J.P. Parise spent the majority of his NHL career with the Minnesota North Stars, recording 396 points in 588 regular-season games.
Tuesday is the Wild's final home game of the regular season, and they're feting the 1967-68 team, which brought NHL hockey to Minnesota, as part of their fan-appreciation efforts.
Martin Hanzal will don a vintage Minnesota North Stars jersey prior to the Wild's tilt against the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday in honor of Bill Masterton, the only player to die from injuries suffered during an NHL game.
Out of respect for Bill Masterton, the only player to die from injuries suffered during an NHL game, Martin Hanzal to wear 91 during warmups pic.twitter.com/WSnFVqXeKY
At the end of every season, the NHL hands out the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy to the player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey.
The Wild, of course, replaced the North Stars years after the latter moved to Dallas.
In a statement released Monday, the National Hockey League announced the decision to not disrupt the 2017-18 regular season in order to allow its players to participate in next February's Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
The decision was made after months of negotiations and amid reports of high commercial demands made by the NHL in order to market the Olympics on its various platforms, even after the IIHF agreed to cover the players' travel and insurance costs.
Here's what you need to know about the decision and what's happened since:
NHL statement
The NHL released a statement Monday afternoon reiterating the "overwhelming majority" of its clubs are adamantly opposed to disrupting next season's schedule to accommodate participation, adding, "in an effort to create clarity among conflicting reports and erroneous speculation, this will confirm our intention to proceed with finalizing our 2017-18 regular season schedule without any break to accommodate the Olympic Winter Games. We now consider the matter officially closed."
Preemptive action
Shortly after the announcement was made, the league reportedly directed teams not to talk to the players about the possibility of playing in the 2018 Games, and that the NHL will rule on the matter at a later date.
NHLPA response
"The players are extraordinarily disappointed and adamantly disagree with the NHL's shortsighted decision to not continue our participation in the Olympics," the league's players union said in a statement Monday night. "Any sort of inconvenience the Olympics may cause to next season's schedule is a small price to pay compared to the opportunity to showcase our game and our greatest players on this enormous international stage."
Player reaction
Taking their cue from the PA, individual players didn't shy away from making their feelings known.
Marc-Edouard Vlasic tweets Olympic logo after NHL says it won't go to South Korea
And it didn't stop there, as various players around the league continued to blast the NHL for the 'disappointing' Olympic decision.
What now?
Host of questions remain
"The NHL insisted Monday that the matter is 'officially closed' as it slammed the door on the Olympics for the first time since 1994. But a host of questions remain, from how national teams will fill their rosters to just how the league will deal with players like Ovechkin who plan to go anyway. Most players know nothing of the days when the NHL wasn't part of the Games, so the news that they won't get that chance in Pyeongchang didn't sit well at rinks around North America."
Glimmer of hope?
The International Ice Hockey Federation has said they are continuing to search for a solution to allow for NHL players to participate in Pyeongchang, but "team owners likely now need a 'game-changer' offer on the table."
Canada, U.S. preparing for 'Plan B' without NHLers
Without being able to choose from the best of the best, it's time to dig deep in order to field the most competitive rosters possible.
Projecting Canada's 2018 Pyeongchang roster
A look at who could play for Canada if NHL players don't make the trip. Make sure to have Hockeydb handy for this list.
All things considered, this matter is far from officially closed.
Barry Trotz is offering some high praise for Tuesday night's opponent.
The Washington Capitals bench boss, who's in Toronto for an important clash with the Maple Leafs, was asked if he's ever seen anything similar to the young club's success this season.
"Yeah I have," Trotz said, according to Sportsnet's Luke Fox. "Edmonton Oilers, way back in the day. Starting with 99."
The Maple Leafs, led by historically productive rookies, among other things, have transformed from a 30th place laughingstock to a team that can clinch a playoff berth with a win and some help Tuesday.
"They're playing with structure," Trotz said. "A lot of focus and commitment. They're in a position to be in the playoffs right now. They're playing good hockey, they're getting great goaltending from (Frederik) Andersen, so there's not a lot of holes in their game. They got it dialled."
Both Washington and Toronto are red-hot of late, each going 8-1-1 over their last 10 games.
The winger has not played since Oct. 14, 2015 as a result of multiple concussions, one of which was suffered in that last appearance.
General manager Pierre Dorion said MacArthur was cleared by multiple doctors a week ago, and the team felt it was best he make his return in Ottawa's home rink.
According to head coach Guy Boucher, MacArthur isn't being rushed to help the reeling Senators hold on to a playoff spot.
Boucher said he will ease MacArthur in. "He's not coming in to save the day." #senators
MacArthur entered this season as a full participant in training camp, but experienced a major setback after being diagnosed with another concussion as a result of a hit in a team scrimmage.
Back in January, it was announced MacArthur was ruled out for the rest of the season, but as recently as March 12, he said he felt as if he would be able to play.
Rookie Colin White will sit to make room for MacArthur, who has recorded 40 goals and 51 assists in 145 career games as a Senator.
