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NBCSN’s Hockey Happy Hour schedule: June 1-4

By Sean LeahyJun 1, 2020, 4:14 PM EDT
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NBC Sports’ Hockey Happy Hour features original shows, films and documentaries this week on NBCSN, headlined by Center of Attention: The Unreal Life of Derek Sanderson, The Joe: Joe Louis Arena Documentary and 2020 All-Star All Access.

Beginning Tuesday at 5 p.m. ET, NBC Sports will present two episodes of NHL’s Who Wore It Best? on NBCSN. The episodes will feature analysts Keith Jones and Patrick Sharp taking part in debates over the best players to wear certain jersey numbers in NHL history.

NHL Hat Trick Trivia Hosted by P.K. Subban continues Monday at 5 p.m. ET on NBCSN. Hosted by the Devils defenseman, the show features fans answering a trio of hockey trivia questions from their homes, along with appearances from NHL players and celebrities, for the chance to win NHL prizes. NBC Sports’ Pierre McGuire will join the show, as well as Hockey Hall of Famer and six-time Stanley Cup champion Bryan Trottier, Devils goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood and NHL referee Wes McCauley.

Programming will also stream on NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app.

Monday, June 1 – NBCSN
• NHL Hat Trick Trivia Hosted by P.K. Subban (Episode 8) – 5 p.m. ET
• The Joe: Joe Louis Arena Documentary – 5:30 p.m. ET

Tuesday, June 2 – NBCSN
• NHL’s Who Wore It Best? (Episode 2) – 5 p.m. ET
• NHL’s Who Wore It Best? (Episode 3) – 5:30 p.m. ET
• Distanced Training: Ready to Get Back in the Game – 6 p.m. ET
• Unveiled: Smashfest – 6:30 p.m. ET

Wednesday, June 3 – NBCSN
• #HockeyAtHome: He Skates, She Skates – 4 p.m. ET
• Our Line Starts – 4:30 p.m. ET
• Fort Neverlose – 5 p.m. ET

Thursday, June 4 – NBCSN
• 2020 All-Star All Access – 5 p.m. ET
• Center of Attention: The Unreal Life of Derek Sanderson – 6 p.m. ET

MONDAY, 6/1

NHL HAT TRICK TRIVIA HOSTED BY P.K. SUBBAN : NBC Sports’ ‘Inside-the-Glass’ analyst Pierre McGuire will join the eighth episode of NHL Hat Trick Trivia Hosted by P.K. Subban. The show features fans answering a trio of hockey trivia questions from their homes, along with appearances from NHL players and celebrities, for the chance to win NHL prizes. Additional guests on the episode include Hockey Hall of Famer and six-time Stanley Cup champion Bryan Trottier, Devils goaltender MacKenzie Blackwood and NHL referee Wes McCauley.

THE JOE: JOE LOUIS ARENA DOCUMENTARY: The film highlights the construction of the arena and a number of the significant moments that took place there over the years, including the team’s Stanley Cup-clinching win in 1997 that ended a 42-year championship drought. The Joe includes interviews with former captain and current GM Steve Yzerman, as well as late Red Wings legends Gordie Howe and Ted Lindsay.

TUESDAY, 6/2

NHL’S WHO WORE IT BEST?: NHL’s Who Wore It Best? will feature hockey writers, broadcasters and insiders debating the best players to wear each jersey number in NHL history. The five-part series will air on NBCSN every Tuesday at 5 p.m. ET. The second episode features NBC Sports analyst Keith Jones, who takes part in debating the following jersey numbers: 55, 40, 34, 32 and 31. The third episode features NBC Sports analyst Patrick Sharp, who takes part in debating the following jersey numbers: 28, 27, 26, 25 and 21.

DISTANCED TRAINING: READY TO GET BACK IN THE GAME: NBC Sports’ Jac Collinsworth hosts a digital series, Distanced Training: Ready to Get Back in the Game, which showcases the home workouts and mental training of some of the world’s top professional, collegiate, and Olympic athletes. This 30-minute special from the digital series includes interview clips with:

• Sabres forward Jack Eichel
• Predators forward Matt Duchene
• 2018 Olympic women’s hockey team gold-medalist Kendall Coyne Schofield
• Panthers forward Noel Acciari
• Devils forward Joey Anderson and brother Mikey Anderson, a defenseman on the Kings
• Capitals defenseman Brenden Dillon

UNVEILED: SMASHFEST: Former NHL player Dominic Moore hosts a 30-minute program with special guests Brad Marchand of the Bruins and Mitch Marner of the Maple Leafs who work with a world-renowned street artist to design custom ping pong tables for charity.

