Blues Rumors & News

Pittsburgh Hockey Now "OK, let us forget about the financial issues of the NHL Return and talk about the actual framework for the 2020-21 NHL season, at least for a moment. The National Hockey League moved past the dollars to present the first real season proposal of the 2021 NHL Return’s new discussions to..." December 04

Russian Machine Never Breaks "Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman is reporting that “at least” four NHL teams — the Anaheim Ducks, Boston Bruins, Los Angeles Kings, and Pittsburgh Penguins — are investigating playing their home games outdoors next season. The teams are seeing if the change..." December 03

The Score "With several talented unrestricted free agents still on the open market, one prominent player representative believes the recent lack of action is due to the NHL and NHLPA struggling to pull together a plan for the 2020-21 campaign. "In early November teams were calling every..." December 03

Pro Hockey Rumors "The World Junior Championship will be held in just a few weeks and countries from all over are starting to announce their selection camp rosters. Today, Sweden and the Czech Republic both released large contingents that will have to be cut down to 25 by the time they journey to Edmonton,..." December 03

TSN "Speaking publicly for the first time since the Stanley Cup Final, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said Wednesday at a virtual sports conference that the league’s targeted Jan. 1 start date remains “a work in progress influenced largely by what we’re hearing from medical..." December 02

Sportsnet "Amid growing pessimism that the NHL can attain its stated goal of having the puck drop for its 2020-21 season on Jan. 1, league commissioner Gary Bettman says the target date remains a "work in progress." Speaking at the Sports Business Journal's "Dealmakers in..." December 02

Pro Hockey Talk "With the start of the 2020-21 NHL season (potentially? hopefully?) just around corner we wanted to take a look at some potential breakout players for the season. When we say “breakout,” we mean players that have some NHL experience (so no Alexis Lafreniere or..." December 02

Sportsnet "If one thing is certain about the pandemic we're all living through, it's that when we come out the other side of it -- whenever that may be -- we're destined to experience change in our lives. For the NHL and the NHLPA, who are currently trying to negotiate money..." December 02

The Score "With his future playing status still up in the air, St. Louis Blues general manager Doug Armstrong shared he would love to hire Jay Bouwmeester to work with his organization at some point in the near future. "I would love to work with him. I would love to get him into..." December 02

Sportsnet "It's Dec. 1 and while I wish we could be talking about season projections and making bold claims about what will be coming when puck drops, the fact is we are left floating in an uncertain time with many questions still to be answered. The main discussions in NHL circles right now..." December 01

The Sports Daily "The NHL released their brand new “Reverse Retro” jerseys to much fanfare last month, and they were well received across the board. Jerseys were intended to tie the modern team with a bygone era. Many noted that the Carolina Hurricanes seemed only to feature references to the..." December 01

TSN "The NHL is still targeting an early January start for the upcoming season, despite no firm plans for the year being set in place. A league source told TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun on Tuesday that the target date for puck drop has not changed as talks with the NHLPA continue. " December 01

Sportsnet "USA Hockey announced Monday its preliminary roster for the 2021 world juniors, boasting the likes of top prospects Jake Sanderson, Cole Caufield and Nick Robertson. The 29 players will audition for the final 25-player roster at training camp in Plymouth, Mich., starting Dec. 6. The..." November 30

The Score "The QMJHL is putting all of its activities on hold from Dec. 1 to Jan. 3, the league announced Monday, while adding that more details will be provided in the next few weeks. “The current situation with the pandemic in the regions in which we operate makes it extremely..." November 30

NHL.com "Charlie McAvoy hasn't gotten over Torey Krug signing with the St. Louis Blues in free agency. "TK was one of the first people to take me under his wing right away from the moment I got there. We still work out together in the summers," the Boston Bruins..." November 28

Pro Hockey Rumors "Last season in Major League Baseball, teams were permitted to carry taxi squads in an effort to reduce the number of times that players had to be shuffled between the big club and their minor league training complex.  In the latest 31 Thoughts podcast, Sportsnet’s Elliotte..." November 28

TSN "Exactly one year ago, former Calgary Flames winger Akim Aliu had just finished a workout at the gym and glanced at his phone. Days earlier, a report revealed that during the 2016-17 season, then-Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Mike Babcock asked rookie winger Mitch Marner to..." November 25

