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As a service to fans who have a general interest in the National Hockey League but have no idea what’s happened since the Vegas Golden Knights raised the Stanley Cup by defeating the Florida Panthers in June 2023, we’re happy to provide this FAQ as a guide to the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs.

And for you die-hard puckheads: Here is your official refresher before the games begin Saturday. Enjoy!

How intense was the end of the regular season in the Eastern Conference?

It was “four teams, one open playoff spot” intense, filled with desperation and unfortunate amounts of math.

In the end, the Washington Capitals claimed the final wild-card spot in the East in their season finale by defeating the Philadelphia Flyers, who pulled their goalie in a tie game in the third period because only a regulation win would have kept them alive.

The Caps’ win eliminated the Flyers, the Detroit Red Wings and the Pittsburgh Penguins, marking the first time Sidney Crosby has missed the playoffs in consecutive seasons in his legendary career.

For the effort, the Capitals earn a first-round playoff date with the New York Rangers, owners of the NHL’s best record this season.


On the 30th anniversary of their 1994 Stanley Cup win, is this finally the year for the Rangers?

After getting eliminated in the first round last postseason in Game 7 against the New Jersey Devils, changes had to be made for the Rangers. They changed their coach, hiring the well-traveled Peter Laviolette to replace Gerard Gallant, who has proved to be an upgrade.

Star forward Artemi Panarin changed his hair, shaving his angelic locks as a symbolic vibe change that resulted in him setting career highs in goals (49) and points (120). What didn’t change: terrific special teams and dominant goaltending, the bedrock for the Rangers’ 114-point season.

There have been little memorable moments along the way that point to this year being a special one for the Rangers, from their Stadium Series rally against the Islanders to the legend of Matt Rempe.

Rempe, for the uninitiated, is the 6-foot-7 rookie whose chaotic fights made him an instant cult hero for Rangers fans, the likes we haven’t seen since the heyday of Sean Avery. The hard-hitting Rempe, who was suspended four games for elbowing in March, has 71 penalty minutes and 95 minutes played. Only Laviolette knows how much we’ll see of Rempe in the playoffs. If we do, he could be a conversation changer.

So yes, this could be the year for the Rangers … if they overcome the Presidents’ Trophy curse.


What’s the Presidents’ Trophy curse?

There have been 37 previous Presidents’ Trophy winners for having the league’s best record. Only 11 of them advanced to the Stanley Cup Final, and only eight of those teams hoisted the Cup.

Only three teams in the salary cap era (since 2005-06) have won the Presidents’ Trophy and advanced to the Stanley Cup Final.

It’s only gotten tougher in recent years. Since the NHL changed to a wild-card format in 2013-14, there hasn’t been a single Presidents’ Trophy winner that has advanced to the Stanley Cup Final.

The Boston Bruins won the Trophy last season — and set records for regular-season success — but were shocked in the first round by the Panthers.

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The curse of the NHL’s Presidents’ Trophy

Check out the numbers behind recent Presidents’ Trophy winners and how they’ve fared en route to the Stanley Cup.


Are the Bruins still a Stanley Cup contender?

That stunning loss to the Panthers was devastating on and off the ice. The Bruins said goodbye to centers Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci, who both retired, as well as a handful of other impact players in the offseason.

But Boston refused to let its window to contend slam shut. Using a foundation of coach Jim Montgomery’s defensive system, strong goaltending and star winger David Pastrnak‘s 47-goal, 110-point season, the B’s amassed 109 points to finish second in the Atlantic and earn a first-round series against their old friends, the Toronto Maple Leafs.


Uh-oh, the Leafs drew the Bruins again? Should Toronto stop planning the parade?

The Leafs have had their typical roller-coaster season. The highs were extremely high. Star center Auston Matthews just missed out on the first 70-goal season in the NHL since 1992-93, topping out at 69 goals in 81 games, the most in a single season in Leafs history. William Nylander set a career high with 97 points. But inconsistency, especially in their goaltending, made for some inglorious lows.

And now they draw the Bruins again, a team that has eliminated the Leafs in a first-round Game 7 three times in the last 11 postseasons, in series that all offered their unique flavors of heartbreak for Toronto fans.

This is going to go one of two ways: Toronto sees the Spoked-B, gets in their own heads and loses another heartbreaker; or, the Leafs finally overcome their tormentors in a cathartic series win that launches them into a championship run. Either way, the Leafs have only themselves to blame: Their loss to the Panthers allowed the Cats to leapfrog the Bruins in their final game of the season, setting up more Boston vs. Toronto drama.

Of course, the Panthers earned some drama of their own by setting up the next Battle of Florida.


