NHL invites Seattle to apply for expansion team

By James O'BrienDec 7, 2017, 8:37 PM EST
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After word surfaced that Seattle is ramping up work on an NHL-ready (and NBA-ready) KeyArena, Gary Bettman decided to shed some light on the situation, while also acknowledging that he can’t control how much people will  “handicap” Seattle’s odds of actually landing a team.

Bettman announced that the NHL’s Board of Governors will allow Seattle to submit an expansion application, and only Seattle, so Quebec City’s dreams are – at best – put on hold for now.

The league’s commissioner emphasized that, while Seattle would be getting consideration, this is far from a guarantee that they’ll actually end up with a team when it’s all said and done.

Much like with Vegas’ quest to land a team, Bettman said that “in the next few months,” Seattle will be allowed to run a season-ticket drive to show how viable the market is as a money-maker. Actually, Bettman interestingly acknowledged how similar this process is (at least so far) to that which eventually created the Vegas Golden Knights.

He then added that the price is different and … boy is it ever.

In the case of the Golden Knights, the expansion price tag was $500 million. For a Seattle team? They’ll need to hand over a whopping $650 million, according to Bettman. So, the NHL could land $1.1 billion in expansion fees between two teams in a relatively short window of time. Interesting.

As far as the team coming via expansion or relocation is concerned, Bettman didn’t totally rule out Seattle’s team coming via a relocated franchise. That said, Bettman emphatically stated that the Hurricanes will not leave Carolina. (More on that in a future post tonight.)

[Karmanos says Hurricanes sale news could come soon.]

Bettman indicated that a Seattle team might launch by the 2020-21 season, which matches up with Seattle’s goals to have KeyArena ready to roll by October 2020. Of course, there’s the question of another lockout coming around that time, which …

/fails to contain whimpering and weeping

*ahem*

Anyway, that’s just one of several potential headaches in the process. It’s worth noting that Bettman saying nothing is guaranteed isn’t just lip service. Ownership and arena situations can get flighty, so the Seattle situation can take many twists and turns. If you’ve followed the grungy city’s arena exploits, you know that there have already been highs and lows during that process.

[You may recall an earlier Seattle announcement being derailed by scandal.]

Rather than foolishly dreaming of Sonics in the NHL, let’s focus on more straightforward-fun ideas, such as a Seattle – Vancouver rivalry, and the on-paper-and-in-our-imaginations perfect symmetry of having an NHL franchise in Seattle. It just makes too much sense not to work, right?

Right? Maybe?

Trevor Linden of the Canucks told The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun that they’d welcome a Seattle team and embrace the would-be rivalry, so that’s nice to hear.

Long story short, this seems like another very promising step in the right direction, but be careful about taking out that Jump to Conclusions mat just yet. Either way, PHT will keep you posted, whether this process ends up being smooth or full of swerves.

(Note: you can see a snippet of Bettman’s press conference in the video above this post’s headline, with most of his specific thoughts coming around the 50-second mark.)

For even more, check out Bob McKenzie’s segment on NBCSN from Wednesday:

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James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.

Bettman: Hurricanes relocation rumors are ‘wrong, wrong, wrong’

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By James O'BrienDec 7, 2017, 9:42 PM EST
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Today’s meeting for the NHL’s Board of Governors was eventful, though mainly in giving Gary Bettman a chance to clear the air on some key expansion/relocation issues.

The sexiest update was the latest green light for the Seattle expansion team process. Yes, it’s still early, but Bettman’s update can mostly be described as highly promising. Read about that here.

That wasn’t the only crucial story illuminated by the league’s commissioner on Thursday, though. Bettman touched on an array of questions, with some promising updates for fans of the Hurricanes, particularly ones crossing their fingers that the team will stay in Carolina.

As NHL.com reports, the Hurricanes have entered a purchasing agreement where Tom Dundon would become the majority owner while Peter Karmanos would still maintain an equity stake. If you want to go deeper on those issues (hey, you be you), Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman crosses some t’s and dots some lower-cased j’s for you here and here. The rest of us will just move along, much like a confused Calculus class not asking for clarification at the end of a lesson few of us absorbed.

(Aside: Pierre LeBrun’s explanation makes more sense/was less worthy of a GIF from “The Hangover” trilogy.)

