Vancouver Canucks defenseman Tyler Myers believes his club is on the verge of something special.

"I think we have such a good, solid core group of guys," Myers said Wednesday, according to Sportsnet's Ian MacIntyre. "You add in a piece here and there to keep developing your team.

"I guess what I’m trying to say is we're close. We're close to that point of becoming a winning team. It's just a matter of experience and getting that feeling of what it takes to win. And part of that is getting that experience in the playoffs."

The Canucks haven't made the playoffs since 2015, but they sit tied for the Western Conference's final wild-card berth with the season on hold.

Vancouver has a budding young core to thank for much of its success in 2019-20. Five of the club's top seven scorers, including blue-chip talents Elias Pettersson and Quinn Hughes, are 25 or younger.

"With all of our young guys, they're such drivers of the team right now," Myers said. "The development they showed this year, I think, was more than people were expecting. I think the mix of those young guys with a few more veterans we have in the room now, it came together really well."

The NHL suspended its season on March 12 due to the coronavirus pandemic. Commissioner Gary Bettman said Wednesday any format for a return to action would need to be "fair" and give bubble teams - like the Canucks - the chance to battle for a playoff spot.

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The Philadelphia Flyers didn't take long to make a name for themselves following the NHL's first expansion in 1967. The "Broad Street Bullies" won two consecutive Stanley Cups in 1974 and '75, and they were looking for another against Guy Lafleur and the revered Montreal Canadiens in the 1976 final.

Flyers star Reggie Leach set the record for most goals in a single postseason (19) and claimed the Conn Smythe Trophy, but the Canadiens proved to be too much, completing the sweep in Game 4 with a 5-3 win at The Spectrum for their first of four consecutive titles.

Watch the footage below:

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The St. Louis Blues inked forward Sammy Blais to a two-year extension with an average annual value of $1.5 million, the team announced Wednesday.

Blais, 23, had been scheduled to become a restricted free agent at the end of the current season.

"He's a developing player that we think highly of," general manager Doug Armstrong said, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch's Jim Thomas. "We think he certainly can be a top-nine regular in our group. I think injuries derailed a little bit of that for him at the start of this year."

The 6-foot-2 winger suffered a broken wrist in November, which limited him to just 40 games in 2019-20 before play was suspended. Despite the injury, Blais led the Blues with 155 hits while contributing six goals and 13 points.

St. Louis selected Blais in the sixth round of the 2014 NHL Draft. The Quebec native has tallied nine goals and 20 points over 83 career contests, all with the Blues.

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If the 2019-20 season is able to resume, Arizona Coyotes star Taylor Hall hopes the NHL stages some kind of qualifying event to determine the final playoff teams.

“I think there should definitely be a play-in to the playoffs,” Hall said, according to The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun. "I know I’m biased in saying that but if there are two to three exhibition games and then a mini-series to see who goes into the playoffs, maybe that’s smart.

When the NHL suspended play on March 12, Hall's Coyotes sat four points back of the final Western Conference wild-card berth with 12 games remaining. If the league went straight to the playoffs and awarded the final seeds based on points percentage, the Coyotes would still miss out.

"Maybe we try and play eight regular-season games and make wins count as three points," Hall said. "I’m not really sure. You can make the games worth more. But you can’t go right into the playoffs. There’s no way, I think that’s obvious.’’

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said Wednesday that the league's return would need to fair to bubble teams, which had all played varying amounts of games before the season was put on pause.

Several other players on those clubs, including Florida Panthers forward Aleksander Barkov and netminder Sergei Bobrovsky, said it would be unfair if the league jumped right into the playoffs. New York Rangers superstar Artemi Panarin shared the same sediment.

The Coyotes acquired Hall in December in an attempt to end their seven-year playoff drought, the NHL's second-longest postseason dry spell.

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If the NHL's 2019-20 regular season resumes, commissioner Gary Bettman intends to ensure all teams in the playoff mix get equal opportunities to compete.

"There are at least seven teams that were on the bubble of making the playoffs and not all of the teams had played the same number of games," Bettman told FOX Business Network on Wednesday. "Whatever we do to come back ... whether it's complete the regular season in whole or in part, whether or not it's expanded playoffs, we're going to have to do something that's fair and has integrity.

"That's going to be very important no matter what it is we do and we're considering all of the alternatives. And nothing has been ruled in and nothing has been ruled out."

When the NHL season came to a halt March 12, the Florida Panthers, New York Islanders, and New York Rangers were within three points of a playoff spot in the East, while the Vancouver Canucks, Minnesota Wild, and Arizona Coyotes were within four points in the West.

Several players around the league have spoken out about hoping to have a chance at the playoffs, including Panthers stars Aleksander Barkov and Sergei Bobrovsky, who said it wouldn't be fair if the league jumped straight to the postseason with 11-14 games remaining on each team's schedule.

Rangers winger and potential MVP candidate Artemi Panarin also said it would be unfair if his New York squad didn't get a chance to make the playoffs after surging up the standings in the second half of the season.

Bettman recently said teams would need two-to-three week training camps to get back into game shape and revealed the league has explored the idea of playing at neutral sites.

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A contestant on an episode of "The Price is Right" that aired on Wednesday won a trip to Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final.

There's never quite been a more fitting time for the show's "losing horn."

The episode was obviously filmed before the NHL season was postponed on March 12, and it's unfortunate the contestant is unlikely to receive his prize.

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The National Women's Hockey League is in the process of bringing an expansion team to the Toronto area and is expected to make an official announcement at the end of April, reports The Associated Press.