What can we expect from the Battle of Florida?

This series features two of the best individual performers of the regular season. Lightning winger Nikita Kucherov won the Art Ross Trophy as the leading points earner in the NHL, and he became only the seventh player in NHL history to have a point on at least 50% of his team’s goals. Not bad for a guy who was booed for dogging it at the All-Star Game. The Panthers, meanwhile, got a career-high 57 goals from forward Sam Reinhart, who is a free agent this summer. Good timing, sir.

This is the third Battle of Florida in Stanley Cup playoffs history, with the Lightning winning in six games in 2021 and a sweep in 2022. But these teams are in different places now.

  • The Panthers are ascendant after having lost in the Final last season, as playoff hero Matthew Tkachuk and one of the best defensive teams in the league seek the first championship in franchise history.

  • The Lightning are the East’s first wild-card team. Their veteran core — Kucherov, Victor Hedman, Brayden Point, Steven Stamkos and Andrei Vasilevskiy — is trying to win a third Cup in five seasons.

For added drama: Stamkos is a free agent this summer, and there’s a non-zero chance this could be the captain’s final postseason with the Lightning.


Are the Panthers the favorite to come out of the East?

Actually, the current favorite to win the conference and the Stanley Cup on ESPN BET is the Carolina Hurricanes.

The Canes are a balanced offensive and defensive team that has been inching toward a championship for the past few seasons under coach Rod Brind’Amour. They bolstered their chances with a pair of significant trade deadline acquisitions: Penguins winger Jake Guentzel and Capitals center Evgeny Kuznetsov. Both of them are accomplished scorers in the playoffs, and could be the ones to push the Hurricanes over the hump. The hump in this case being all of those one-goal games Carolina loses, including four in the conference final last season.

Carolina faces the New York Islanders in the first round, having beaten the Isles in six games last season. But there’s one huge difference between those Islanders and these Islanders: Patrick Roy, the fiery Hall of Fame goalie who took over as coach and led the Islanders to No. 3 in the Metro Division. Yes, their 16 losses after regulation were the most for a playoff team in the shootout era. But in the past three weeks, no team had a better points percentage than the Isles (.864). They’re peaking at the right time.


Besides Guentzel, who are the other old faces in new places that could impact the playoffs?

In the East, the Panthers added winger Vladimir Tarasenko. But the Western Conference was the real arms race at the NHL trade deadline.


Are the Knights engaging in salary cap gymnastics?

Those accusations were unavoidable after the Knights said captain Mark Stone had been cleared for practice just over a week before the playoffs were set to open. Stone suffered a lacerated spleen on Feb. 20, which allowed them to place his $9.5 million salary cap hit on long-term injured reserve ahead of the March 8 trade deadline.

Last season, Stone had back surgery on Jan. 1 and went on long-term injured reserve, allowing the Knights the cap flexibility to add forward Ivan Barbashev (among others) at the trade deadline. Stone didn’t play in Game 82, when his return would have risked Vegas’s cap compliance, but played in Game 1 of their first-round series against Winnipeg. Stone had 24 points in 22 games to help Vegas win its first Stanley Cup.

General manager Kelly McCrimmon pushed back on any notion that the Golden Knights were working the system, telling Sportsnet that LTIR was “collectively bargained,” and called out those who “insinuate” the injuries aren’t significant.

“Google ‘lacerated spleen’ and see if you can tell when a player is going to be back,” he said. “It’s ridiculous to suggest that these aren’t significant injuries. And furthermore, the NHL polices all of this.”

From the Knights’ success on the ice to their bludgeoning play to their aggressive player acquisitions and the “how do they keep getting away with it?” accusations that accompany them, no team in the NHL is as delightfully divisive as the defending Stanley Cup champions.


Who is the favorite in the West?

The Dallas Stars are favored to win the conference, just slightly ahead of the Edmonton Oilers, and for good reason. If you closed your eyes and were asked to draw a championship roster, it would probably look something like the Stars.

They have one of the deepest forward groups in the NHL, with a balance of savvy veterans (Joe Pavelski, Matt Duchene, Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin) combined with in-their-prime standouts (Jason Robertson, Roope Hintz) and impactful young players (Wyatt Johnston). They have an elite defenseman in Miro Heiskanen. While he wasn’t up to standards during much of the season, they have a star goalie in Jake Oettinger who is playing his best hockey at the right time.

The Stars were the runners-up in the West last season to Vegas. GM Jim Nill has constructed a roster that’s as Cup-ready as you’ll find. Now it’s up to coach Pete DeBoer and the players to lift it.

