NHL

12:00 PM ET On Monday, Nashville Predators prospect Luke Prokop became the first active player under NHL contract to come out as gay. Prokop made the announcement on Instagram, saying, “From a young age I have dreamed of being an NHL player, and I believe that living my authentic life will allow me to bring

Despite Carey Price’s health concerns, the Kraken are reportedly seriously considering selecting the Canadiens goaltender. (Getty Images) We only needed a single expansion draft in the salary cap era to learn that whipping up a mock draft is a fool’s errand. When the Vegas Golden Knights poached players from the then-existing 30 franchises only four

Getty Images Nashville Predators prospect Luke Prokop made history on Monday when he became the first active player with an NHL contract to come out as gay. The 19-year old defenseman revealed the news in an Instagram post on his personal account. “It has been quite the journey to get to this point in my life,

Nashville Predators prospect Luke Prokop became the first active player on an NHL contract to come out publicly as gay. Prokop, 19, spoke with The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun and made a concurrent announcement on his Twitter page that included a sequence of rainbow hearts.  The 6-foot-4, 217-pound defenseman was drafted in October in the third

7:00 AM ET In the NHL, we typically call July “cottage season.” After the free agency frenzy of July 1, players and executives get lost for a few weeks, retreating to summer homes and vacation spots across the world (though if it’s in Canada, that home is almost always called a cottage). Nothing is typical

4:46 PM ET ESPN.com staff The Seattle Kraken are joining the NHL for the 2021-22 season, where they will play in the Pacific Division. The front office and coaching staff has taken shape, and Climate Pledge Arena is on track to be ready, but the team needs players. The Kraken will select one player from

Gabriel Landeskog, Vladimir Tarasenko and Carey Price lead a list of intriguing players exposed to the Seattle Kraken ahead this week’s expansion draft. (Getty Images) The time for NHL teams to determine who will be protected is over, which means the Seattle Kraken front office can officially start piecing together their roster for the 2021-22

5:55 PM ET The Philadelphia Flyers, Nashville Predators and Vegas Golden Knights made interconnected trades ahead of Saturday’s roster freeze for the Seattle Kraken expansion draft. The Flyers traded center Nolan Patrick and defenseman Philippe Myers to Nashville for defenseman Ryan Ellis, who then sent Patrick to Vegas for center Cody Glass. How did each

It has been a busy 24 hours in the NHL as teams have made moves to position themselves ahead of the Seattle Kraken expansion draft on Wednesday. The New York Islanders were one of the busiest teams ahead of Saturday’s roster freeze, working to shed some significant salary cap space. It could be setting the

The Dallas Stars locked in one of their most important players. The team announced on Saturday that it has re-signed defenseman Miro Heiskanen to a massive eight-year, $64 million contract extension that will keep him in Dallas through the 2028-29 season. That contract will carry a salary cap hit of $8.45 million per season, making

Rangers Julien Gauthier celebrates blue jersey The Rangers have re-signed restricted free agent forward Julien Gauthier to a one-year deal, the team announced on Friday. Gauthier signed a two-way contract for $775,000 in the NHL and $300,000 in the minors with $325,000 guaranteed. In 30 games during the 2020-21 season, Gauthier registered two goals and

7:00 AM ET The 2021 NHL draft is just days away, so it’s time to look at the top prospects available in this year’s class. The Tampa Bay Lightning just wrapped up their second straight Stanley Cup championship, but attention now turns to the offseason. First up is the Seattle Kraken expansion draft on July

Getty Just two weeks ago, the National Hockey League was stunned by the loss of Columbus Blue Jackets goalie Matiss Kivlenieks, who died July 4 after a fireworks accident. At just 24 years old, Kivlenieks’ death was as tragic and untimely as they come, which led to an emotional memorial service — and a noble

Earlier this month, Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Matiss Kivlenieks died of chest trauma after being struck by a fireworks mortar blast. On Thursday, Columbus teammate Elvis Merzlikins spoke at his memorial service, offering some more insight as to what happened during the tragic July 4 party. He also detailed the heroism Kivlenieks displayed moments before

7:00 AM ET The Seattle Kraken will be joining the NHL in an on-ice capacity at the start of the 2021-22 regular season. They’ve filled out their front office and coaching staff, but now they need some players. In order to fill out the roster, they will be selecting one player from 30 of the

10:50 AM ET Ron Francis and Dave Hakstol didn’t know they were participating in a four-week audition. They bonded at the 2019 IIHF world championships in Austria and Slovakia, where Francis was part of Team Canada’s management brain-trust and Hakstol was a member of the men’s team coaching staff. “I got to know him as

After Wednesday, it’s clear that the Penguins won’t lose Teddy Blueger to the free-agent market. We also now know the terms of Blueger’s next contract, as the Penguins confirmed it’s a two-year deal with a $2.2M AAV. Logically speaking, signing Blueger indicates that the Penguins plan to protect him during the Seattle Kraken expansion draft.

7:00 AM ET The NHL is expanding to 32 teams beginning with the 2021-22 season, as the Seattle Kraken will join the Pacific Division. This sets up a natural regional rivalry with the Vancouver Canucks and brings the sport back to the city whose Metropolitans were the first team awarded the Stanley Cup in 1917.