press NEWARK, N.J. — The New Jersey Devils‘ preseason game against the New York Islanders was canceled Thursday night due to a power outage in part of Prudential Center. The lights in one area of the arena went out before the start of the game and could not be restored. After

7:31 PM ET Associated Press NEW YORK — Calgary Flames forward Blake Coleman was suspended for one preseason game and one regular-season game without pay Thursday for boarding Winnipeg Jets forward Jansen Harkins. Coleman was assessed a minor penalty for boarding at 6 minutes, 15 seconds of the second period in the Flames’ 3-2 preseason

7:00 AM ET As the 2021-22 NHL season arrives, so does the pressure of expectations. Every player, coach and general manager feels the heat to some degree. But some feel its intensity like a neglected hamburger under a fast food restaurant lamp, sizzling and spoiling and preparing to be tossed away. Here are my “hot

9:18 PM ET ESPN News Services LOS ANGELES — Los Angeles Kings forward Quinton Byfield, a highly touted rookie already being mentioned as a candidate for the Calder Trophy, suffered a left ankle fracture in Wednesday’s preseason game against the Arizona Coyotes and is out indefinitely. Byfield, 19, the No. 2 overall pick in the

5:39 PM ET Associated Press MONTREAL — Canadiens goaltender Carey Price is not expected to practice before the start of the regular season, making it unlikely that he’ll be ready for next week’s opener at Toronto. Coach Dominique Ducharme said Wednesday that Price is “not doing well right now” as he recovers from a non-COVID-19

7:00 AM ET Alex Ovechkin would prefer not to talk about breaking Wayne Gretzky‘s NHL career goal-scoring record. He’ll gladly talk about his cars, like his G-wagons and his Bentley coupe. Or the best high-end sushi joints on the road. He’ll happily indulge you about fashion: “Dolce, Dolce, Dolce,” he said, cataloguing his shirt, pants

2:37 AM ET ESPN News Services LOS ANGELES — Quinton Byfield, the second overall pick in the 2020 NHL draft, suffered a lower body injury during the third period of the Los Angeles Kings‘ 4-1 loss to the Arizona Coyotes in a preseason game Tuesday night. The 19-year-old center hit the corner boards awkwardly during

10:20 AM ET Eric GomezMexico writer Over the last three decades, the NHL’s expansion into the American Sun Belt has served to diversify the league’s geography and fan profile. Markets with high Latino populations such as Phoenix, Dallas-Fort Worth and Miami have reaped the benefits. Now, the league is poised to make its next ambitious