WEDNESDAY, 6/3

#HOCKEYATHOME: HE SKATES, SHE SKATES: NBC Sports’ Kathryn Tappen co-hosts a 30-minute program that features three sets of NHL players and their family members who play the sport professionally or collegiately. The pairings are:

• Avalanche forward J.T. Compher and sister Jesse Compher, who plays for Boston University
• Oilers defenseman Darnell Nurse and cousin Sarah Nurse, who plays professionally and for Team Canada
• Panthers defenseman Mike Matheson and wife Emily Pfalzer Matheson, who plays professionally and for Team USA

OUR LINE STARTS: The latest episode of NBC Sports’ weekly NHL podcast will be presented at 5 p.m. ET on NBCSN. The show is hosted by Liam McHugh alongside analysts Keith Jones and Patrick Sharp, who analyze the league’s Return to Play format and potential matchups in the Qualifying Round.

FORT NEVERLOSE: Titled after the nickname of the Nassau Coliseum, this one-hour special examines the Islanders’ history and memorable moments on the ice in the storied arena.

THURSDAY, 6/4

2020 ALL-STAR ALL ACCESS: This behind-the-scenes special, narrated by actor Jon Hamm, looks at the 2020 NHL All-Star Weekend, which took place in St. Louis, Mo. in January. The program includes exclusive audio content from mic’d players and features on numerous All-Stars throughout the entire weekend, including the fan fest, skills competition and the three-on-three All-Star Game.

CENTER OF ATTENTION: THE UNREAL LIFE OF DEREK SANDERSON: This one-hour documentary chronicles NHL star and two-time Stanley Cup champion Derek Sanderson’s remarkable life on and off the ice. The film, narrated by actor John Slattery, features interviews with eight Hockey Hall of Famers, including Bobby Orr and Phil Esposito.

What is the Panthers’ long-term outlook?

Florida Panthers
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By Adam GretzApr 6, 2020, 5:04 PM EDT

With the 2019-20 NHL season on hold we are going to review where each NHL team stands at this moment until the season resumes. Here we take a look at the long-term outlook for the Florida Panthers

Pending Free Agents

The Core

Everything about this team in the immediate future is going to be built around the forward duo of Aleksander Barkov and Jonathan Huberdeau.

They are two of the best and most productive players in the league, while Barkov has developed into one of the NHL’s most complete two-way centers. Barkov is signed for two more seasons after this one, while Huberdeau is locked in for another three. They have matching salary cap hits of $5.9 million per season.

Beyond them, the core gets a little cloudier because all of their long-term investments come with some pretty significant risks.

Starting goalie Sergei Bobrovsky is signed for another six seasons at a salary cap hit of $10 million per season. They are going to need him to be significantly better than he has been so far if there is any chance of him playing out the remainder of that deal in Florida.

In front of him they have invested heavily in their defense with Aaron Ekblad, Keith Yandle, Anton Stralman, and Mike Matheson all signed for at least the next two seasons, while Ekblad, Yandle, and Matheson go for at least the next three years. Ekblad and Matheson are both signed for the next five. They have a ton of money invested in that quartet, but they haven’t really received a great return on that investment at this point.

Mike Hoffman and Evgenii Dadonov, two of their best forwards, are unsigned beyond this season and eligible for unrestricted free agency. If they can not re-sign one — or both — that would be a significant amount of offense going out the door.

Long-Term Needs

Even though the Panthers have made a huge long-term financial investment in their defense and goaltending, they are still one of the worst defensive teams in the league right now.

Ekblad and Yandle are a solid duo at the top, and maybe even a little underrated. Ekblad’s status as a former No. 1 overall pick definitely raises the expectations around him, but he has been an extremely productive player offensively and shown improvement in his all-around game. He may not win the Norris Trophy, but he’s a good player.

But once you get beyond that top duo there are a lot of flaws and question marks with the defense as a whole, and not a lot of immediate help on the horizon to help fix it. That is one of the things that made the in-season trade of Vincent Trocheck so confusing. It was a deal that did not need to be made, and they did not even use it to address their biggest flaw.

They could also be looking at a depth issue at forward if they can not get Hoffman and Dadonov re-signed.

Long-Term Strengths

The biggest strength for the Panthers is probably the simple fact they not only have two elite players in Barkov and Huberdeau, but that they have them both signed for multiple seasons at a combined salary cap hit of less than $11 million per season. They are exceptional bargains against the cap, they are both elite players, and they are both in the middle of their prime years in the NHL. Having that sort of situation at the top of the lineup should be a massive advantage for a front office to work with. Those are the hardest players to find (the elite, game-changers on offense) and they tend to cost the most money. The Panthers not only already have them in place, they have them for far less than they should ordinarily cost. That is a gift and a bonus you do not want to waste.

