The QMJHL is expected to ban fighting to start the 2023-24 season, pending ratification of the proposed rule change.

A league spokesperson confirmed the plans to The Hockey News on Wednesday.

"The QMJHL is planning to have a rule in place that will ban fighting, making it black and white that it is no longer a part of our game," the spokesperson said. "The punishments have not been decided as of yet. We will be looking to have a rule in place in June when the next general annual assembly of the members of the board of governors takes place."

QMJHL officials already cracked down on fighting in 2020 to enhance player safety, adding a 10-minute misconduct to the usual five-minute major for the infraction. The extra punishment worked, as the league recorded only 0.07 fights per game last season.

The OHL and WHL, the two other minor leagues under the Canadian Hockey League's umbrella, have also introduced changes in recent years to decrease fighting. The OHL enforces a three-fight rule, in which players who exceed that total are suspended for two games for every additional tussle. The WHL issues a misconduct to any player who tries to remove their or their opponent's helmet in a fight.

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The Ottawa Senators have fallen short of the hype following an offseason that saw them bring in goaltender Cam Talbot, two-time 41-goal-scorer Alex DeBrincat, and veteran Claude Giroux, but general manager Pierre Dorion says his team is "pretty much" where he expected it to be.

"We're playing meaningful games," Dorion said, according to NHL.com's Dan Rosen. "The best thing for our team is the growth of our young core this year and that's what's happening with all these young players. ... They're growing through this run of trying to get into the playoffs."

He added, "You've never heard me say make the playoffs from the get-go because I knew where we were and I knew where we needed to be. I think if we do make the playoffs it's a bonus, but the growth of this team was the most important thing this year."

Heading into Thursday's slate, the Senators are eight points behind the New York Islanders for the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, but Ottawa has three games in hand.

The Senators, however, are riding a three-game losing streak following a nightmare trip through western Canada. They were outscored 16-6 against the Vancouver Canucks, Calgary Flames, and Edmonton Oilers.

Despite the roller coaster that has been the Senators' campaign, Dorion believes this season can be a turning point for Ottawa's core, which now includes Jakob Chychrun. The executive acquired the 24-year-old defenseman prior to the trade deadline.

"The last few years we weren't in it, no one takes us seriously, and we're just going in playing carefree," he said. "Now the games matter and I really think ... when we look back in a few years, we're going to say to ourselves that we made a lot of progress, and we learned what competing for the playoffs is all about.

"That carries over when you get into the playoffs, too."

The Senators have missed the postseason in each of the last five seasons after making the Eastern Conference Final in 2017.

Ottawa's next chance to snap its losing skid comes Thursday against the Colorado Avalanche.

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Our lone side of the night suffered defeat in crushing fashion Wednesday. The Sabres led 2-0, 3-1, and 4-2 in Washington but blew it in the dying seconds of the game before eventually losing in a shootout. Gross!

We'll aim to get that taste out of our mouth with a pair of plays for Thursday's 11-gamer. Let's get right to them.

Kraken (-175) @ Sharks (+150)

The Sharks are in it to win it. The Connor Bedard sweepstakes, that is.

They have underperformed based on their five-on-five process for much of the season due to unfathomably bad goaltending. Now that they've traded star winger Timo Meier, as well as depth forwards Nick Bonino and Matt Nieto, the team is underwhelming across the board. The process is bad and the goaltending is more likely to throw San Jose an anchor than a life raft.

As a result, we are seeing truly miserable hockey from the Sharks post-deadline.

They've won one of just six games since March 3. They rank 30th in expected goals against and dead last in goals against on a per 60-minute basis in that span.

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to know a bad goaltending tandem is not going to hold up behind a team bleeding chances. That's what we're seeing right now.

While these games don't matter one iota to the Sharks, they're crucial for the Kraken. They're in a heated wild-card race and still fighting to move up a slot or two in the Pacific Division. With a win tonight, and some help, they could wake up tomorrow just four points behind the Kings for a slot that would earn them home-ice advantage.

The Kraken are a deeper and more talented team with a lot to play for. I expect that to shine through in this game as they take care of business inside 60 minutes.

Bet: Kraken in regulation (-110)

Flames (-115) @ Golden Knights (-105)

I thought the wrong team was favored at open, and the market seems to agree, with the Flames now being slight favorites in Vegas. I still see value on them at this price, though.

Although it may sound crazy to say the 30-win Flames should be favored on the road against the 42-win Golden Knights, the latter is something of a paper tiger right now.

The Golden Knights own an impressive 6-1 record since the deadline. That doesn't mean they've played well.

