Maybe ownership and management perceive this as a Gap Year for the Devils, when the players go off on their own pursuits after having put so much work the previous year into not only making the playoffs but winning the first round Battle of the Hudson.

The market has been set early, and first-rounders are the currency of the day for contenders seeking to fortify themselves with rentals ahead of the March 8 trade deadline.

Patrick Roy did not have to talk about the magnitude of me, to borrow a phrase from Reggie Jackson of 1978 vintage. The Canadiens took those words out of his mouth upon the iconic No. 33s return to Montreal on Thursday when he strode behind the Islanders bench in his capacity as head coach.

Bobby Holik is asking the NHL to intercede with the IIHF to ensure that Israel is permitted to participate in tournaments from which it was banned earlier this week over concerns of safety and security.

The talent keeps getting better. Teams keep getting worse.

There have been more than eight weeks to ruminate over the plight of Filip Chytil, whose career appears to be in jeopardy in the aftermath of the 24-year-old sustaining what is believed to be his fourth concussion.

All that protection around Connor Bedard did the teen angel about as much good on Friday when he met up with Brendan Smith at the Rock

Am I missing a goaltender who joined an NHL team in midseason, either via trade or promotion from within the system, and made a difference? The occasions are so rare they have become exceptions to the rule of general managing, Larry Brooks writes.

Joel Quenneville will not become the next head coach of the Blues in the wake of Craig Berubes dismissal by St. Louis.