The governing body has tabbed Detroit Red Wings bench boss Jeff Blashill to coach the American squad at the upcoming World Championship.
Blashill brings a wealth of international experience to the U.S. bench. He led the Americans to a quarterfinal finish in last year's tournament, after finishing first in the Group A round robin with a 6-0-1 record.
The Michigan native was also an an assistant coach during the 2009 World Junior Championship.
Blashill has served as Red Wings head coach for the past three seasons.
Sean Monahan's offseason workout regimen has become much more difficult, as the Calgary Flames forward has undergone four different surgeries since being removed from the lineup near the end of March, Jermain Franklin of TSN reports.
Monahan was pulled from the lineup following his last game on March 21 against the Anaheim Ducks to deal with nagging injuries, and went under the knife to repair injuries to both hips, his groin, and his wrist.
Despite playing injured for a portion of the year, Monahan still suited up in 74 games for the Flames, registering a career-high 64 points (31 goals, 33 assists).
Monahan should have plenty of time to recover, as Calgary missed the playoffs for the seventh time in the last nine seasons.
New owner Tom Dundon wasn't shy when discussing what he wants to see out of the Canes at his end-of-season press conference, saying the team needs a major shake-up, and adding that "either the players have to be tougher or you bring in tougher players."
While he didn't give specific names, Dundon clearly thought many of his team's players underachieved.
"Right now we have a lot of good assets," he said. "We didn't get enough out of any of those assets."
The Hurricanes were many experts' hot pick to leap into the postseason this year, but they didn't come close, finishing 14 points out of a playoff spot.
In many instances, the head coach takes the fall when a team fails to meet expectations, but Dundon says no decisions have been made on Bill Peters' future, per Michael Smith.
The search for the heir apparent to Ron Francis is ongoing, but Don Waddell will handle interim GM duties in the meantime, Dundon said, according to Smith.
There is no denying it: the Ottawa Senators' 2017-18 season was a complete dumpster fire, as the team finished with an embarrassing 67 points only one season removed from coming within a goal of the Stanley Cup Final.
However, all the losing isn't getting in the way of defenseman Erik Karlsson's desire to remain with the organization, as Postmedia's Bruce Garrioch reports that Karlsson still intends to sit down and discuss his future plans with Ottawa's front office.
"I'm going to deal with that as we move along this summer, but I'm still hopeful that the puck that I picked up is not going to be the one that's going to be the last," Karlsson said Monday during locker clean-out day.
The puck Karlsson mentions is the much-discussed piece of vulcanized rubber he tucked into his pants after the Senators' last home game of the season.
Karlsson is coming off his fifth consecutive campaign with at least 60 points, registering nine goals and 53 assists in 71 games.
There is no denying it: the Ottawa Senators' 2017-18 season was a complete dumpster fire, as the team finished with an embarrassing 67 points only one season removed from coming within a goal of the Stanley Cup Final.
However, all the losing isn't getting in the way of defenseman Erik Karlsson's desire to remain with the organization, as Postmedia's Bruce Garrioch reports that Karlsson still intends to sit down and discuss his future plans with Ottawa's front office.
"I'm going to deal with that as we move along this summer, but I'm still hopeful that the puck that I picked up is not going to be the one that's going to be the last," Karlsson said Monday during locker clean-out day.
The puck Karlsson mentions is the much-discussed piece of vulcanized rubber he tucked into his pants after the Senators' last home game of the season.
Karlsson is coming off his fifth consecutive campaign with at least 60 points, registering nine goals and 53 assists in 71 games.
Even though the Hawks had a down season, Kane was once again a stalwart, as he led the club with 76 points in 82 games. He brings a wealth of international experience to the table for what will likely be a youthful team.
The 20-year-old DeBrincat led Chicago with 28 goals in his rookie season, and finished right behind Kane with 52 points.
The tournament begins May 4 in Copenhagen and Herning, Denmark.
With the 2017-18 regular season in the rearview, it's time for one final look at the major award races around the NHL. The previous edition was assembled prior to the playoff push in early March.
Jack Adams Award - Gerard Gallant, Golden Knights
Previous pick: Gerard Gallant
Leading a group of guys who have played together for years to the playoffs is enough of a challenge, let alone a group that was pieced together less than a year ago. That fact alone should earn Gallant the award.
The Golden Knights didn't just squeak in, either, entering the postseason following a historic 109-point season as Pacific Division champs.
No disrespect to Jared Bednar in Colorado, who has taken the Avalanche from the basement to meaningful springtime hockey, but Gallant is this year's clear-cut winner. Book it. - Livingstone
GM of the Year - George McPhee, Golden Knights
Previous pick: David Poile
While Predators general manager David Poile deserves credit for the moves he's made to build a powerhouse in Nashville, it's difficult not to give this prize to Golden Knights GM George McPhee.
McPhee's built one of the NHL's best teams out of diamonds in the rough and players other GMs didn't want. William Karlsson, Reilly Smith, Nate Schmidt ... the list goes on. Perhaps more importantly, he hired the right man to steer the ship in Gallant. - Wegman
Vezina Trophy - Pekka Rinne, Predators
Previous pick: Andrei Vasilevskiy
While there's no denying the Nashville Predators have one of the deepest rosters in the league, Rinne's sensational season has been a major reason the Preds head into the playoffs as favorites to pose with the Cup come June.
