The 2018 NHL Awards will be held Wednesday, June 20 at The Joint in Las Vegas' Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, the league announced Wednesday.

It marks the second year in a row and ninth overall that the ceremony will take place in Las Vegas. Last year's awards were handed out at T-Mobile Arena, home of the Golden Knights.

"Our players, coaches and fans look forward to coming to Las Vegas each June to honor the Award nominees and winners," said NHL commissioner Gary Bettman. "This year, for the first time, those honored could include members of the home team, the Vegas Golden Knights."

Finalists for each award will be announced daily, beginning April 17.

• April 17 - Vezina Trophy (top goaltender)
• April 18 - Selke Trophy (forward who best excels in the defensive aspects of the game)
• April 19 - Norris Trophy (top defenseman)
• April 20 - Lady Byng Trophy (player best combining sportsmanship and ability)
• April 21 - Masterton Trophy (perseverance and dedication to hockey)
• April 22 - Calder Trophy (top rookie)
• April 23 - King Clancy Memorial Trophy (Humanitarian Award)
• April 24 - Mark Messier Leadership Award
• April 25 - Jack Adams Award (top head coach)
• April 26 - Ted Lindsay Award (most outstanding player as voted by the players)
• April 27 - Hart Trophy (most valuable player to his team)

A few winners we already know: Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid captured his second career and second consecutive Art Ross Trophy as the league's scoring champion; Washington Capitals winger Alex Ovechkin secured his seventh career Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy as the NHL's goal-scoring leader; and Jonathan Quick of the Los Angeles Kings won his second career William M. Jennings Trophy as the goaltender who plays at least 25 games for the club that allows the fewest goals.

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Pittsburgh Penguins forward Derick Brassard is in the lineup for Game 1 against the Philadelphia Flyers after missing the previous five games of the regular season with a lower-body injury, the team announced.

He will center the third line between forwards Conor Sheary and Phil Kessel.

Brassard's return to the lineup is a big boost for the Penguins, as he has proven to be a solid playoff performer throughout his career. In 78 career playoff games, he has 22 goals and 55 points.

The 30-year-old finished the regular season with 21 goals and 46 points in 72 games with the Penguins and the Ottawa Senators.

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Humboldt Broncos athletic therapist Dayna Brons has died, her family announced in a statement, according to Charles Hamilton of CBC Saskatoon.

Brons is the 16th person confirmed dead following the tragic bus accident Friday night.

Her family said she passed away peacefully Wednesday afternoon as a result of her injuries while surrounded by her loved ones.

Brons was the only woman on the bus and had been in critical condition, as The Globe and Mail's Andrea Woo reported earlier Wednesday.

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Despite a last-place finish in the NHL standings this year, Buffalo Sabres general manager Jason Botterill still has faith in head coach Phil Housley.

The Sabres held their end of the year press conference on Wednesday, during which Botterill said Housley would return as the team's head coach next season.

"One-hundred percent, Phil Housley will be our coach next year," Botterill said. "I have certainly enjoyed working with Phil. The way I want to put the team together, the way he wants to play, it's a good mix."

Housley is coming off his first year as a head coach in the league after serving as an assistant coach with the Nashville Predators from 2013-2017.

While the team won't make any changes behind the bench, Botterill did hint at potential changes to the team's core players.

"There certainly has to be change, and there will be change," Botterill said. "When you finish where we did, you have to look at everything, and that includes even changing up our core players."

The Sabres finished the year with a record of 25-45-12 and now have the best odds (18.5 percent) at landing the first overall pick in the draft.

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The Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League decided Wednesday to resume its postseason in the wake of the Humboldt Broncos bus accident that claimed 15 lives last Friday, according to Sportsnet's Roger Millions.

Hockey was put on hold after the horrific accident, but the decision to complete the season was made with the full support of the Broncos' team and staff, according to Farhan Lalji of TSN.

The team's bus was struck by a tractor trailer as the team was traveling to play its SJHL semifinal against the Nipawin Hawks.

Dates for the remaining games have yet to be announced.

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At the end of a disastrous 2017-18 season for the Edmonton Oilers, general manager Peter Chiarelli faced plenty of questions Wednesday about how he plans to erase those bad memories.

Many expected Edmonton to contend for the Stanley Cup this season, yet a lack of talent surrounding Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, along with a dreadful campaign from goaltender Cam Talbot, sunk the Oilers to 23rd in the league standings.

Chiarelli faces tremendous pressure to turn things around quickly, and the veteran executive is counting on his club to be back in the postseason in 2018-19.

"I expect this team to be in the playoffs next year and that's what we're going to strive for," Chiarelli said at a press conference.

One method for Chiarelli to potentially bring in new blood would be dangling his higher-than-expected first-round draft pick, which should be inside the top 10 selections.

Elsewhere this offseason, Chiarelli has to sort out new contracts for a few restricted free agents, most notably blue-liner Darnell Nurse and last summer's trade acquisition, Ryan Strome.

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Aside from lifting that beautiful silver chalice we all know and love as the Stanley Cup, the Conn Smythe Trophy is the piece of hardware players covet most at season's end.

The award is handed out to the playoff MVP, with recent winners including superstars like Sidney Crosby, Patrick Kane, and Evgeni Malkin.

