7:00 AM ET Professional sports have a peculiar way of glorifying underdogs who win championships while being blasé about teams with all-star rosters that win. The 1980 Team USA hockey “Miracle on Ice” is folklore. Cinderella teams are more compelling than No. 1 seeds in March Madness. Unless it’s part of a dynasty, hearing an
NHL
11:25 PM ET ESPN News Services National Women’s Hockey League founder Dani Rylan Kearney is stepping down as commissioner as part of a restructuring of the league’s governing model, the Associated Press reported. According to the AP, Rylan Kearney will remain involved as president of an ownership group that controls four of the NWHL’s six
10:31 PM ET The Vegas Golden Knights are no longer looking to trade star goalie Marc-Andre Fleury, general manager Kelly McCrimmon said Monday. “We see the goaltending position being incredibly important this year. Our goalies will be Robin [Lehner] and Marc-Andre. We all expect a schedule [next season] that’s going to be very compressed. The
7:28 PM ET ESPN News Services Defenseman Alex Pietrangelo, seen as the top free-agent prize in the NHL this offseason, agreed Monday to a seven-year deal worth $8.8 million a year with the Vegas Golden Knights, a source confirmed to ESPN. The deal, worth a total of $61.6 million and including a no-movement clause, was
9:24 PM ET A statue depicting the Chicago Blackhawks logo outside the United Center was defaced over the weekend, the team confirmed in a statement to The Athletic. A Twitter account named “no racist mascots” shared photos of the statue being covered in orange paint with phrases like “Land Back” written on and around it.
3:29 PM ET Taylor Hall answered questions about his next NHL destination on Sunday, when he signed a one-year, $8 million contract with the Buffalo Sabres. But that decision led to another mystery: Why choose a short-term deal, and why settle on a franchise that hasn’t been to the Stanley Cup Playoffs since 2011? Hall,
2:57 PM ET Veteran forward Tyler Toffoli has signed a four-year deal worth $4.25 million annually with the Montreal Canadiens. Toffoli finished the 2019-20 season with the Vancouver Canucks following a February trade that ended an eight-season run with the Los Angeles Kings. In Vancouver, Toffoli had six goals and four assists in 10 games
12:42 PM ET Alexis Lafreniere, the No. 1 pick of the 2020 draft, signed his three-year, entry-level contract with the New York Rangers on Monday. The deal is for $925,000 annually, the maximum allowed for rookies in the CBA and in line with other recent top picks. Lafreniere is represented by Emilie Castonguay, the first
7:35 PM ET Left winger Taylor Hall has signed a one-year, $8 million contract with the Buffalo Sabres, the team announced Sunday. Hall, 28, was the most coveted unrestricted free-agent forward available this offseason, and he spent the weekend listening to pitches from at least a half-dozen teams. Choosing the Sabres is a surprising move,
5:52 PM ET Associated Press ST. LOUIS — The St. Louis Blues signed free-agent forward Kyle Clifford to a two-year, $2 million contract Sunday. Clifford was a two-time Stanley Cup-winner in spending his first nine-plus seasons with the Los Angeles Kings, before being traded to Toronto in February. Selected by L.A. in the second round