A deflected puck that struck Logan Couture in the face over a week ago appears to have done a lot of damage.
The San Jose Sharks forward has been sidelined since the game in question against the Nashville Predators on March 25 and as Couture explained in great detail on Tuesday, the puck caused quite a lot of damage, according to Kevin Kurz of CSN Bay Area.
"Right when it happened I went to the Nashville room and their doctors and dentists did a great job trying to basically save my teeth," Couture said. "They had to move a lot of them around obviously from the impact of the puck. They were all shifted in my mouth. They did a great job at that time to try and save them.
"I went to Vanderbilt hospital, and they brought a guy in there to put what is called an arch-bar on my teeth to try and save them. … It wasn’t really a surgery, it was just kind of a procedure that they did.
"They’re all damaged," Couture said. "A lot of these teeth are going to be taken out at some point once the season is over. They’ll have to remove a lot of them from my mouth.
"It’s basically temporary to have some teeth in my mouth. That’s pretty much it. If they took them all out now then I would be almost toothless."
In the meantime, there is no concrete date for Couture's return to the Sharks lineup. Head coach Pete Deboer spoke to reporters Tuesday where he was rather ambiguous stating both he and Joe Thornton - who is day to day with a lower-body injury - could be back Saturday or even a month from Saturday.
Asked Shattenkirk if it'd get awkward in locker room with some players insisting on going to Olympics. Said he'd tip his cap to those guys.
— Isabelle Khurshudyan (@ikhurshudyan) April 4, 2017
Nino Niederreiter
Minnesota Wild forward Nino Niederreiter was also up in arms, suggesting the decision was hypocritical if the league hopes to grow the game worldwide.
"It’s very disappointing. It’s pretty selfish I would say," Niederreiter said, according to Michael Russo of the Star Tribune. "To me it doesn’t make sense. They want to have opening (exhibition) games in China and (regular-season games in) Sweden (next year), and then we have a chance to play in the Olympics, which was the biggest stage possible, and they don’t want to go. It just doesn’t add up. It makes no sense. You can’t go to China and have games there and go to Stockholm and have games there, and then have a chance to play in the Olympics and don’t go. It just doesn’t add up.
"It’s just selfish. And has nothing to do with the game anymore."
"I don't think you can take it away from players. I agree with other players who are disappointed but we have contracts over here."
Gabriel Landeskog
For Colorado Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog, what hurts the most is the loss of tradition and patriotism that comes with NHLers at the Olympics.
"I think it’s too bad, to be honest with you," Landeskog said, according to Terry Frei of the Denver Post. "I know growing up, watching Sweden in the Olympics and watching men’s hockey, our whole high school would sit still and everybody got a break off school. They showed it in the cafeteria, and everybody was there, the whole school, students, teachers, everything.
"Olympics, that’s what a lot of kids dream about, especially to participate. That’s a great honor for your country and to be part of that, but also to win an Olympic medal. It doesn’t happen often to get that chance, and I think it’s too bad, disappointing to say the least.
"You’re playing for your country. Nobody’s making any money. You’re playing for the pride and you’re playing for your jersey and your country. The owners say they don’t want any players getting hurt and whatnot, and I can understand that, but from a player’s perspective, you go and play for your country. And that’s it. You’re playing for your pride and your country and wanting to win a gold medal for your country. So I think it was too bad and I was disappointed to hear that news."
To say that the NHL's unwillingness to participate in the 2018 Olympics in Pyeongchang has created friction with the NHLPA would be an understatement.
With the current collective bargaining agreement expiring after the 2021-22 season, that friction could be an important point in the timeline of a future NHL lockout.
Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews is a two-time Olympic gold medalist who represented Team Canada in both the 2010 and 2014 Games. Like many other players, he isn't pleased with the league's decision, and thinks it could be an ominous sign of things to come.
"It just seems like it comes down to what can they (the NHL) get out of us when the next CBA negotiation rolls around," Toews told Mark Lazerus of the Chicago Sun-Times on Tuesday.
Asked whether the league is hurtling toward another lockout, Toews responded, "I wouldn't be surprised. If we're already hitting some road bumps with something like (the Olympics), we're heading in the same direction. Can't say anyone should be surprised at this point."
As a three-time Stanley Cup champion, Toews' voice is louder than that of an average NHL player. Bolder comments have already come from other faces of the league like Alex Ovechkin, who stated: "I'm still going."
Though the 2016 World Cup of Hockey was a success, it doesn't appear to have succeeded in quenching players' thirst for international, best-on-best hockey.
"Compared to the World Cup, there was no comparison really, as far as energy and excitement," Toews, who's won both tournaments, said of participating in the Olympics.
Holtby hasn't suited up for Canada at the Olympics, but was the third string netminder at September's World Cup of Hockey.
As for his Stanley Cup pursuit, Holtby and the Capitals sit atop the NHL standings with 112 points and can clinch the Metropolitan Division on Tuesday.