To do so, they’ll have to overcome the Vegas Golden Knights in the first round of the playoffs, the team that eliminated them in the conference final last season after a particularly brutal series.


Yes, and it would be a fitting capper for a wild season in Edmonton.

The Oilers fired coach Jay Woodcroft after winning just three times in their first 13 games in favor of Rangers minor league coach Kris Knoblauch, who (probably not) coincidentally coached McDavid back in juniors. Knoblauch went a stellar 46-17-5, thanks in no small part to McDavid recapturing the magic after his own slow start and finishing with 132 points in 76 games. Draisaitl had 106 points, but the bigger offensive star was 31-year-old winger Zach Hyman, who tallied a career-best 54 goals.

As usual, the Oilers’ success isn’t what Connor and Leon (and Zach) do, but what their supporting cast does. They’re third in 5-on-5 average scoring and eighth in 5-on-5 average defense. Replicate those results and the Oilers could go on a run … if goaltender Stuart Skinner can hold up his end of bargain, which seems to be a running theme during the McDavid years.

The Oilers draw the Los Angeles Kings in the first round, marking the third straight season these two teams will face off in the first round. The Oilers won their first meeting in seven games and last postseason’s meeting in six games. The Kings fired head coach Todd McLellan in favor of Jim Hiller at the All-Star break. Hiller’s gone 20-12-1 since then, seeking to lead L.A. vets like Anze Kopitar and Drew Doughty on the Cup run they’ve been salivating to have for several seasons.


The Oilers didn’t even win their division, finishing behind the Vancouver Canucks. How legit are the ‘Nucks as a contender?

If they can reclaim their offensive consistency, they can be dangerous. Coach Rick Tocchet is in the coach of the year conversation because he helped turned the Canucks’ defensive metrics around this season. Through their past 20 games, they’re second in 5-on-5 defense, maintaining the effectiveness they had all season. But their 5-on-5 offense ranked 22nd during that span.

The Canucks have been as top-heavy as a Tootsie Pop this season. After leading scorers J.T. Miller (103 points), Quinn Hughes (91), Elias Pettersson (89) and Brock Boeser (73), there’s a 25-point drop to the next-leading scorer, Filip Hronek.

That depth challenge might hurt them more against other opponents than against the Predators, but Nashville is no pushover. They’re talented and play with pace under coach Andrew Brunette. Plus, they’re one of the NHL’s greatest psychological experiments this season: Can depriving a team from seeing a U2 concert at The Sphere in Las Vegas not only lead to regular-season success but also postseason results?


What does U2 have to do with Nashville?

Besides Bono’s cowboy hat phase, not a lot — except for what happened this season.

The Predators were flailing and called out by their coach for a lack of focus. To get their attention again, Brunette cancelled a planned trip to see U2 at The Sphere while Nashville was on a road trip.

The team responded by going 18 games without a regulation loss, a streak that elevated them to a playoff seed they’d never relinquish. (And if they win the Cup, they have to get U2 to play the victory parade down Broadway, right?)


Speaking of elevation: What’s up with Colorado?

The Avalanche are seeking their second Stanley Cup in three seasons, and redemption after losing in the first round of last year’s playoffs to the Seattle Kraken. But they’ve earned a tough draw in the opening round in the Winnipeg Jets. To put this in hyperbolic wrestling announcer terms, it’s the irresistible force vs. the immovable object.

The Avalanche finished near the top of the NHL in goals per game. The Jets finished near the top of the NHL in preventing goals. Colorado has Nathan MacKinnon, the favorite to win the Hart Trophy as league MVP after establishing new career highs in goals (51) and points (138) this season. Winnipeg has Connor Hellebuyck, the favorite to win the Vezina Trophy as the league’s top goaltender and someone who might get his share of MVP support, as well.

It’s fire vs. water. It’s green light vs. red light. It could be the best opening-round series of the playoffs.


You’ve mentioned more than a few players hitting career highs statistically. What’s up with that?

Frankly, it’s a great time to be a star offensive player in the NHL. The goals per team per game dropped slightly this season from last season, but those averages remain the highest we’ve had since the mid-1990s. There are a lot of factors behind this, from the dilution of talent due to expansion, to rule changes that necessitated teams rethinking their roster constructions, to power plays being more efficient than they’ve been since the late 1980s.

But in the end, it’s the players. The NHL has never have a greater assemblage of world-class talent than right now.

There’s Auston Matthews flirting with 70 goals. There were 17 players scoring 40 or more goals; just 10 seasons ago, we had three. There’s both McDavid and Nikita Kucherov tallying 100 assists in a single season, joining Hockey Hall of Famers Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux and Bobby Orr as the only players in NHL history to do so.