It also might seem weird saying this given how much Bobrovsky struggled in his debut season with the team, but they do seem to have a lot of goaltending options in the short-and long-term.

Even if Bobrovsky’s contract turns into a problem in a few years, he should be better than he was this season and at least give them a few seasons of high level play. Chris Driedger has also been a pleasant surprise in net this season and could settle in as a nice back-up option, while they also have one of the top goaltending prospects in the league in Spencer Knight after using a top-15 pick on him in the draft a year ago.

They also have one of the NHL’s best coaches in Joel Quenneville.

More:

• Looking at the 2019-20 Florida Panthers
• Panthers’ surprises and disappointments

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Adam Gretz is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @AGretz.

WATCH LIVE: Flyers visit Panthers on NBCSN

By Sean LeahyFeb 13, 2020, 6:00 PM EST

NBCSN’s coverage of the 2019-20 NHL season continues with Thursday’s matchup between the Philadelphia Flyers and Florida Panthers. Coverage begins at 6 p.m. ET on NBCSN. You can watch the game online and on the NBC Sports app by clicking here.

In their game on Monday night, MacKenzie Weegar put the Panthers ahead 1-0 just over three minutes into the first period. The Flyers then scored four straight goals to win 4-1. James van Riemsdyk had a goal and assist in the win.

Philadelphia currently sits in the second Wild Card spot in the East and are three points behind the Islanders, who sit in third place in the Metro. Florida sits two points behind Toronto for third place in the Atlantic, while the Panthers have a game in hand on the Maple Leafs. They are three points behind the Flyers for the second Wild Card in the East.

After a quick trip to Florida, the Flyers have a home-and-home against the Blue Jackets, who currently sit just one point above Philadelphia in the Metropolitan Division. This is the second of a three-game road trip for the Flyers. The Flyers have earned points in five of their last six on the road (3-1-2), but are coming off a loss in Brooklyn against the Islanders.

Playing with eight defensemen at New Jersey on Tuesday, the Panthers fourth line consisted of center Noel Acciari and two defensemen, Mark Pysyk and Mike Matheson. The makeshift line combined for nine points in the win, as all three players put up three-point nights (1G-2A each). Matheson, who is in the second year of an eight-year contract, played forward for the first time this season after being a healthy scratch in Florida’s previous game (4-1 loss at Philadelphia on Monday).

[COVERAGE BEGINS AT 6 P.M. ET ON NBCSN]

WHAT: Philadelphia Flyers at Florida Panthers
WHERE: BB&T Center
WHEN: Thursday, Feb. 13, 6 p.m. ET
TV: NBCSN
LIVE STREAM: You can watch the Flyers-Panthers stream on NBC Sports’ live stream page and the NBC Sports app.

PROJECTED LINEUPS

FLYERS
Claude Giroux – Sean Couturier – Jakub Voracek
Joel Farabee – Kevin Hayes – Travis Konecny
James van Riemsdyk – Scott Laughton – Tyler Pitlick
Michael Raffl – Connor Bunnaman – Nicolas Aube-Kubel

Ivan Provorov – Matt Niskanen
Travis Sanheim – Philippe Myers
Robert Hagg – Justin Braun

Starting goalie: Carter Hart

PANTHERS
Jonathan Huberdeau – Aleksander Barkov – Evgenii Dadonov
Mike Hoffman – Vincent Trocheck – Brett Connolly
Frank Vatrano – Dominic Toninato – Colton Sceviour
Mike Matheson – Noel Acciari – Mark Pysyk

MacKenzie Weegar – Aaron Ekblad
Riley Stillman – Anton Stralman
Keith Yandle – Josh Brown

Starting goalie: Sergei Bobrovsky

John Forslund will call the action from BB&T Center alongside Pierre McGuire. Paul Burmeister hosts studio coverage alongside analysts Patrick Sharp and Mike Johnson.

Thursday night’s coverage of Capitals-Avalanche will be the second half of an NHL doubleheader on NBCSN, immediately following originally-scheduled coverage of Flyers-Panthers, which begins at 7 p.m. ET. Pre-game coverage at 6 p.m. ET with NHL Live.