Now, Dundon is a Dallas-based businessman, which drummed up some speculation that maybe the Hurricanes would move to Houston at some point as part of this deal. Every now and then, Bettman comes up with some real gems, particularly when he’s a little steamed. He did so tonight in calling relocation rumors “wrong, wrong, wrong.”

“The club is not going anywhere with Mr. Dundon’s purchase, and for those of you who know geography, the fact that he lives in Dallas and that happens to be in the same state as Houston has nothing to do with anything,” Bettman said, via NHL.com. “He’s buying the club to have it in Carolina. I want to be crystal clear on this because it’s really not fair to the players, the fans or anybody in the (Research) Triangle that this rumor has started. It’s just not accurate.”

It’s worth noting, as Friedman did in that bit that definitely didn’t fly over our heads, that this doesn’t mean that the sale is truly complete yet, at least in an “ink dried” sense.

Bettman believes that it will take a few weeks, maybe stretching into January, before things get settled.

Still, it seems like a deal is agreed upon, and Bettman steadfastly states that the Hurricanes won’t relocate.

Considering the assemblage of talent, albeit one that hasn’t coalesced into a true contender yet, it’s understandable that some markets might drool over the idea of landing this core of great, young players. Bettman insists that fans in Carolina will get to see that (hopefully) come together, instead.

For a little more on the Hurricanes and Seattle, check out Bob McKenzie’s Wednesday appearance for NBCSN:

***

As NHL.com’s Dan Rosen notes, there were other updates:

  • Nothing is going on with Houston, apparently, even beyond the Carolina rumblings.
  • It seems like there isn’t much new to note for the Coyotes or Islanders regarding their situations.
  • The Senators are in a similar boat with arena challenges.

Sportsnet’s John Shannon also points out that there continues to be negativity regarding the Calgary Flames and their messy arena situation. Lovely.

So, basically: good news for the Hurricanes and Seattle, though both situations aren’t totally finished. For everyone else with arena/etc. situations, the news is either bad or things remain a work in progress.

Matthew Tkachuk suspended one game for unsportsmanlike conduct

By Joey AlfieriDec 7, 2017, 3:42 PM EST
8 Comments

Another day, another suspension for Matthew Tkachuk.

On Thursday afternoon, the NHL’s Department of Player Safety announced that they have suspended the Flames forward for a game because of an incident that occurred in last night’s game against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

During a first-period scrum in front of the Flames bench, Tkachuk, who was on the bench, used his stick to spear Maple Leafs tough guy Matt Martin, who was on the ice at the time.

After the game, Leafs head coach Mike Babcock called the move “junior hockey stuff”.

If you missed the incident, you can watch it by clicking the video at the top of the page. 

What this means is that Tkachuk will be forced to miss tonight’s game against the Montreal Canadiens, which is a big deal considering his team will have to play their second game in two nights after losing to Toronto.

Here’s the full explanation of the suspension:

‘I want to do anything I can to help’: Lovejoy to donate brain for CTE research

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By Joey AlfieriDec 7, 2017, 2:24 PM EST
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As a whole, people are more informed about concussions, brain trauma and CTE today than they’ve ever been before. One current NHLer is hoping to take it a step further at some point in the distant future.

In an interview with TSN, New Jersey Devils defenseman Ben Lovejoy announced that he’ll be donating his brain to the Concussion Legacy Foundation in Boston. The goal is to help researchers find out more about CTE and concussions down the line. Lovejoy is the first activate NHLer to commit to this kind of cause.

Although he’s never been diagnosed with a concussion, the 33-year-old believes this gesture can help unlock some the mysteries surrounding head injuries.

“Hockey has been so good to me,” Lovejoy told TSN.ca. “It’s helped me make a ton of friends, travel the country and world, and given me an amazing job that has paid me really well. My entire life has revolved exclusively around hockey and I want to give my brain to help make this game safer.

“I’m spoiled to have done this for so long. I’ve had teammates who are superstars and others who are minor-league role players who have struggled, missed time, and ended careers because of concussions. I want to do anything I can to help.”

Even though he hasn’t had a documented concussion, he’s still played a physical brand of hockey for a long time.  Lovejoy has suited up in 432 and 218 NHL and AHL games in his career.

Earlier this year, former NHLers Shawn McEachern, Bob Sweeney, Ted Drury and Craig Adams also pledged to donate their brains to concussion/CTE research.

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Joey Alfieri is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @joeyalfieri.