Hockey fans used to dream about a time when the name on the back could be as much a draw as the logo on the front, and we’re now living that dream.

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2024 NHL playoffs: The chase for the Stanley Cup is on

Emily Kaplan sets up the chase for the Stanley Cup as the NHL’s second season gets underway.


So who wins the Cup?

Um … uh … sorry, we’re too busy sketching out potential logos for the new NHL team in Utah now that this incarnation of the Arizona Coyotes just relocated. What about Blizzard? Instant rivalry with the Avalanche. The kids can call them “The Blizzy” for short.

While we can’t tell you who wins the Cup, we can say there are a handful of teams seeking their first one ever: the Panthers, Canucks, Jets and Predators. Seeing one of those droughts end would be fun. Of course, there’s another drought in Toronto dating back to 1967 that would be fun to see end, too.

Well, fun for Toronto. Maybe not so much the rest of Canada, we imagine.

Enjoy the Stanley Cup playoffs, everyone — the best postseason in sports.

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2025 MLB Home Run Derby: The field is set! Who is the slugger to beat?

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2025 MLB Home Run Derby: The field is set! Who is the slugger to beat?

The 2025 MLB All-Star Home Run Derby is fast approaching — and the field is set.

Braves hometown hero Ronald Acuna Jr. became the first player to commit to the event, which will be held at Truist Park in Atlanta on July 14 (8 p.m. ET on ESPN). He was followed by MLB home run leader Cal Raleigh of the Seattle Mariners, James Wood of the Washington Nationals, Byron Buxton of the Minnesota Twins, Oneil Cruz of the Pittsburgh Pirates, Junior Caminero of the Tampa Bay Rays, Brent Rooker of the Athletics and Jazz Chisholm Jr. of the New York Yankees.

On Friday, however, Acuna was replaced by teammate Matt Olson.

With all the entrants announced, let’s break down their chances at taking home this year’s Derby prize.

Full All-Star Game coverage: How to watch, schedule, rosters, more


2025 home runs: 17 | Longest: 434 feet

Why he could win: Olson is a late replacement for Acuna as the home team’s representative at this year’s Derby. Apart from being the Braves’ first baseman, however, Olson also was born in Atlanta and grew up a Braves fan, giving him some extra motivation. The left-handed slugger led the majors in home runs in 2023 — his 54 round-trippers that season also set a franchise record — and he remains among the best in the game when it comes to exit velo and hard-hit rate.

Why he might not: The home-field advantage can also be a detriment if a player gets too hyped up in the first round. See Julio Rodriguez in Seattle in 2023, when he had a monster first round, with 41 home runs, but then tired out in the second round.


2025 home runs: 36 | Longest: 440 feet

Why he could win: It’s the season of Cal! The Mariners’ catcher is having one of the greatest slugging first halves in MLB history, as he’s been crushing mistakes all season . His easy raw power might be tailor-made for the Derby — he ranks in the 87th percentile in average exit velocity and delivers the ball, on average, at the optimal home run launch angle of 23 degrees. His calm demeanor might also be perfect for the contest as he won’t get too amped up.

Why he might not: He’s a catcher — and one who has carried a heavy workload, playing in all but one game this season. This contest is as much about stamina as anything, and whether Raleigh can carry his power through three rounds would be a concern. No catcher has ever won the Derby, with only Ivan Rodriguez back in 2005 even reaching the finals.


2025 home runs: 24 | Longest: 451 feet

Why he could win: He’s big, he’s strong, he’s young, he’s awesome, he might or might not be able to leap tall buildings in a single bound. This is the perfect opportunity for Wood to show his talent on the national stage, and he wouldn’t be the first young player to star in the Derby. He ranks in the 97th percentile in average exit velocity and 99th percentile in hard-hit rate, so he can still muscle the ball out in BP even if he slightly mishits it. His long arms might be viewed as a detriment, but remember the similarly tall Aaron Judge won in 2017.

Why he might not: His natural swing isn’t a pure uppercut — he has a pretty low average launch angle of just 6.2 degrees — so we’ll see how that plays in a rapid-fire session. In real games, his power is primarily to the opposite field, but in a Home Run Derby you can get more cheapies pulling the ball down the line.


2025 home runs: 20 | Longest: 479 feet

Why he could win: Buxton’s raw power remains as impressive as nearly any hitter in the game. He crushed a 479-foot home run earlier this season and has four others of at least 425 feet. Indeed, his “no doubter” percentage — home runs that would be out of all 30 parks based on distance — is 75%, the highest in the majors among players with more than a dozen home runs. His bat speed ranks in the 89th percentile. In other words, two tools that could translate to a BP lightning show.