Sportsnet "Like all of us, it hits Bob Nicholson from every side these days. The chairman of the Edmonton Oilers is watching as the National Hockey League seeks a financial path that makes sense to begin play the 2020-21 season. The International Ice Hockey Federation, of which he is a..." November 25

NHL.com "Colton Parayko said he is ready to replace Alex Pietrangelo as the No. 1 defenseman for the St. Louis Blues. And Pietrangelo agrees. "I think he's already an elite player, but I think with more opportunity and knowing he's the guy on the back end,..." November 25

Pro Hockey Rumors "While everyone would like to think that all parties involved in the ongoing talks between the NHL and NHLPA want the same thing – a 2020-21 season, preferably as soon as possible – it seems that is not the case. ESPN’s Emily Kaplan reports that Commissioner Gary..." November 24

The Island Packet "A far cry from the standings at Thanksgiving serving as a barometer of which teams are most likely to make the playoffs, the NHL heads into the U.S. holiday without a firm plan announced for next season. The league and players are running out of time to start the season Jan. 1 as..." November 24

Sportsnet "There was a time, when Sports Illustrated was unquestionably the outlet of importance in the sporting world, where the magazine ran a cover about hockey’s rise in the national consciousness, contrasted with basketball’s decline. It wasn’t 50 years ago either, it was written in..." November 24

Bleacher Report "It's been over six weeks since the NHL free-agent market opened on Oct. 9, yet Mike Hoffman remains unsigned. A skilled scoring winger, he's tallied 22-or-more goals and 48-plus points in each of the last six seasons, including a career-best 36 goals and 70 points in..." November 24

TSN "Two players have tested positive for COVID-19 at Team Canada's World Juniors selection camp in Red Deer, Alta, Hockey Canada announced Tuesday. As a result, the third and final Red and White intrasquad game scheduled for Noon ET on Tuesday has been postponed. " November 24

Pro Hockey Talk "The St. Louis Blues spent their offseason swapping Alex Pietrangelo for Torey Krug on their blue line, saying goodbye to their long-time captain and top defender, and hello to his replacement. Krug may not completely replace what Pietrangelo provided, but..." November 22

Sportsnet "When composite sticks first flooded the market, one of the comments you’d hear from holdouts was you couldn’t feel the puck quite like you could with a wood twig. It’s a slight stretch, but there’s probably some comparison to be made with scouting in person versus the..." November 21

The Score "To put it bluntly, the NHL offseason is like watching paint dry compared to the NBA. A typical NBA offseason is filled with ample drama, intrigue, unpredictability, and trades involving multiple star players. The NHL rarely has any of those. For instance, James..." November 20

The Score "The 2020 Memorial Cup may have been canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the Canadian Hockey League will still launch a virtual edition of the event. Sixty CHL players and four guest participants will partake in a 64-team Memorial Cup eSports tournament on NHL 21 using every..." November 20

The AHL "Restricted free-agent defenseman Jake Walman has agreed to a two-year contract with the St. Louis Blues, a two-way deal in 2020-21 and a one-way deal in 2021-22. Walman, 24, skated in 57 games with the AHL’s San Antonio Rampage last season, setting career highs with..." November 19

The Score "A recent NHL proposal to tweak the league's escrow structure to cope with the effects of the pandemic has left players feeling angry and betrayed, reports Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman. The NHL and NHLPA held a meeting Wednesday, during which the league offered two..." November 19

Spectors Hockey "Approaching late November, activity in the NHL's 2020 offseason trade and free-agent markets has slowed to a crawl. Following a flurry of signings throughout October, only 20 were made from Nov. 1 – 16. Many of those were restricted free agents re-signing with their..." November 19

The Score "Canada's deputy chief of public health feels optimistic regarding the proposed health and safety protocols for the 2021 world juniors in Edmonton. "We've been engaged in ongoing discussions with Hockey Canada and all the relevant partners, including public health..." November 18

ESPN "The ECHL's entire Northern Division has elected to voluntarily suspend operations for the 2020-21 season due to the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, sources confirm to ESPN. The six teams impacted are the Adirondack Thunder, an affiliate of the NHL's New Jersey..." November 18

