First Call: Fox rates Mike Tomlin 3rd-best coach; James Harrison on T.J. Watt setting the sack record
Thursday’s “First Call” illustrates the love the national media still has for Mike Tomlin. James Harrison applauds T.J. Watt while J.J. Watt discusses the scrutiny of Matt Canada. Also, Connor Bedard scores his first NHL goal, and an ex-Pittsburgh Penguin gets off on the right foot. Laying it on a...
Jonas Johansson wins in debut as Lightning beat Predators in NHL season openerVideo
TAMPA, Fla. — Jonas Johansson made 29 saves in his first start in place of the injured Andrei Vasilevskiy, Nicholas Paul had two third-period power-play goals and the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Nashville Predators, 5-3, in the NHL regular-season opener Tuesday night. Johansson was signed to be Vasilevskiy’s backup....
Barry Melrose retiring as ESPN’s longtime hockey analyst after Parkinson’s disease diagnosis
Former NHL player and coach Barry Melrose is stepping away from his career as one of hockey’s most recognized analysts after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, ESPN announced on Tuesday. The news of Melrose’s illness and retirement was made on ESPN’s SportsCenter on the same day the NHL 2023-24 season...
As NHL season begins, long-anticipated salary cap boom coming in summer 2024Video
Welcome to what folks around the NHL hope is the last season of the flat cap era. Since the pandemic depleted the hockey business like so many others and after the playoffs were bubble wrapped to award the Stanley Cup, the league has been digging out of a hole deeper...
NHL issues updated theme night guidance, which includes a ban on players using Pride tape on the iceVideo
The NHL sent a memo to teams last week clarifying what players can and cannot do as part of theme celebrations this season, including a ban on the use of rainbow-colored stick tape for the Pride nights that have become a hot-button issue in hockey. The updated guidance reaffirms on-ice...
Change of pace: Peter Laviolette brings an up-tempo style to Rangers as third coach in four seasonsVideo
NEW YORK — Peter Laviolette is the New York Rangers’ third coach in four seasons. His arrival in the offseason brought in another system, another philosophy and another coaching style. The championship expectations remain the same. Laviolette, who led Carolina to the Stanley Cup championship in 2006, said he knows...
Vegas Golden Knights winning the Stanley Cup shows the value of depth at every positionVideo
Leon Draisaitl acknowledged there was a reason he and the Edmonton Oilers lost to the Vegas Golden Knights in the playoffs last season. Asked what stood out about the team that eliminated them and went on to win the Stanley Cup, one thing came to the German star’s mind. “They’re...
Lessons from last season could shape how NHL’s top contenders vie for Stanley Cup in 2024Video
All Connor McDavid wants to do after establishing himself as the best hockey player in the world is win the Stanley Cup. He knows he can’t do that in October, when the NHL playoffs feel like they are a lifetime away. “There’s 82 full games before you can get back...
Bruins hope to finish job this season after record-setting run ended in playoff flopVideo
BOSTON — The Boston Bruins are looking ahead at a new season, not back at the one where they posted the best record in NHL history and then lost in the first round of the playoffs. “My rearview mirror is broken,” team president Cam Neely said as the 2023 Presidents...
Blackhawks’ Nick Foligno impressed with Connor Bedard, ready to help lead Chicago
CHICAGO — Nick Foligno texted and called Connor Bedard over the summer, and the veteran had the rookie over to his home. It was a full-circle moment for Foligno ahead of his 17th NHL season. “It brings me back to when I was 19 and I came into the team...
North Huntingdon native Austen Swankler enters transfer portal, alleging hazing at Bowling Green
Austin Swankler, a native of North Huntingdon who was the fifth-leading scorer in NCAA men’s hockey last season with Bowling Green, has entered the NCAA’s transfer portal, alleging he was the victim of hazing at the school. “I came out about everything that happened to stop future incidents from occurring,”...
Golden Knights back to work after Stanley Cup win, short offseasonVideo
LAS VEGAS — The Vegas Golden Knights went from hoisting the Stanley Cup, to a victory parade on the Strip, to a summer of celebrating, to now getting down to the business of playing hockey again. A short offseason is a good problem to have but still an issue. “That’s...
NHL training camp primer: Big questions to answer from Anaheim to ColumbusVideo
Exactly 100 days after the Vegas Golden Knights beat the Florida Panthers to win the Stanley Cup for the first time, training camps open around the NHL on Thursday. The Golden Knights bring back nearly the same roster in their bid to repeat, and the Panthers are still licking their...