How the Blues overcame a rash of injuries

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By Joey AlfieriDec 7, 2017, 1:44 PM EST
3 Comments

Every season, all NHL teams have to overcome adversity. Some lose players to injury, some go through coaching changes, others might hit a long losing streak along the way. Certain organizations crumble when they face difficult times, but there are others that find a way to weather the storm that comes their way.

In 2017-18, the St. Louis Blues have shown the hockey world that they haven’t just overcome adversity, they’ve thrived in it.

The Blues suffered a number of key injuries early on. They lost Robby Fabbri (torn ACL) for the season, Patrik Berglund missed all of October and most of November because of  shoulder issue, Alex Steen missed the first six games of the season because of a hand injury he suffered in the preseason, and Jay Bouwmeester missed a lot of time because of an ankle injury he picked up in training camp.

“I think we did it last year too,” head coach Mike Yeo said of overcoming injuries. “That’s something that’s a quality with this group. They don’t accept excuses. Obviously, losing players like we did heading into training camp- we lost four players that we figured would probably fit into our top nine. And then losing Jay Bouwmeester on the back end too. We weren’t going to allow excuses to dictate how things were going to go for us. So I think we stepped up to that challenge. With that, we also knew that we were going to have to dig in. We started with a lot of games on the road against tough teams, so it really forced us to get to our team game very quickly. And then, when you do that, you build some confidence in it and then we just built from there.”

That’s a lot of important losses to overcome. Not only have they done that, the Blues have been more than competitive in the difficult Central Division. Heading into tonight’s action, the Blues are tied for second in the division with 38 points and 16 regulation/overtime wins (the Jets have the same amount). They trail Nashville by just a single point.

[More: The Blues are starting to get healthy]

So, how have the Blues managed to stay on track?

Star Power:

There’s no denying that certain players have carried them this season. Brayden Schenn has proven to be an incredible draft-day trade acquisition. The fact that they were able to land him from the Flyers at a very reasonable cost proved to be a game-changer for St. Louis. Through 28 games, Schenn has picked up 13 goals and 33 points.

On top of having Schenn, the Blues have also benefited from having young veterans like Jaden Schwartz and Vladimir Taranko. Although Schenn, Schwartz (34 points) and Tarasenko (29 points) aren’t playing on the same line anymore, all three players have come up huge for their team.

“I’ve played pretty much since day one of the season with (Schwartz) and I just feel like he’s an easy guy to play with,” Schenn told PHT before Tuesday’s game against Montreal. “He works hard, he’s good at both ends of the ice, he sees the ice (well), he uses his linemates and teammates, and he’s a great guy in the locker room. He’s a lot fun to play with. And then, whoever is on the other side, whether it’s (Tarasenko) or (Steen), we’ve had a few guys, it’s been fun.”

The star power doesn’t end up front with St. Louis. Alex Pietrangelo has been a monster on the back end for them, as he contributes offensively while playing hard minutes on a nightly basis. The 28-year-old has been mentioned in the Norris Trophy conversation because he already has 21 points in 28 games. He also averages almost 26 minutes of ice time per game.

Depth on D:

Sure, Pietrangelo is the best defenseman on the roster, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t other quality blue liners on the team. St. Louis is loaded at the back, as they also have Colton Parayko, Joel Edmundson, Vince Dunn, Carl Gunnarsson, Roberto Bortuzzo and Jay Bouwmeester.

Unlike the Buffalo Sabres, the Blues have received plenty of contribution from their defense. Of the 92 goals they’ve scored this season (tied for sixth), 21 have come from their blue line.

The NHL is a league that’s become about skating, making quick decisions and moving the puck efficiently, and the group of defensemen the Blues have is certainly capable of accomplishing all of that.

Style of Play:

Yeo has the Blues playing the perfect style for the roster they’ve built. They’re constructed like a typical Western Conference power. They’re big, they can move and are a team that can make life difficult for the opposition with the way they forecheck and limit time and space.

Building a team like that isn’t easy. That’s why general manager Doug Armstrong is close to landing a contract extension. Unfortunately for the Blues, the fact that they waited this long to extend Armstrong might cost them.

They aren’t the perfect team (they don’t exist in a cap world). They could still probably use another forward or two that can contribute offensively, but it looks like they can take a punch and they can dish out a few too. That should help come the spring.

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Joey Alfieri is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @joeyalfieri.