Artemi Panarin believes that going undrafted in 2010 was the best thing for his career.

"I would like to thank all the (general managers) for not choosing me in the draft," the New York Rangers star said Tuesday, according to Lohud's Vincent Z. Mercogliano. "It allowed me to choose the team where I wanted to play, that played my style of hockey, and allowed me to be successful to begin with."

Panarin put up eight points in 20 games while playing in the KHL during his draft year. The dynamic forward was then passed over by every team, perhaps due to a fear that he would remain in the KHL.

He then blossomed into a star in Russia. Panarin totaled 26 goals and 62 points in 56 games and added 20 points in 20 playoff games in 2014-15, the season before he joined the Chicago Blackhawks.

Panarin once again had the opportunity to sign with the team of his choosing when he hit free agency last summer and inked a massive $81.5-million deal with the Rangers.

The 28-year-old turned in an MVP-caliber performance during his first season with New York. He tallied 32 goals and 95 points in 69 games and was named a finalist for the Ted Lindsay Award on Tuesday.

"Obviously, when I came, I felt a little bit of pressure," Panarin said. "That's normal. But with both the surrounding people that I met in New York, and also the decision to read less press and look at less social media, allowed me to focus on my craft and drop that level of pressure and stress I might have felt."

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The NHL has announced an exhibition schedule and the start times for the first three games of each play-in series and round-robin tournament of the 24-team playoffs.

Each team will play one tuneup game before the postseason begins Aug. 1.

Broadcast information for each game will be released in the coming days.

Here are the start times for the first three games of each play-in series and round-robin tournament. Details for additional play-in games, if necessary, will be determined at a later date.

Eastern Conference

Round robin

No. 5 Pittsburgh Penguins vs. No. 12 Montreal Canadiens

No. 6 Carolina Hurricanes vs. No. 11 New York Rangers

No. 7 New York Islanders vs. No. 10 Florida Panthers

No. 8 Toronto Maple Leafs vs. No. 9 Columbus Blue Jackets

Western Conference

Round robin

No. 5 Edmonton Oilers vs. No. 12 Chicago Blackhawks

No. 6 Nashville Predators vs. No. 11 Arizona Coyotes

No. 7 Vancouver Canucks vs. No. 10 Minnesota Wild

No. 8 Calgary Flames vs. No. 9 Winnipeg Jets

Teams will arrive at their respective hubs July 26. Western Conference clubs are stationed in Edmonton, while the Eastern Conference will congregate in Toronto.

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Washington Capitals forward Lars Eller expects to leave the Toronto bubble during Phase 4 of the NHL's return-to-play plan to attend the birth of his child.

The qualifying round of the 24-team playoff (Phase 4) begins Aug. 1, and Eller and his wife are expecting the birth of their second child on Aug. 8. The 31-year-old pivot said he thought about opting out of the league's return altogether.

"A lot of thoughts going into the decision," Eller said Tuesday, according to ESPN's Greg Wyshynski. "Weighing the pros and cons. We're going to have a new addition to our family in a couple of weeks. But at the same time, I want to be with my team and win another Cup.

"We're working on making the necessary arrangements so I can be there for the birth and then come back to the bubble after that."

Under the Phase 4 agreement between the NHL and NHLPA, players are permitted to leave the bubble for medical or personal reasons if authorized by their club's general manager.

However, those who leave the bubble must return a minimum of four consecutive negative test results over a four-day period. The player will be required to quarantine in their hotel room until such testing requirements are fulfilled.

Eller is confident an appropriate plan will be put in place for him to complete the trip safely.

"You're going to have to take a lot of precautions when you leave," Eller said. "Depending on how you're going to travel and who you travel with ... I'll have to serve some time inside the bubble and test a number of times before I could rejoin my team and play games. We're working on trying to figure out how to do this in the best possible way. But that's what's going to happen."

The Capitals are slated to compete against the Boston Bruins, Tampa Bay Lightning, and Philadelphia Flyers in a round-robin tournament to establish the top four seeds in the Eastern Conference.

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The 11 major professional sports teams based in the greater Los Angeles area will form "The Alliance: Los Angeles," a five-year commitment to supporting social justice initiatives, particularly within communities of color, they announced Tuesday.

It will include the following teams:

The initiative will support the Play Equity Fund across the greater Los Angeles area as well as Accelerate Change Together in Orange County, and it hopes to inspire similar cooperative measures at the national level.

Play Equity Fund president Renata Simril said the organizations "should be commended for seeking to make significant changes in communities of color," especially in light of their rivalries on the field of play.

"The Los Angeles region is one of the world's most competitive markets, and sports is one of the world's most competitive industries," Simril added. "But these organizations are putting their competitive instincts aside to work collaboratively for social justice."

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The New York Islanders signed netminder Ilya Sorokin to a one-year contract extension for the 2020-21 campaign, the team announced Tuesday.

The deal will pay Sorokin $2 million, with half coming by way of a signing bonus and the other half as salary, according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman

Sorokin, 24, inked a one-year pact for 2019-20 with the Islanders on Monday that allows him to join the club at training camp. However, he will not be permitted to play in Phase 4, which marks the beginning of the qualifying round.

The Russian puck-stopper has spent the previous five seasons with CSKA Moscow of the KHL. He posted a 1.50 goals-against average and a .935 save percentage over 40 appearances this season.

Sorokin was selected by New York in the third round of the 2014 NHL Draft.

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Nathan MacKinnon, Leon Draisaitl, and Artemi Panarin have been voted the three finalists for the Ted Lindsay Award, the NHLPA announced Tuesday.

The honor recognizes the most outstanding player in the NHL as selected by his peers.

Draisaitl is this season's Art Ross Trophy winner as the league's leading point- scorer. The Edmonton Oilers star tallied a career-high 110 points while adding 43 goals in 71 games.

MacKinnon was a force all season for the often shorthanded Colorado Avalanche, leading the club with 35 goals and 93 points in 69 games. The 6-foot pivot finished with 43 more points than his next closest teammate.

Panarin enjoyed a career campaign during his first season with the New York Rangers. The dazzling Russian set career bests in goals (32), assists (63), and points (95) to help accelerate the Blue Shirts' rebuild and lead the club to the 24-team qualifying round.

Tampa Bay Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov earned the honor in 2018-19.

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