First Call: Ben Roethlisberger supports current Steelers O-lineman; pair of ex-Penguins traded for each other
Tuesday’s “First Call” features some support for a Pittsburgh Steelers offensive lineman from former quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. The Raiders may try to get a familiar face back in the mix against the Steelers. We check the TV ratings to see how the Backyard Brawl did compared to the huge numbers...
Blue Jackets executive admits a ‘major misstep’ in hiring Mike Babcock, who was forced to resignVideo
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Columbus Blue Jackets owners and executives Monday were contrite over the forced resignation of controversial coach Mike Babcock days before the opening of training camp and eager to move on from the turmoil that engulfed the organization. “All we can do now is learn from it and...
Mike Babcock resigns as Blue Jackets coach amid investigation involving players’ photos
Mike Babcock resigned as coach of the Columbus Blue Jackets on Sunday after word emerged earlier this week of him asking players to show him photos on their phones. The team announced Babcock’s shocking departure in the aftermath of an investigation by the NHL Players’ Association into his conduct. Pascal...
New Blue Jackets coach Mike Babcock blasts report suggesting he was invading his players’ privacy
New Columbus Blue Jackets coach Mike Babcock said Tuesday he had done nothing wrong in asking players to show him photos off their phones, clarifying he was trying to get to know them after a report emerged criticizing him for invasion of privacy. Paul Bissonnette said on the ‘Spittin’ Chiclets’...
Former Penguins winger Carl Hagelin retires because of eye injury
Carl Hagelin, a speedy winger who was one-third of the fabled HBK Line during the Pittsburgh Penguins’ Stanley Cup runs of 2016-17, announced his retirement from the NHL on Wednesday due to an eye injury. Hagelin, 35, has not played since taking an errant stick to his left eye during...
Tim Benz: Robert Morris hockey coaches happy to have the coaching ‘stomach acid’ back
Starting this week, Robert Morris hockey coaches Derek Schooley and Logan Bittle are taking on a significant job change. They are actually coaching again. Instructing players. A full team. On the ice. Getting ready for a real season. For the first time in two years. “It’s just a super exciting...
Maple Leafs sign star center Auston Matthews to 4-year, $53 million extensionVideo
TORONTO — Auston Matthews has put pen to paper on a deal that is set to make him the NHL’s highest-paid player. And the Toronto Maple Leafs — and their fans — can finally exhale. The star center signed a four-year, $53 million extension on Wednesday that ties him to...
Legendary voice of Buffalo Sabres Rick Jeanneret dies at age 81
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Rick Jeanneret, who will always be regarded as the voice of the Buffalo Sabres after a 51-year broadcasting career and the Hockey Hall of Fame’s 2012 Foster Hewitt Award recipient, died Thursday. He was 81. The Sabres released a statement from Jeanneret’s family saying he died with...
Canadiens trade Jeff Petry to Red Wings 10 days after acquiring him from Penguins
The Detroit Red Wings acquired defenseman Jeff Petry from the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday, a trade that gives them another veteran player late in a busy offseason of additions. Detroit got Petry at less than half his salary, just over $2.3 million for each of the next two seasons, in...
Maple Leafs prospect Rodion Amirov, who was diagnosed with a brain tumor, has died at age 21
Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Rodion Amirov has died less than 2 years since being diagnosed with a brain tumor. He was 21. Agent Dan Milstein confirmed to The Associated Press that Amirov died Monday in Munich, Germany. The team said in February 2022 that Amirov had a brain tumor and...
First Call: Joey Porter Jr. quote angers Vontaze Burfict; ex-Steeler signs in Philly; San Jose reaction to Erik Karlsson trade
In Monday’s “First Call,” former Pittsburgh Steelers rival Vontaze Burfict fires back at Joey Porter Sr. and Jr. Another ex-Steeler signs in Philadelphia. The Pirates are about to take on Major League Baseball’s best team. And we have some reaction to the Erik Karlsson trade from San Jose’s point of...
Coyotes agree to 1-year, $3.9 million deal with Matt Dumba
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Defenseman Matt Dumba agreed to a one-year, $3.9 million contract with the Arizona Coyotes, a person familiar with the deal told the Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity Sunday because the contract has not been signed yet. Dumba played 10 seasons with Minnesota after...
