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John Tortorella, a man never of his time
“Safe is death.”...

We can’t run from the Penguins and Capitals
This will be the third standings system or alignment the NHL has used in the past decade. But no matter how they shake out the teams or decide how they get into the playoffs, it’s a safe bet that the Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals will be at the top. Part of that is the NHL basically we...

I know better, but I’m falling for the Canes again
One of the ripple effects of Moneyball, at least one that isn’t primed to destroy a sport from the inside, is that a lot of fans have that one team — the team whose games you watch most outside your own team’s on whatever streaming service you have. The team you’re convinced is doing things in a mor...

Carter Hart looks good in return, but the Flyers still suck
Carter Hart made his return to the net after an eight-game “reset” for the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday, and no, let’s not go with any rising from the dead analogies, but he was looked to as the savior of the franchise....

The Flyers have eaten another one
As every sport relies more heavily on analytics to tell us what’s really going on, there are fewer and fewer occurrences that seemingly spring from a different plane of existence. Something beyond explanation. Things that are only familiar to Wiccans. We can just about always point to some number or...

Flyers need to shake off epic Rangers beatdown in a hurry, and history’s on their side
The 9-0 beating that the Flyers took at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday night wasn’t a record breaker, but it was a rarity. It’s the first time Philadelphia has gotten shut out by that wide of a margin since 1969 against Chicago, only the 82nd game in NHL history that was 9-0 or worse, and the 17...

SEE IT: Devils’ epic power play whiff showcases pivot to neutral zone crap defense
Call them the New Jersey Evils, because they’ve abandoned any concept of “D.”...

Kings and Wild star in NHL Color Rush
Sometimes, to the rare and broken people who think about these things, it can drive one to tears how the NHL and the people who run and market the game can’t make better use of just how good the sport can look on TV. Even in person, the NHL really hasn’t made use of it being the best live sport, and...

COVID puts Flyers' B Team in a bad spot for Lake Tahoe showcase
Because the NHL insists on trying to play a regular season during a pandemic and ecological disasters, there are going to be some ugly games....

Penguins’ pitiful pairing of Hextall & Burke shows NHL old useless boys network is alive as ever
Hiring practices in the major sports leagues have been under the microscope of late. Especially in the NFL, where overqualified Black candidates can’t seem to get jobs ahead of white ones that seemingly come from nowhere, or are retreads, or if you’re the Lions you find a guy who had spent the previ...

If you miss NFL refs not knowing the rules, the NHL has you covered
The day after the Super Bowl is a comedown for everyone, and probably more so in the midst of a pandemic where (if you’re logical) you’re stuck inside your house. The NHL and NBA seasons are in their dull bridge section, even in this shortened and changed schedule. Spring training is about to begin,...

Is the Rangers' 2020 No. 1 overall pick, Alexis Lafreniere, butt?
Even with the delayed start to the season, and the much-discussed weirdness of it with no fans and only intra-division play, this was supposed to be a pretty exciting season for the New York Rangers. While the playoffs even in a normal set-up would have been something of a stretch, though they were ...

The New NHL Division Names Have Been Revealed. One Of Them Is Dumb
Despite our hopes, we will not be getting a Flortheast division. Bummer. What we will be getting are the Pacific, Central, Atlantic, and Metropolitan(?) divisions. Yes, that's three distinct geographical locations and one word that can be used to describe any large city. Good job, NHL....