The Buzzer: Benn’s hat trick; Draisaitl keeps rolling for Oilers

NHL Scores
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By Adam GretzFeb 11, 2020, 11:59 PM EST

Three Stars

1. Jamie Benn, Dallas Stars. It hasn’t been the best season for Benn but he is refusing to go down quietly and now finds himself as the Stars’ leading goal scorer (18) this season thanks to his hat trick on Tuesday night in a 4-1 win over the Carolina Hurricanes. He has scored nine of those goals in the 15 games since January 1, and is just one goal away from the 300-mark for his career. He is now on pace for 26 goals this season.

2. Mike Matheson and Mark Pysyk, Florida Panthers. It might be cheating to include two players as one entry in the three stars section, but look, these two guys deserve some recognition here. The Panthers dressed eight defensemen on Tuesday night against the New Jersey Devils and played two of them — Matheson and Pysyk — at forward on a line with Noel Acciari. All that line did was score three goals (one for each player) in a 5-3 win, while Matheson and Pysyk each had a goal, two assists, and finished as a plus-three. Pysyk has previously played forward for the Panthers this season and had a hat trick a couple of weeks ago.

3. Leon Draisaitl, Edmonton Oilers. No Connor McDavid, no problem for Draisaitl and the Oilers on Tuesday. The Oilers were 5-3 winners over the Chicago Blackhawks and it was Draisaitl leading the way with a four-point night (one goal, three assists) as he extended his current lead in the NHL scoring race to eight points over McDavid. He is now at 89 points on the season and on pace for 129 points this season. He had 105 points a year ago. If he continues that level of play during McDavid’s absence and helps get the Oilers back in the playoffs it might be enough to take the MVP award away from his teammate.

Along with Draisaitl, 2017 first-round pick Kailer Yamamoto also had another big game for the Oilers, scoring two goals in the win. He is now up to seven goals and 14 points in his first 15 games this season after joining the team in late December.

Other Notable Performances From Tuesday

  • Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 37 shots for the Tampa Bay Lightning as they beat the Pittsburgh Penguins in overtime to extend their winning streak despite a growing injury list. Read all about it here.
  • Alex Stalock stopped all 26 shots he faced for the Minnesota Wild as they shut out the Vegas Golden Knights. Kevin Fiala also had a big game for the Wild to extend his point streak to five games.
  • Another strong game for rookie New York Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin as he stopped turned aside 42 shots in a 4-1 win over the Winnipeg Jets. Chris Kreider also scored two goals in the win.
  • Mathew Barzal had three assists for the New York Islanders as they won a wild game over the Philadelphia Flyers. Read all about it here.
  • Philipp Grubauer stopped 36 shots for the Colorado Avalanche in a 3-0 win over the Ottawa Senators.

Highlights of the Night

Mikko Rantanen scored an absolutely beautiful goal late in the first period against the Ottawa Senators, starting it off with a spin move at the blue line.

Here is one of Mathew Barzal’s three assists on Tuesday night, setting up Jordan Eberle for a first period goal to give the Islanders a 3-0 lead. He just flipped it to himself and created a shot like it was nothing.

Not long after a potential Arizona Coyotes game winner was overturned for goaltender interference, Kasperi Kapanen scored the winner for the Toronto Maple Leafs by batting a puck out of mid-air, sending himself on a breakaway, and scoring the goal.

Moment of the Night

Jacob Trouba returned to Winnipeg for the first time as a visiting player on Tuesday night. He did this before the game.

 

Factoids

  • Kucherov extended his point streak to 12 games before leaving with an injury. It is the longest current point streak in the NHL and the fifth-longest in Tampa Bay Lightning franchise history. [NHL PR]
  • Rasmus Dahlin is now tied for the most assists (76) by a teenage defenseman in NHL history. [NHL PR]
  • Jack Hughes became just the third 18-year-old to record at least 20 points in a season for the New Jersey Devils. [NHL PR]

Scores

Buffalo Sabres 3, Detroit Red Wings 2
Toronto Maple Leafs 3, Arizona Coyote 2 (OT)
Florida Panthers 5, New Jersey Devils 3
New York Islanders 5, Philadelphia Flyers 3
Tampa Bay Lightning 2, Pittsburgh Penguins 1 (OT)
Minnesota Wild 4, Vegas Golden Knights 0
New York Rangers 4, Winnipeg Jets 1
Dallas Stars 4, Carolina Hurricanes 1
Colorado Avalanche 3, Ottawa Senators 0
Edmonton Oilers 5, Chicago Blackhawks 3
St. Louis Blues-Anaheim Ducks (Postponed)

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Adam Gretz is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @AGretz.