At five-on-five, they rank dead last in expected goal share and have conceded xGA at a higher rate than every team in the league. Vegas also slots in the bottom five in high-danger chances against, surrounded by teams like the Blue Jackets and Capitals. Not ideal.

The Golden Knights generated more than 30 shots just once during this 6-1 stretch. They have simply shot the lights out - their shooting percentage sits just under 14% - while the goaltending has been great at the other end.

The opposite is true of the Flames. They are routinely outplaying their opponents, dominating the run of play and generating chances in bulk. They just can't put the puck in the net.

Even if their style of play isn't conducive to high shooting percentages, I think there's room for positive regression there, especially when going up against Adin Hill or Jonathan Quick.

If the desperate Flames can come out and generate, say, 10 more shots than they give up against a Golden Knights side getting cratered at five-on-five, I'm happy to take my chances it'll lead to a positive result.

Quick getting the start here would be ideal - aside from the last couple of games, he has struggled mightily all year - but I see an edge on the Flames regardless.

Bet: Flames (-115)

Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. Be sure to follow him on Twitter @ToddCordell.

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We split our player props on Wednesday night. Tage Thompson came through against the Capitals; however, Noah Dobson missed the net three times while falling one short to close out the night.

We'll look to get back in the win column with three more plays for Thursday night's huge slate of games.

Carter Verhaeghe over 3.5 shots (-105)

Verhaeghe is sizzling at home. He registered at least four shots on goal in 12 of his last 14 games in Florida, over which time he's averaged 6.36 shot attempts per game.

He let us down last time we backed him, but I love his chances of rebounding Thursday night against the Canadiens.

They are giving up a ton of shot volume right now, especially on the road. Only the Ducks have allowed more shot attempts, and shots on target, per game over their last 10 road dates.

Verhaeghe will benefit mightily from a mouthwatering matchup at five-on-five and on the power play. It just so happens he was recently moved up to the Panthers' top unit. That should afford him an extra shooting opportunity or two, which he probably didn't need.

The Panthers fire shots at will every night. With a juicy matchup and every point crucial, Florida won't take its foot off the gas in this one. Look for Verhaeghe to be very involved offensively.

Jason Robertson over 3.5 shots (+105)

Robertson has teed off on the Oilers this season. Through two meetings, he's produced a whopping 16 shots. No, not attempts; that alone would be fairly impressive. I'm talking shots on goal. He attempted 23 shots over those two games, hitting double digits each time out.

The Oilers are generally a pretty strong shot-suppression team. Their Achilles' heel is taking penalties, and that's where Robertson makes his hay. Only David Pastrnak, Alex Ovechkin, and Mika Zibanejad have recorded more shots on the power play this season, and all three of them have played at least 27 more minutes on the man advantage than Robertson.

He's as efficient as it gets. With the Oilers being one of the league's most penalized teams - on the season and over the last 10 games - Robertson should benefit from plenty of opportunities to go to work.

Jared McCann over 2.5 shots (-135)

Despite their poor record, the Sharks were a pretty good five-on-five team for much of the year. That has completely changed since their deadline sell-off.

In six games since, they've conceded more shots on goal per game than anyone but the Coyotes and Blackhawks. They've also given up a ton of high-quality chances and taken penalties at an increased rate.

All of that is music to the ears of Jared McCann, the Kraken's top weapon. He went over his shot total in six of the past seven games, only failing against a stout Stars team.

McCann not only hit, but smashed in matchups against weaker opponents like the Red Wings and Blue Jackets. I expect that will be the case once again versus the Sharks.

Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. Be sure to follow him on Twitter @ToddCordell.

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St. Louis Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington found himself in the middle of a fracas once again Wednesday, initiating a huge scrum versus the Minnesota Wild.

Binnington lost his cool after Ryan Hartman collided with him following Minnesota's fifth goal of the night. He erratically charged the Wild's celebration, and then the refs had to break up a potential fight with Marc-Andre Fleury.

St. Louis' cagey netminder was assessed a two-minute penalty for leaving his crease, as well as a five-minute major.

Binnington has sparked controversy with his opponents throughout his entire career. Earlier this season, Blues head coach Craig Berube said his No. 1 goaltender needs to focus on stopping the puck rather than engaging in extracurricular antics on the ice.

The 29-year-old also drew headlines during last spring's playoffs for throwing a water bottle at Nazem Kadri during a postgame interview.

Binnington entered Wednesday's game in the midst of a poor season statistically. In 51 appearances, he owns a 22-24-5 record with a .894 save percentage.

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