Rinne has been rock solid since the puck dropped on the 2017-18 campaign, finishing one win shy of matching his career high (42). The Finnish magician also finished in a tie for the most shutouts with eight and posted a sparkling .927 save percentage. - Livingstone
Calder Trophy - Mathew Barzal, Islanders
Previous pick: Mathew Barzal
Barzal really ran away with this one. The Islanders' dynamic center collected 85 points - 20 more than the next rookie. Canucks phenom Brock Boeser could've given him a run for his money had he stayed healthy, but this year's Calder is a no-brainer. - Wegman
Norris Trophy - Victor Hedman, Lightning
Previous pick: Victor Hedman
The Norris Trophy doesn't always go to the best all-around defenseman, as stellar offensive campaigns have recently earned the hardware for guys like Brent Burns and Erik Karlsson. But Hedman really can do it all. Points, hits, blocked shots - he gets it done at both ends of the ice for the Lightning while logging a beastly amount of minutes per night (25:51).
Hedman played an instrumental role in Tampa Bay clinching its first division title since 2004. And despite there being a handful of deserving rearguards, his ability to get the job done in his own end as well as offensively makes him our pick for the Norris. - Livingstone
Selke Trophy - Aleksander Barkov, Panthers
Previous pick: Patrice Bergeron
Barkov finished second among forwards in average time on ice, played against opponents' top lines and D pairings night in and night out, finished fifth in the league in takeaways, won 53.5 percent of his faceoffs, and even scored a league-high five shorthanded goals.
Bergeron, who missed 18 games, and Anze Kopitar should again garner strong consideration, but Barkov is most deserving. - Wegman
Hart Trophy - Taylor Hall, Devils
Previous pick: Nikita Kucherov
The Hart Trophy is given to the player "judged most valuable to his team," and nobody epitomized that more than Taylor Hall. He had 41 more points than the next-closest Devils player as he carried them to the playoffs.
Strong arguments can be made for Nathan MacKinnon, Claude Giroux, and Kopitar, but Hall putting his team on his back down the stretch puts him a notch above everyone else. - Wegman
Since the NHL's current playoff format was implemented in 2013-14, fans have criticized the tendency for a conference's two best teams to square off in the second round rather than the conference final.
As unfair as that can be, it makes it much easier to predict the final four teams, and that's what NHL playoff pools are all about.
The goal isn't necessarily picking the best players, it's about choosing players from teams that will go the furthest. More games obviously result in more opportunities to collect goals and assists.
This is easier said than done, however. Stacking your roster with players from the Lightning and Predators seems like the best way to build your team, but those players will go early and often (or be ridiculously expensive in auction formats).
The best way to extract value is to stack your roster with players from a team that isn't expected to go deep into the playoffs. A wild-card team with a tough road matchup will be overlooked, but in a league with so much parity, any team is capable of getting hot at the right time and making a run to the Cup Final.
In fact, in each season since the playoff reformatting, the Stanley Cup Final has had at least one team that was a three seed in their division or a wild-card team and started the first round of the playoffs on the road. Anyone who stacked their playoff pool teams with Predators players last year, or Sharks players the year prior, likely reaped the benefits, given neither team was expected to make it out of the first round.
Using this strategy has its downsides, though. With a boom-or-bust philosophy, there's a chance one of the teams you bank on could lose in the first round. However, sprinkling in players from a variety of teams gives you a high floor, but virtually no shot at winning the whole thing - which is what it's all about.
With that being said, here are a few under-the-radar teams that could help you win your playoff pool this year:
Los Angeles Kings
The Kings will take on the Golden Knights in the first round. That seems like a daunting task, but it's a matchup they've fared well in this year, going 2-1-1 against the Knights, including back-to-back wins in late February.
More importantly, the Kings have played their best hockey over the past month or so. Beginning with those back-to-back wins, they're 12-5-3 in their last 20 games, which has unsurprisingly coincided with the return of Jeff Carter, who missed nearly four months due to injury.
The Kings are 17-5-4 with Carter in the lineup and 28-24-4 without.
This should go without saying, but if you take any Kings players, don't take any Ducks players, as only one of them can make it through to the conference finals.
Though the Ducks finished as the second seed in the Pacific, they've flown under the radar due to their injury problems. They're still not out of the woods, as Cam Fowler will likely miss the whole first round and John Gibson may not be ready for the series opener.
However, their opponent, the Sharks, doesn't have a clean bill of health either, as Joe Thornton hasn't played since Jan. 23. Thornton isn't the player he once was, and the Sharks have managed without him, but in what will surely be a physical series, not having the big-bodied center is a massive loss.
The Ducks enter the playoffs red-hot, having won five in a row, and are 10-1-1 in their last 12 games, while the Sharks stumbled to the finish line, going 1-5-2 in their last eight games.
Choosing a sleeper in the Eastern Conference is much more difficult than the West. Nonetheless, going through the Metropolitan Division will be a much easier road to the final four rather than going through the Atlantic Division, making the Blue Jackets an intriguing team to draft from.
The Jackets are seemingly built for playoff hockey. They're big, physical, and excellent at five-on-five. This is key because, in the past, referees have called far fewer penalties in the playoffs compared to the regular season.
Sergei Bobrovsky hasn't fared well against the Capitals in the past - or in the playoffs in general. He'll undoubtedly have to be Columbus' best player in order for it to come out on top. But if he gets hot, he can carry the team far.
Focusing on one of the three teams above is smart, but it doesn't mean you should target their players right off the hop. They're sleepers for a reason.
If you have the first overall pick, Nikita Kucherov is your safest bet. While the Lightning's second-round matchup will be tough, the Devils are the easiest first-round opponent any team will face.
Here's how you should value the remainder of the top players. Remember, don't take multiple players coming out of the same divisional bracket. Pick one or maybe two teams per conference and load up on their best players.
