Hockey fans in need of a summer puck fix need to head to Edina, Minn.
Beginning Tuesday, the town's Braemar Arena will play host to the newly formed Da Beauty League, which will feature several notable NHL players/beauties, defined by the league as "the guy who plays for the love of the game, who is also talented and loved by the rest of the team.".
The league's six teams will be captained by Alex Goligoski, Ryan McDonagh, David Backes, Nick Bjugstad, Taylor Chorney, and Brock Nelson, while Zach Parise, Dustin Byfuglien, Nick Leddy, Anders Lee, Paul Martin, James van Riemsdyk, and Jake Gardiner will be among the other NHL notables.
Games will be played four-on-four in two 20-minute halves, and while the standard rules of the game will apply, the league will feature two primary regulations:
Have Fun!
No room for Non-Beauties
The league will run through Aug. 10, and the six teams will be playing for the right to hoist the John Scott Cup at season's end.
The 2016 NHL All-Star Game MVP was named honorary part-time commissioner, presumably for embodying the essence of a true hockey beauty.
Funds raised from ticket sales - $5 per personand free for kids shorter than Byfuglien - will be donated to various charities.
- with h/t Michael Russo of the Star-Tribune
Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.
The Las Vegas expansion franchise appears close to naming its first general manager.
This according to owner Bill Foley, who has indicated the search process is nearing an end.
"We’re hoping to have an announcement in a few days," Foley said Monday, according to Steve Carp of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. "We’ve got two primary candidates and we’re trying to get this done. We need to get a scouting staff hired and whoever we hire as our GM will be responsible for putting the (scouting) staff together."
Foley wasn't naming names, but whoever lands the job will apparently be a familiar face within the hockey community.
"I can tell you the people we talked to are all well-known in the hockey community and are well-respected," Foley said. "They’re all very smart and they’ve done different things for different teams. Some are strong on the (salary) cap. Some are strong when it comes to assessing talent. But they all have strong backgrounds."
One person out of the running is Dale Tallon of the Florida Panthers, who told Carp he was never contacted by Foley despite the fact team ownership was contacted for permission to do so.
Earlier in the offseason, Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun reported former Vancouver assistant GM Laurence Gilman, former Washington GM George McPhee, Pittsburgh assistant GM Jason Botterill, former Arizona GM Don Maloney, and Montreal executive Scott Mellanby were considered to be at the top of the list of candidates.
Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.
The NHL Players Association announced the dates for pending salary arbitration hearings Monday.
Tyson Barrie, Mike Hoffman, and Brayden Schenn are among the players who now know the dates they will face off against their teams if they fail to reach an agreement prior to the hearings.
Here's the full list of dates for player-elected filings:
| Team | Player | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Arizona Coyotes | Michael Stone | Aug. 4 |
| Colorado Avalanche | Tyson Barrie | July 29 |
| Colorado Avalanche | Mikhail Grigorenko | July 22 |
| Detroit Red Wings | Danny DeKeyser | July 28 |
| Minnesota Wild | Jordan Schroeder | July 27 |
| Nashville Predators | Calle Jarnkrok | Aug. 4 |
| Nashville Predators | Petter Granberg | Aug. 3 |
| New York Rangers | Kevin Hayes | July 27 |
| New York Rangers | Chris Kreider | July 22 |
| New York Rangers | Dylan McIlrath | July 21 |
| New York Rangers | J.T. Miller | Aug. 2 |
| Ottawa Senators | Mike Hoffman | Aug. 4 |
| Philadelphia Flyers | Brandon Manning | Aug. 2 |
| Philadelphia Flyers | Brayden Schenn | July 25 |
| St. Louis Blues | Jaden Schwartz | July 20 |
| Tampa Bay Lightning | Alex Killorn | July 20 |
| Tampa Bay Lightning | Vladislav Namestnikov | July 29 |
| Toronto Maple Leafs | Frank Corrado | July 26 |
| Toronto Maple Leafs | Peter Holland | July 25 |
| Toronto Maple Leafs | Martin Marincin | Aug. 2 |
| Washington Capitals | Marcus Johansson | July 20 |
Detroit Red Wings goaltender Petr Mrazek will have his hearing on July 27 if no deal is reached before then. The Red Wings filed for club-elected arbitration with him last week.
Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.
Kyle Okposo left the New York Islanders for the Buffalo Sabres, but he says he won't forget his former club's loyalty in difficult times.
The forward - who opted not to re-sign before inking a seven-year, $42-million deal with Buffalo on July 1 - penned a long-awaited goodbye to the Brooklyn-based organization and its fans, thanking them for sticking with him when they had no obligation to do so.
