Chicago Blackhawks star winger Patrick Kane doesn't believe any illegitimacy should be attached to the 2020 Stanley Cup champions.

"To win a Stanley Cup, I think that's an amazing opportunity for any hockey player," Kane said on ESPN's "Return to Sports" special Monday. "And I don't think anyone is really worried about the viewing if someone won a championship, or an asterisk, if you'd like to say."

Unable to complete the regular season due to the coronavirus pandemic, the NHL is using an expanded 24-team format to provide bubble clubs a chance at the playoffs. The top four teams in each conference will play each other for seeding. Simultaneously, squads seeded fifth to 12th in each conference will pair off in a best-of-five play-in series to advance to the first round of the postseason. From there, traditional best-of-seven series will take place for four rounds.

"It's unprecedented times, and us as players, I think anytime you get a chance to compete for a Stanley Cup, you're doing that and taking advantage fully of it," Kane added.

Kane's Blackhawks finished 12th in the Western Conference. They would've been a long shot to make the postseason under normal circumstances, but they'll get a chance to do so against the fifth-seeded Edmonton Oilers.

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It appears Todd Reirden will go with experience over youth in the Washington Capitals' crease when the NHL returns to action.

"I think going into it ... it's Braden Holtby's job to lose, and I feel confident in him," Washington's head coach told reporters Monday. "I felt confident with where things were going right before the pause in terms of how his game was coming around, and I think he'll get the first crack at it."

Holtby went 25-14-6 with an .897 save percentage and minus-16.76 goals saved above average in 48 regular-season games before the pause. The 30-year-old showed some improvement down the stretch, however, going 4-1-1 with a .906 save percentage over his final six contests.

Ilya Samsonov, who turned 23 in February, outperformed Holtby in 2019-20, albeit over a smaller sample size. The rookie went 16-6-2 with a .913 save percentage and 2.3 goals saved above average across 26 games for Washington, including 22 starts.

Holtby, a pending unrestricted free agent, has spent his entire 10-year career with the Capitals and backstopped them to their lone championship in 2018.

"Obviously Braden Holtby's body of work (on) playoff teams speaks for itself, and how he definitely helped our team to win our first-ever Stanley Cup and was a huge, huge part of that," Reirden said.

Washington will take part in a round-robin tournament with the Eastern Conference's other three top-seeded squads - the Boston Bruins, Tampa Bay Lightning, and the Philadelphia Flyers. This round, along with the corresponding Western Conference round-robin, will determine the seeding for the opening playoff matchups.

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Any sporting event can achieve greatness, but there's something extra special when it takes place at a marquee venue. The best buildings in sports add an extra level of excitement to any competition. How well do you know some of these iconic venues? Find out by taking the quiz below.

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The AHL's newly established return-to-play committee includes a handful of NHL general managers as well as the owner of a Canadian club.

Boston Bruins GM Don Sweeney, Steve Yzerman of the Detroit Red Wings, Edmonton Oilers GM Ken Holland, David Poile of the Nashville Predators, Toronto Maple Leafs GM Kyle Dubas, and Winnipeg Jets chairman Mark Chipman will serve on a 13-member task force formed by the NHL's top developmental league Monday.

The group, which will be chaired by outgoing AHL president and CEO David Andrews, will aim to provide "expert leadership and strategic direction to the AHL in planning for the league's return to play in the 2020-21 season."

The task force won't have any responsibility to initiate the AHL's return to play, but it will provide "strategic leadership" to the league to create a process that garners significant support in the AHL and the NHL.

The AHL canceled the rest of its 2019-20 campaign in May amid the coronavirus pandemic.

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The Vegas Golden Knights signed enforcer Ryan Reaves to a two-year extension carrying an annual cap hit of $1.75 million on Monday, the team announced.

Reaves, arguably the most feared player in the league, racked up 47 penalty minutes and a league-high 316 hits in 71 games this season. He chipped in offensively with eight goals and seven assists while averaging just over 10 minutes of ice time per night.

The Golden Knights are left with $8.875 million in cap space for next season, according to CapFriendly.

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The only African-American member of Donald Trump's cabinet has promised to "work" the president on his continued criticism of athletes who don't stand for the national anthem.

Ben Carson, who serves as the U.S. government's Housing and Urban Development Secretary, voiced his belief on Monday that sports stars are protesting police brutality rather than disrespecting the flag when they take a knee. He wants the players to make that stance clear while he tries to persuade the president not to be upset with those who choose not to stand.

"Well, I don't think he has manifested as much animosity in that region lately. And I think we just continue to work him. He'll get there," Carson told the Hugh Hewitt Show, as quoted by the Associated Press' Kevin Freking.

Carson was speaking after U.S. Soccer last Wednesday annulled a policy which required players to stand during the national anthem. Over the weekend, Trump tweeted he "won't be watching much anymore!" in response to a tweet by Florida Republican representative Matt Gaetz, which read: "I'd rather the U.S. not have a soccer team than have a soccer team that won't stand for the national anthem."

U.S. Soccer introduced the rule that players must "stand respectfully" in 2017 after soccer star Megan Rapinoe knelt before a match with the United States women's national team in September 2016 out of solidarity with Colin Kaepernick. The then-San Francisco 49ers quarterback had refused to stand for the flag of a country that "oppresses black people" for the first time in an NFL preseason game the previous month.

In the wake of protests over anti-black racism and police brutality following the death of George Floyd in police custody, U.S. Soccer retracted its policy because it "was wrong and detracted from the important message of Black Lives Matter."

FIFA, the world governing body of soccer, reiterated its stance against "all forms of discrimination" in a statement released to the Associated Press' Rob Harris on Monday. The organization also appealed for "tolerance, mutual respect, and common sense" following Trump's words against his country's soccer program.

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Welcome to Puck Pursuit, an interview-style podcast hosted by John Matisz, theScore's national hockey writer.

Subscribe to the show on iTunes, SoundCloud, Stitcher, and Spotify.

Former NHLers Guy Carbonneau (Canadiens, Blues, Stars) and John LeClair (Canadiens, Flyers, Penguins) - who were recently hired to coach in the new 3ICE hockey league - join the show to discuss a variety of topics, including:

• What people should expect from 3ICE next summer
• How ex-NHLers plan on coaching a three-on-three pro team
• Carbonneau on Montreal vs. Pittsburgh play-in series
• LeClair on why the Legion of Doom was so successful

... and more!

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Boston Bruins superstar and 2019-20 Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy winner David Pastrnak could find his name on plenty of Hart Trophy ballots come season's end, but the winger doesn't think he deserves the MVP award.

When asked who should take home the hardware, Pastrnak made his choice crystal clear, saying there's "no question" it belongs to Leon Draisaitl.

"It should be and is going to be (Leon) Draisaitl," Pastrnak said on a conference call Monday, according to Conor Ryan of the Boston Sports Journal.

Draisaitl is certainly a popular pick for this year's MVP, as the Edmonton Oilers dynamo lit up the stats sheet during the regular season with a league-leading 110 points, particularly proving his worth to the club during Connor McDavid's injury absence.

However, several players deserve consideration, and Draisaitl isn't the only one to receive a public vote of confidence from one of his peers. Colorado Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog recently said teammate Nathan MacKinnon should be the MVP, while MacKinnon himself said his vote would go to New York Rangers forward Artemi Panarin.

Due to the extended season, it's unclear when the NHL be handing out its awards. Voters get until Monday evening to submit their final ballots.

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