Category: The National
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Is the time coming for the AHL to split up?
Zack Fisch, the voice of the AHL’s most time-honored franchise, cannot wait to see new opposing crests in the coming campaign. When he answered an interview with Pucks and Recreation last month, he noted that his Hershey Bears will cross paths with the Grand Rapids Griffins for the first time since 2005-06. It will be…
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Fall full of Mighty Ducks nostalgia ahead
When Teemu Selanne joined Paul Kariya to copilot the Anaheim Mighty Ducks, their subsequent success reminded everyone that the name does not make the team. Purists whose youth preceded Generation X had grunted at a gimmicky brand in a “nontraditional hockey market.” For its first three seasons, Disney’s NHL franchise was shadowed by its theatrical…
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Milwaukee most ideal for a 32nd NHL team, but not too soon
It is funny to think that after the last year of speculation and discussion of the NHL expansion draft, it may already be time to start discussing the next one. A 32nd NHL team may not happen in the near future. In fact, it would be better if it didn’t happen too quickly. But it seems clear that…
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NHL awards: A fun or frivolous event?
Hockey has utilized a unique practice in the sporting universe when it comes to the annual NHL awards show. For most professional sports, the awards are announced in a simple fashion, such as a press release, and accepted on separate occasions in separate venues. The NHL, however, goes all out, hosting a full-on awards presentation to announce their…
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Penguins White House visit: Whether to go and what to do
A statement from team president and CEO David Morehouse indicates the Pittsburgh Penguins White House visit in honor of their latest Stanley Cup triumph will go on as normal. In his report, the Pittsburgh Post Gazette’s Dave Molinari noted that Morehouse and owner Ron Burkle are committed despite longtime opposition to the incumbent party. However,…
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Has the NHL salary cap established real balance?
Competitive balance is something that every sport strives for. Without it, the two or three teams with the most money will dominate each season, riding their roster of all-star players to easy championships. Teams with less money will be stuck sending out inferior rosters made up of either young or cheap players that simply cannot…
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Pierre LeBrun has a point: NHL playoffs must end in May
Prior to the 2017 Stanley Cup Final, hockey analyst Pierre LeBrun raised an interesting point about the timing of the annual postseason climax. Two days before Game 1, the TSN network commentator tweeted, “My annual complaint: Really, really, wish the playoffs would be done by May 31. Should be no hockey in June. Start season in…
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Why the ’90s were the golden age for American hockey fans
Starting Monday, the NHL will run its last draft combine to feature a pool of prospects primarily born in the 1990s. Every non-expansion pick of the Vegas Golden Knights will have been born in or after the year the Las Vegas Thunder folded. American hockey fans old enough to remember can fondly educate that draft…
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No. 1 center gaining on No. 1 defenseman as the franchise position
If you had asked me two years ago, “Which would you prefer, a No. 1 center or a No. 1 defenseman?,” I would have answered, “Defenseman, and it’s not even close.” A true No. 1 defenseman is the mystical player that every team is searching for to stabilize the blue line. The best of them can…
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NHL playoff format not perfect, but the best way to go
It seems like every sport is trying to find that perfect playoff formula to make every series have real meaning to it. Meaning brings interest, starts conversations and creates the ‘Hey, did you see this?’ moments like those last-second touchdowns and overtime goals that cannot help but go viral on social media. In reality, there…