"I'm not a perfect player. I went through some pretty rough times with my game," Okposo wrote in a piece published Monday on The Players' Tribune.
"The Isles' fans and organization stuck by me. I'll forever be grateful for that. The organization could have easily cast me aside and gotten rid of me, but they helped me through it. When I would go to an autograph signing or an appearance during those tough times, the fans would say, 'Stick with it,' or 'We love your game.' Those things brought a smile to my face."
The 28-year-old winger also reiterated his desire to win a championship with the rebuilding Sabres.
Related: Okposo dons Sabres blue and gold: 'The future is bright'
"The Sabres are a great organization and I couldn't be happier," he wrote. "All I want to do is give the city a Stanley Cup. I'm excited for the journey and the challenge. I'll see you all in October. Let's get it, Buffalo."
Okposo played parts of nine seasons with the Islanders, who drafted him seventh overall in 2006. He's a three-time 20-goal scorer who collected more than 50 points four times and went over 60 twice.
Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.
The ECHL is making a couple of significant changes.
The mid-level pro league announced Monday it will realign from six to four divisions and use a new divisionally focused playoff format next season.
Here's how the league will look in 2016-17:
Eastern Conference
| North Division |
|---|
| Adirondack Thunder |
| Brampton Beast |
| Elmira Jackals |
| Manchester Monarchs |
| Reading Royals |
| Wheeling Nailers |
| South Division |
|---|
| Atlanta Gladiators |
| Cincinnati Cyclones |
| Florida Everblades |
| Greenville Swamp Rabbits |
| Norfolk Admirals |
| Orlando Solar Bears |
| South Carolina Stingrays |
Western Conference
| Central Division |
|---|
| Fort Wayne Komets |
| Indy Fuel |
| Kalamazoo Wings |
| Quad City Mallards |
| Toledo Walleye |
| Tulsa Oilers |
| Wichita Thunder |
| Mountain Division |
|---|
| Alaska Aces |
| Allen Americans |
| Colorado Eagles |
| Idaho Steelheads |
| Missouri Mavericks |
| Rapid City Rush |
| Utah Grizzlies |
The first two rounds of the Kelly Cup playoffs will be intra-division matchups, with the division champion playing the fourth-place team and the second-best club facing the third.
The winners of the division semifinals will meet in the division finals, followed by the conference finals and Kelly Cup final.
The league cited more economical travel and a better chance of playing traditional rivals in the first two rounds as reasons for the changes.
Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.
The Philadelphia Flyers signed forward Roman Lyubimov to an entry-level contract Monday.
The 24-year-old played six seasons with CSKA Moscow in the KHL, playing a career-high 52 games while posting seven goals and seven assists in 2015-16.
He added four goals and four assists in 15 playoff games, helping CSKA reach the Gagarin Cup final before losing in seven games to Metallurg Magnitogorsk.
Lyubimov also helped the Russian national team win bronze at the World Championship this spring with eight points in 10 games.
Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.
The Montreal Canadiens are moving their AHL club much closer to home.
The relocation of the AHL's St. John's IceCaps to Laval, Quebec, was unanimously approved by the league Monday.
The franchise's pro affiliate will play one more season in Newfoundland before moving to Place Bell, a multi-purpose facility under construction in the Montreal suburb.
"The relocation of our AHL affiliate in Laval will be beneficial in several ways, allowing for hockey management to follow the organization's young prospects and provide players and coaching staff with a great environment, a state-of-the-art hockey venue and a new and enthusiastic fan base," said Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin said in a statement.
The city of St. John's is discussing another agreement with the AHL and other leagues, IceCaps president and CEO Danny Williams said Monday, according to Stephen Whyno of The Associated Press.
The Canadiens moved the AHL's former Hamilton Bulldogs to St. John's to become the new IceCaps before the 2015-16 season. The original IceCaps were moved to Winnipeg to become the new Manitoba Moose as the Jets' affiliate.
Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.
Ryan O'Reilly was cleared in his impaired driving case in London, Ont., on Monday.
The Buffalo Sabres forward was found not guilty after the judge found no reasonable prospect of conviction due to insufficient evidence, according to Jane Sims of The London Free Press.
O'Reilly was arrested and charged with impaired driving after allegedly crashing his truck into a Tim Hortons location last summer.
The Crown folded after testimony from only one witness, who had issues identifying the driver of the vehicle, according to The Free Press' Hailey Salvian.
The trial was expected to last two days, but ended in about an hour and a half Monday. It was adjourned multiple times since his arrest last July.
Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.