PHILADELPHIA — During his Q&A with The Philadelphia Inquirer in May, Rick Tocchet broke down his defensive zone strategy, revealing he does not use man-to-man pressure in the defensive zone.

“It’s a very aggressive zone,” he said, the day he was hired. “I don’t like a run-around pressure type of system. It’s got to be calculated. ...Read more

SAN JOSE, Calif. — The Sharks’ success was once so constant, so reliable, so predictable, that they ran out of room to hang their accolades.

With twenty playoff appearances in 24 years, the Sharks literally filled up an entire banner at their practice facility, top to bottom, with their postseason berths.

It was such steady excellence that...Read more

RALEIGH, N.C. — The word came down on the afternoon of July 1, while NHL teams were busy splashing out millions on new players and free agents were signing deals in great haste before cap space and roster spots went to other players.

Nik Ehlers would not be moved.

The free-agent forward, late of the Winnipeg Jets and the top winger available...Read more

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. — One of Todd McLellan's favorite players to coach was Anze Kopitar, when both were in Los Angeles.

Kopitar, 38, announced Thursday that this season, Kopitar's 20th in the NHL, would be his last in a sure-fire Hall of Fame career.

Which kind of invites a comparison to Patrick Kane.

At age 36 (37 on Nov. 19), Kane is in ...Read more

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Brad Marchand told our sports market’s dirty, little, wonderful secret. It’s one that, as former Miami Dolphins executive Mike Tannenbaum said, “We brought up all the time when negotiating.” It’s a “possible game-decider if everything else is equal,’’ a long-time agent said.

It’s why Marchand says he ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Anze Kopitar, widely considered the greatest player in Kings franchise history and poised to become the team's all-time leading scorer, announced Thursday he will retire at the end of the 2025-26 season.

"I just felt this is the time, but saying that, I'm looking extremely forward to this next season," said Kopitar, who added ...Read more

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla.— There’s no better place in sports right now to understand the difference between champions and wannabes than the Florida Panthers, and no story better illustrates it than Bill Zito’s interview for the general manager job five years ago.

Zito asked a question inside an organization that had been flailing for decades ...Read more

DETROIT — Red Wings fans are getting frustrated and would like to see the team's nine-year playoff drought end.

They're tired of hearing the word "rebuild" from Red Wings officials.

General manager Steve Yzerman understands that — Yzerman believes this year's team, which begins training camp Thursday, will be better than last year's — ...Read more

SEATTLE — John Hayden, a forward in the Seattle Kraken organization, always hoped he’d wind up on ESPN for a hockey accomplishment. Maybe a slick goal or an All-Star game selection.

“But I guess being chased by bears is my calling,” Hayden joked.

A video of him fly fishing in an Alaskan river alongside Kraken mascot Buoy went viral ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — The door is officially closed on Carter Hart’s return to Philly, Danny Brière says.

“The only comment I’ll make on that is that his representative, Judd Moldaver, has reached out and kind of told us that in light of everything that happened in the last year and a half with Carter, they felt, and Carter felt, that it was ...Read more

WESLEY CHAPEL, Fla. — Most seventh-round picks in the NHL draft are essentially lottery tickets. If everything goes right in their development, they just might hit. But the Lightning view those late picks in an entirely different way — less about luck, more about projection and even more about process.

In June’s draft, half of the ...Read more

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Tristan Broz has shown at every stop on his path to the pros that he is capable of scoring goals. He pumped in two more in Monday’s 6-3 win against the Buffalo Sabres, giving him three in his three games at the Prospects Challenge.

But heading into this summer, the Penguins told the rising forward prospect that if he wanted ...Read more

CASTLE PINES, Colo. — Brock Nelson was tempted to take a look around, but ultimately decided he had already found his new home.

Nelson could have been the top center available when the free-agent market opened July 1. Given that the salary cap ceiling increased more than in the past five years combined, with more big jumps coming in the next ...Read more

DENVER — Doubt Gavin Brindley at your own peril.

Some of his Michigan teammates learned their lesson late in his freshman season. Brindley was a little late getting ready for a Big Ten tournament semifinal matchup with archrival Ohio State. His coach said Brindley might have had a skate issue.

A couple of his friends on the team gave him ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Everybody knows the trouble the Flyers have seen. It has been more than five years since they qualified for the playoffs. It has been more than 13 years since they won a postseason series that wasn’t contested in a pandemic-necessitated bubble. It has been more than 15 years since they advanced beyond the postseason’s second...Read more

Day 2 of Chicago Blackhawks rookie camp involved a brief exchange of words that led to a skate cutting a player’s face and f-bombs hurled at teammates.

That builds team chemistry, according to Rockford IceHogs coach Jared Nightingale.

“Hockey is an emotional sport — I think it’s good,” Nightingale said. “I saw a couple players ...Read more

PITTSBURGH — It's possible that Sidney Crosby has softened his stance on being a Penguin for life. It'd be understandable, too. But I also have to wonder if Crosby might be quarterbacking a power play to get Mario Lemieux back in the building.

Either way, this is by far the biggest story in Pittsburgh sports at the moment. Crosby's powerful ...Read more

While the Florida Panthers will enter the 2025-26 season and their attempt to win a third consecutive Stanley Cup — without star winger Matthew Tkachuk — Panthers president of hockey operations and general manager Bill Zito said he feels the Panthers are positioned to handle his early absence.

Tkachuk, who played through a torn adductor ...Read more

PITTSBURGH — A little more than two decades ago, a pair of draft picks made 15 months apart changed the trajectory of Pittsburgh sports.

Ben Roethlisberger and Sidney Crosby.

A franchise quarterback for the Steelers, the proper hockey heir to Mario Lemieux. Legacies, Pittsburghers, three-letter names, Hall of Famers.

Could we see a repeat? ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Katie Gaudreau recalled a moment after last year’s charity golf tournament. As she was leaving the clubhouse with her sister, Kristen Venello, and her brother, Johnny, he said, “I want to make next year’s event better,” as they got into the car.

But Johnny didn’t get the chance. The seven-time NHL All-Star and his ...Read more