Why he might not: Buxton is 31 and the Home Run Derby feels a little more like a younger man’s competition. Teoscar Hernandez did win last year at age 31, but before that, the last winner older than 29 was David Ortiz in 2010, and that was under much different rules than are used now.


2025 home runs: 16 | Longest: 463 feet

Why he could win: If you drew up a short list of players everyone wants to see in the Home Run Derby, Cruz would be near the top. He has the hardest-hit ball of the 2025 season, and the hardest ever tracked by Statcast, a 432-foot missile of a home run with an exit velocity of 122.9 mph. He also crushed a 463-foot home run in Anaheim that soared way beyond the trees in center field. With his elite bat speed — 100th percentile — Cruz has the ability to awe the crowd with a potentially all-time performance.

Why he might not: Like all first-time contestants, can he stay within himself and not get too caught up in the moment? He has a long swing, which will result in some huge blasts, but might not be the most efficient for a contest like this one, where the more swings a hitter can get in before the clock expires, the better.


2025 home runs: 23 | Longest: 425 feet

Why he could win: Although Caminero was one of the most hyped prospects entering 2024, everyone kind of forgot about him heading into this season since he didn’t immediately rip apart the majors as a rookie. In his first full season, however, he has showed off his big-time raw power — giving him a chance to become just the third player to reach 40 home runs in his age-21 season. He has perhaps the quickest bat in the majors, ranking in the 100th percentile in bat speed, and his top exit velocity ranks in the top 15. That could translate to a barrage of home runs.

Why he might not: In game action, Caminero does hit the ball on the ground quite often — in fact, he’s on pace to break Jim Rice’s record for double plays grounded into in a season. If he gets out of rhythm, that could lead to a lot of low line drives during the Derby instead of fly balls that clear the fences.


2025 home runs: 19 | Longest: 440 feet

Why he could win: The Athletics slugger has been one of the top power hitters in the majors for three seasons now and is on his way to a third straight 30-homer season. Rooker has plus bat speed and raw power, but his biggest strength is an optimal average launch angle (19 degrees in 2024, 15 degrees this season) that translates to home runs in game action. That natural swing could be picture perfect for the Home Run Derby. He also wasn’t shy about saying he wanted to participate — and maybe that bodes well for his chances.

Why he might not: Rooker might not have quite the same raw power as some of the other competitors, as he has just one home run longer than 425 feet in 2025. But that’s a little nitpicky, as 11 of his home runs have still gone 400-plus feet. He competed in the college home run derby in Omaha while at Mississippi State in 2016 and finished fourth.


2025 home runs: 17 | Longest: 442 feet

Why he could win: Chisholm might not be the most obvious name to participate, given his career high of 24 home runs, but he has belted 17 already in 2025 in his first 61 games after missing some time with an injury. He ranks among the MLB leaders in a couple of home run-related categories, ranking in the 96th percentile in expected slugging percentage and 98th percentile in barrel rate. His raw power might not match that of the other participants, but he’s a dead-pull hitter who has increased his launch angle this season, which might translate well to the Derby, even if he won’t be the guy hitting the longest home runs.

Why he might not: Most of the guys who have won this have been big, powerful sluggers. Chisholm is listed at 5-foot-11, 184 pounds, and you have to go back to Miguel Tejada in 2004 to find the last player under 6 foot to win.

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Reds’ Fraley to play through partially torn labrum

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Reds' Fraley to play through partially torn labrum

CINCINNATI — Cincinnati Reds right fielder Jake Fraley was activated from the 10-day injured list on Saturday.

He had injured his right shoulder while trying to make a diving catch June 23 against the New York Yankees.

An MRI revealed a partially torn labrum that will eventually require surgery. Fraley received a cortisone shot and will try to play through it for the rest of the season.

The Reds were 7-4 in his absence.

Christian Encarnacion-Strand, who hasn’t played since Noelvi Marte returned from the IL on July 4, was optioned to Triple-A Louisville.

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Royals P Lorenzen (illness) scratched from start

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Royals P Lorenzen (illness) scratched from start

Kansas City Royals right-hander Michael Lorenzen was scratched from Saturday’s start due to an illness.

Left-hander Angel Zerpa replaced Lorenzen for the game against the visiting New York Mets.

Lorenzen, 33, is 5-8 with a 4.61 ERA through 18 starts this season.

Zerpa, 25, is 3-1 with a 3.89 ERA in 40 appearances out of the bullpen this season. His last start was in August 2023.

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