With the playoffs only a few hours away, Las Vegas oddsmakers have chimed in with their favorites to be named 2018's postseason MVP.

Check out the updated odds from Bodog released Wednesday:

Three Hart Trophy candidates at 100-1 could be worth a little sprinkle. Good luck!

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There's really no denying it: The Vegas Golden Knights took the NHL by storm this season, becoming the first expansion team in 38 years to qualify for the playoffs.

Their reward for their historic Pacific Division crown? A first-round matchup with a Los Angeles Kings squad that's hungry to avenge its bitterly disappointing 2016-17 campaign, and also has more success over the last eight seasons than most franchises achieve over decades.

All credit's due to the Knights, who have done a lot more than just win games for the Las Vegas community, but the bubble is about to burst on their dream season. Here's why:

L.A.'s smothering penalty kill

Vegas finished tied for ninth in the NHL in power-play proficiency at 21.4 percent, scoring 53 of its 268 goals (20 percent) on the man advantage. Point being, the Knights rely on power-play scoring.

The problem is, they're going up against the stingiest penalty-killing group in the league in the Kings, who are tops in PK efficiency at a sparkling 85 percent, allowing just 39 goals on 260 chances. Only the San Jose Sharks allowed fewer (34).

Vegas' speedy core - snipers William Karlsson, Erik Haula, and Reilly Smith - scores many of its goals on the man advantage, so L.A.'s ability to snuff out power-play opportunities could be an X-factor - especially with penalty-killing specialists like Anze Kopitar, Dustin Brown, and Drew Doughty playing the lion's share of the shorthanded minutes for John Stevens' group.

If the Kings can impose their will on the PK, the Knights might be enjoying the Nevada golf courses a lot sooner than planned.

Finger jewelry will do the talking

Gerard Gallant and George McPhee have done an admirable job of building a winning lineup, but their pieced-together roster doesn't have the advantage of a core of players who have won multiple rings together.

The Kings boast a group in Jon Quick, Jeff Carter, Kopitar, and Doughty that played a key role for the Cup-winning teams in 2012 and 2014. Add in the rest of the Kings' rings, and L.A. ices a nightly lineup with 17 combined to Vegas' three, which are all owned by ex-Penguins goalie Marc-Andre Fleury.

How many rings players are rocking is far from the be-all and end-all in picking a team to pull off an opening-round upset. But at the time of year when games get tighter and clutch players make names for themselves, boasting a lineup stacked with battle-tested players who have lifted Lord Stanley multiple times can't hurt.

Knights may have peaked too soon

There's something to be said for a team hitting its stride too early. With all the club's accolades from its inaugural campaign, no one would hold it against the Knights if they entered Wednesday night without a sense of urgency.

Not to mention, Vegas lost seven of its last 13 games down the stretch, while the Kings are playing some of their best hockey, winning five of their last eight and punching their playoff ticket for the seventh time in nine seasons.

The Knights have had a campaign for the ages, breathing life into a league that has been complacent in its expansion of the sport. But that'll mean very little, or nothing, when the puck drops on the Golden Knights and Kings, because L.A. knows what it takes to win at this time of year.

Vegas peaked early with its Pacific Division win, and will be in tough against a battle-tested group that has played a lot of playoff hockey in recent years.

(Photos courtesy: Getty Images)

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Former NFL chief operating officer Tod Leiweke has been named CEO and president of the prospective NHL franchise expected to arrive in Seattle in the near future, he confirmed at a press conference Wednesday.

Leiweke's brother, Tim, is leading the charge for the $600-million renovation of KeyArena as head of the Oak View Group.

Tod has prior experience in the Pacific Northwest as the former CEO of the NFL's Seattle Seahawks, and is excited to be involved.

"It's an incredible thrill to come home, Leiweke said, according to Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times. "Not just for me but for my family."

Seattle's group proposal to the NHL is still under review, though its expected to be awarded the league's 32nd franchise in June at a cost of $650 million. The goal is to have the team on the ice for the 2020-21 season.

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Taylor Hall has finally made the playoffs. His reward? A date with the Tampa Bay Lightning and plenty of face time with star blue-liner Victor Hedman.

After a regular-season performance that put him in the conversation for MVP honors - Hall notched 93 points in 76 games, including a 25-game streak - the Devils forward needs a similar showing in the playoffs to give New Jersey any hope against the heavily favored Lightning.

And that's a tall task. This Tampa Bay squad waltzed through the regular season en route to a franchise-record 113 points, and there's no denying Hedman was a big contributor.

When he wasn't putting a career-high 17 goals past the opposing goaltender, Hedman was making life easier for Lightning netminder Andrei Vasilevskiy, regularly pushing in-close chances away from Tampa Bay's crease.

With that in mind, can the smaller Hall do enough to get around the hulking Hedman to help the Devils' chances?

New Jersey won all three matchups against the Lightning this season, and Hall picked up an assist in each contest. But he couldn't score a goal of his own, apparently losing the battle in the net-front area where both players excel.

If Hall can't translate his regular-season success to the playoffs and Hedman thrives in this shutdown assignment, it could be a short series.

The Hall versus Hedman showdown begins Thursday in Tampa Bay.

(Charts courtesy: HockeyViz.com)

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