The Buzzer: Stone ties career high; Vasilevskiy keeps point streak alive

By Scott CharlesFeb 7, 2020, 12:47 AM EST
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Three Stars

1) Mark Stone, Vegas Golden Knights

He opened the game with two goals and then added three assists in the Golden Knights’ 7-2 win. Stone tied a career high with five points, a feat he previously recorded twice with the Ottawa Senators. Stone lit the lamp early in the first period when he banged home a loose puck in front, but his prettiest goal of the game came early in the second period. No. 61 danced around Panthers defenseman Mike Matheson and then lifted a shot over the glove of Sergei Bobrovsky. His three assists were also impressive as the Golden Knights ended a season-long eight-game road trip.

2) Dylan Larkin, Detroit Red Wings

It can’t get much worse in Detroit this season. However, Larkin has given Red Wings fans a reason to believe they have a foundational building block for the future. No. 71 scored twice including a neat breakaway deke with less than one second remaining in the opening period as Detroit snapped a nine-game losing streak with a 4-3 shootout win over the Buffalo Sabres. Larkin also added a shootout tally after Detroit surrendered the game-tying goal in the final minute.

3) Andrei Vasilevskiy, Tampa Bay Lightning

The Russian netminder improved to 15-0-2 in his last 17 starts and set a Lightning record for longest point streak by a goalie in the 4-2 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Vasilevskiy made 29 saves as he broke Nikolai Khabibulin’s record that stood since April of 2003. He also picked up his fourth assist of the season when Nikita Kucherov tallied an empty-net goal in the final minute. After a slow start to the season, the Bolts have regained their form as an elite team in the Eastern Conference.

Other notable performances

  • Marc-André Fleury claimed sole possession of fifth place on the NHL all-time wins list with his 460th victory, passing Henrik Lundqvist.
  • Kieffer Bellows scored twice in his second career NHL game in the New York Islanders’ 5-3 win against the Los Angeles Kings.
  • Cale Makar has made the transition to the NHL look too easy as he picked up his 39th and 40th point of the season.
  • Mackenzie Blackwood made 46 saves in his second career shutout as the New Jersey Devils rolled past the Philadelphia Flyers, 5-0.
  • Andrei Svechnikov and Sebastian Aho each had two goals and an assist as the Hurricanes topped the Coyotes, 5-3.
  • Steven Stamkos recorded his 25th of the season and has scored seven goals in the previous six games.
  • Jeff Petry sniped the overtime winner as the Montreal Canadiens collected their fourth win in the past five games.

Highlights of the Night

Connor McDavid can fly on the ice but his speed when he has possession of the puck makes him the most dangerous player in the NHL.

Vincent Trocheck showed great vision when he fired a pass from the top of the crease on one knee to set up Mike Hoffman late in the first period.

Kieffer Bellows scored his first NHL goal after Anthony Beauvillier delivered a pretty touch pass to set up the rookie forward. In two career NHL games, Bellows has a two-game point streak.

Damon Severson went coast to coast and wired a wrist shot off the post and in to give the Devils a two-goal advantage early in the second period

Ryan Dzingel sets up in Wayne Gretzky’s office and finds Jaccob Slavin darting toward the high slot.

Nikita Kucherov is known for his offense, but made a strong play in the defensive zone which led to a Stamkos goal. The Russian hustled back to intercept a cross-ice pass from Sidney Crosby, then corralled the loose puck to set up the Lightning’s offensive attack.

Bloopers of the Night

Jacob Markstrom has to make a smarter play with the puck in this situation.

Panthers defenseman Riley Stillman over skated the puck, then struggled to find it and the Golden Knights capitalized.

Stat of the Night

Injury News

  • Lightning defenseman Ryan McDonagh did not return after blocking a shot in the second period against the Penguins.
  • Penguins defenseman John Marino took a puck to the face but early reports are that it was not as bad as it looked.

Scores

New York Islanders 5, Los Angeles Kings 3

Detroit Red Wings 4, Buffalo Sabres 3 (SO)

Montreal Canadiens 3, Anaheim Ducks 2 (OT)

Tampa Bay Lightning 4, Pittsburgh Penguins 2

Vegas Golden Knights 7, Florida Panthers 2

New Jersey Devils 5, Philadelphia Flyers 0

Colorado Avalanche 4, Ottawa Senators 1

Winnipeg Jets 4, St. Louis Blues 2

Minnesota Wild 4, Vancouver Canucks 2

Nashville Predators 3, Calgary Flames 2

Carolina Hurricanes 5, Arizona Coyotes 3

San Jose Sharks 6, Edmonton Oilers 3

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Scott Charles is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @ScottMCharles.