Sportsnet "The NHL is asking players to defer an additional 13 per cent of their 2020-21 pay as part of return-to-play negotiations for the upcoming season, Sportsnet can confirm. The NHLPA already agreed to a 10 per cent salary deferral in the six-year collective bargaining agreement extension..." November 17

Bleacher Report "Every NHL season sees at least one promising young player blossom into a full-fledged star. Carolina Hurricanes center Sebastian Aho and Vancouver Canucks center Elias Pettersson are two recent examples, quickly evolving into the top stars on their respective clubs. Boston..." November 17

The Score "NHL free agency opened over a month ago, and though most of the top players signed almost instantly, a handful of intriguing players remain. Below, we predict which teams will sign the top unrestricted free agents. Erik..." November 17

The Score "After teasing the hockey community for weeks, the NHL on Monday finally released its Reverse Retro jerseys for all 31 teams. Some are fantastic, while others miss the mark completely. Below, we rank each new kit from worst to best: 31. Vegas Golden Knights Given..." November 16

Complex "We don’t wade onto the ice very often here at Complex Sports, but when the NHL dunks all over the NBA we gotta give them their props. And that’s what we’re doing on this Monday after the National Hockey League, in partnership with adidas, released their new..." November 16

Boston Hockey Now "Are the NHL and AHL going to have to settle on a 35-game season amidst a rampant COVID surge in North America? This past week, longtime Between The Glass Analyst for NHL On NBC Pierre McGuire raised some ears on TSN 690 in Montreal when he once again said that 35, not 48..." November 16

The Score "The NHL has finished teasing every fan base, as previews of all 31 Reverse Retro jerseys have now been unveiled. The project features a new design for each club that draws its inspiration from a kit the team once wore. More details will follow. The full uniforms will be..." November 15

Sportsnaut "The NHL updated the Board of Governors this week and are still intent on hitting their target date. However, details are starting to emerge that optimism turned to concerns rather quickly. NHL start date may not be hit In a report by Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun, he..." November 14

TSN "As COVID-19 cases skyrocket across Canada and the United States, the NHL reiterated in a Board of Governors teleconference update on Thursday that the target date to start the 2021 season remains Jan. 1. Nothing has been written in stone - on either a format or start date - and the..." November 13

Sportsnet "It’s been an unusual fall for hockey fans in North America. Since the Tampa Bay Lightning were crowned Stanley Cup champs on Sept. 28, there’s been no NHL, AHL, WHL or OHL action to speak of, and the QMHJL has been plagued by suspensions in play due to the COVID-19..." November 13

Pro Hockey Rumors "Earlier this month NHL Network began their reveal of the top players at every position, starting with the best defensemen in the league. In their estimation, Victor Hedman was the top name this year, something our readership predicted in 2019 when they disagreed with the..." November 12

New York Post "The NHL remains firm in its desire to start the 2020-21 season on or around Jan. 1, according to multiple sources, as the league prepares for Thursday’s virtual meeting of the Board of Governors that will provide updates on potential Return to Play scenarios. Realignment..." November 12

Featurd "When the 2020 NHL offseason began there was considerable speculation suggesting teams carrying plentiful salary-cap space could target rivals seeking to shed salary in the trade market. Several clubs, such as the Colorado Avalanche, Montreal Canadiens and Ottawa Senators, used their..." November 12

The Score "After commissioner Gary Bettman announced Tuesday that the NHL is considering a temporary realignment for the upcoming season, theScore decided to create three realignment options the league could explore. With Canada's 14-day quarantine rules still in effect (despite an..." November 12

NHL.com "The NHL is exploring short-term hubs, temporary realignment and a reduced schedule as options for the 2020-21 season amid the coronavirus pandemic, Commissioner Gary Bettman said Tuesday. Commissioner Bettman said he would never ask players to return to a bubble for an entire season..." November 10

Pro Hockey Rumors "Earlier this month the NHL Network began their reveal of the top players at every position, starting with the 20 best defensemen in the league. Victor Hedman took home the top spot after his outstanding playoff performance, leading the Tampa Bay Lightning to a Stanley Cup..." November 10

Sportsnet "Last week, the NBA and its players association voted in support of starting the 2020-21 season on Dec. 22. Naturally, this has hockey fans wondering if the NHL might aim for a similar time frame. Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman joined Writers Bloc on..." November 10