The team will be led by former Brown University coach Margaret Murphy. She's reportedly already begun assembling her roster.

The United States-based NWHL currently has five franchises. The league expressed a desire to expand to Canada in Toronto and Montreal a year ago, but plans never came to fruition.

Canada's professional women's league, the CWHL, folded last year after 12 seasons due to financial constraints. The league's shutdown prompted over 200 of the world's top players to vow not to play professionally in North America until a women's league with a sustainable future can be developed and maintained.

The NWHL postponed its Isobel Cup Final in March due to the coronavirus pandemic.

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This week, theScore's hockey editors are evaluating the best captains from each NHL club since the 2000-01 season. The selections are based on individual and team success, as well as popularity and the character shown by the choices during their tenures in this era.

Pacific | Central | Atlantic (April 17)

Carolina Hurricanes

The hockey world has gotten a better sense for Rod Brind’Amour's leadership since he took over as head coach of the Hurricanes prior to the 2018-19 campaign. Brind’Amour the coach isn’t all that different from Brind’Amour the player: emotional, fearless, gritty, and a tireless worker.

When the leader of your team - whether it’s a coach or captain - is the hardest worker, that motivates everyone else. That's "Rod the Bod" to a tee. He wore the “C” in Carolina for his final five seasons, leading the franchise to its only Stanley Cup win in 2006. Both Ron Francis and Eric Staal were great captains too, but Brind’Amour is on another level.

Columbus Blue Jackets

Rick Nash only served as the Blue Jackets' captain for five seasons, and he wasn't given the role until midway through the 2007-08 campaign despite blossoming into a superstar not long after Columbus drafted him first overall in 2002. However, his impact on the organization was ultimately profound.

In his first full year as captain, Nash led the Blue Jackets to their first playoff appearance, and he'd eventually become the franchise leader in games played, goals, assists, and points. He also won the NHL's Foundation Player Award in 2009 for his charitable work. Nash exemplified what it meant to be a captain on and off the ice. While his tenure wasn't long, his legacy as Columbus’ greatest player and captain of all time lives on.

New Jersey Devils

Scott Stevens may have only been the Devils' captain until the 2003-2004 season, but the team's results during his tenure vastly outweigh those of his successors.

New Jersey captured the Stanley Cup in 2000 (with Stevens winning the Conn Smythe Trophy), lost in Game 7 of the Cup Final in 2001, and won it again in 2003. He didn't put up big offensive numbers, but no one intimidated opposing skaters like Stevens, and his leadership during the Devils' glory years was unquestioned.

New York Islanders

Islanders fans are going to despise this choice, but John Tavares is the team's best player over the last 20 years. He donned the “C” for five seasons, putting him tied for the second-longest tenure as captain in franchise history. He’s also one of two captains since 1992-93 to lead the Isles out of the first round of the playoffs (Anders Lee is the other).

There’s a case to be made for Michael Peca, a gritty, heart-and-soul, two-way center who guided the Islanders to three playoff berths in his three years as captain. But he never won a playoff series with New York, and his tenure was brief.

Tavares is considered a villain these days on Long Island after leaving in free agency for Toronto, but he did more for the club during his time as captain than Peca.

New York Rangers

This was the toughest pick to make, and it's important to note the era in question. Mark Messier is arguably the greatest Ranger of all time and one of the best-ever NHL players, but his glory days as New York's captain came in his first stint during the 90s. His second stint wasn't as successful for both himself and the team, with the Rangers missing the playoffs in all four seasons.

New York's lone Stanley Cup Final appearance over the last two decades came after the club traded captain Ryan Callahan to the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2014. Therefore, the choice is Ryan McDonagh.

Under his guidance, the team made the conference final in 2015. He matched Messier for the longest tenure as the Rangers' captain in this era, and New York made more trips to the playoffs with McDonagh as captain (three) than it has with anyone else since 2000-01.

Philadelphia Flyers

Claude Giroux has led the charge for the Flyers since 2012-13, and while the club hasn't gone on any playoff runs in that span, he's one of the most prolific scorers in franchise history.

With one more full season under his belt, Giroux should move into second on the team's all-time points and games played lists behind only Bobby Clarke. His production ranks strongly among both Flyers greats and the best players of this generation. Since Giroux became a captain, only Sidney Crosby, Patrick Kane, and Alex Ovechkin have recorded more points.

Pittsburgh Penguins

In just his third NHL season, a 19-year-old Sidney Crosby became the youngest player ever at the time to be named captain. By the end of that decade, "Sid the Kid" had already captured the Art Ross, Hart, Lester B. Pearson (now Ted Lindsay Award), and "Rocket Richard" trophies, in addition to leading the Penguins to a championship in 2009.

Since then, it's been much of the same from No. 87. Crosby ranks second in points and assists this decade, and fifth in goals, even while sitting 110th in games played. Pittsburgh has made the postseason in each of his 12 campaigns at the helm, and in 2017, the team became the first in 19 years to capture back-to-back Stanley Cup championships, with Crosby earning the Conn Smythe Trophy each time.

Washington Capitals

The best player in franchise history is also by far its greatest leader. The Capitals have missed the playoffs just once during Alex Ovechkin's 11-year run as captain, and they captured their first Stanley Cup in 2018 with him leading.

In addition to the club's success, Ovi's individual accolades as captain put him in rarified air. "The Great 8" is one of just three players - along with Steve Yzerman and Mario Lemieux - to notch five 50-plus-goal seasons as captains. Had the 2019-20 campaign not been suspended, Ovechkin would have likely become the first captain to achieve that feat six times.

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