He may not win a popularity contest, but NHL commissioner Gary Bettman's impact on the game cannot be questioned. He has taken a relatively small league and turned it into a $5 billion US industry. He has watched the footprint of the game grow in the United States and the league has added eight new teams under his tenure. But it hasn't been all roses. There have been three work stoppages — including the loss of an entire season. The stoppages haven't made him the most popular...

The St. Louis Blues got the ending they wanted on Wednesday night as they beat the Boston Bruins 4-1 in Game 7 to capture their first-ever Stanley Cup. It truly was a Cinderella story considering on Jan. 3 the club was dead last in the NHL standings, 11 points behind the Anaheim Ducks for the last wild-card spot in the Western Conference. There was a plenty of ups and downs along the way. On Nov. 20 they fired head coach Mike Yeo and replaced him with associate coach Craig Berube. Less than...

It's the oldest and most recognisable trophy in all of professional sports and what every Canadian boy dreams of lifting over their head one day. The Stanley Cup has seen and been through a lot since it was first awarded to the Montreal Hockey Club in 1893. If the Stanley Cup could talk it would have some of the most interesting stories to tell. Kris Draper's newborn daughter sat in the Cup and left a little surprise inside. It's been swimming in Mario Lemieux's pool and taken a shower with...

The 2019 Stanley Cup final between the St. Louis Blues and the Boston Bruins is well underway. The last time these two teams met in the Stanley Cup final in 1970 it produced one of hockey's most famous goals as Bobby Orr scored the Stanley Cup clinching goal in overtime while soaring through the air courtesy a Noel Picard trip. On this week's edition of the Hockey Night In Canada podcast we take a closer look at that iconic goal. Terry Crisp played 5 seasons for the St. Louis Blues and...

And then there were two. Two teams left standing to battle it out with the Stanley Cup on the line. The Boston Bruins will face off against the St. Louis Blues in a rematch of the 1970 Stanley Cup final. But how they got here couldn't be more different. Boston's path wasn't that unusual. They were near the top of the standings for most of the season thanks to, arguably, the best line in hockey (the "perfection line" made up of Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak) and solid...

For years women's pro hockey has had two professional leagues. The CWHL, and the NWHL. You would be absolutely hard-pressed to find anyone who thought that was a good idea. Coaches, players, even commissioners all agreed, in order for the game to grow you needed one league with all the best female players in the world in it. Then on March 31st the bomb dropped. The CWHL, announced that they were seizing operations. Saying that their business model is "economically unsustainable". But...

Are there two better words in the hockey dictionary than Game 7s? And when 60 minutes isn't enough time to decide the winner you have the three best words in hockey? Game 7 overtime! We saw three Game 7s in the first round, two of them went to overtime. The Sharks comeback against the Golden Knights and the Hurricanes rallying to beat the defending champs marked the first time in NHL history that we saw two Game 7s with multi-goal comebacks in the same post season. Since the league...

The first round of the NHL playoffs is one of the most exciting times in sports. You just don't know what's going to happen. This year is no exception as many NHL brackets have been shredded to pieces. It's been one of the craziest first round's in NHL history. The Tampa Lightning who won a historic 62 games were swept away by the Columbus Blue Jackets. The best team in the west the Calgary Flames lost in five to the Colorado Avalanche. The Pittsburgh Penguins who have won the Cup two of...

April 18, 1999 is a day many hockey fans have etched in their memories. On that day, Wayne Gretzky played is his final game in the NHL. It's hard to believe it's been 20 years since his last game. Believe it or not, there is a generation of hockey fans that have never seen Gretzky play before. On this week's episode, we look back on that day as the Great One joins the Hockey Night In Canada podcast. Wayne takes a look back with host Rob Pizzo about his memories from that day - from his...

It's the time of the year that NHL fans have been waiting for, the Stanley Cup playoffs are finally upon us. 16 teams. Eight best-of-seven series in the first round No disrespect to Christmas but "It's the most wonderful time of the year." Every year, there are so many more storylines than simply "who will win each series and in how many games?" and this year is no different! Will 62 wins mean ANYTHING to lightning fans if they don't win the Cup? Can a Canadian team win the cup for the...

It's the final week of the NHL regular season. The Stanley Cup playoffs begin next Wednesday. But before we look ahead let's look back on some of the major story lines from this past season. The Tampa Bay Lightning became the 3rd team ever to hit the 60 win mark joining the 1996 Detroit Red Wings and the 1977 Montreal Canadiens. They are almost 20 points better than the second place team and they have 3 players with 90 plus points (Kucherov-Stamkos-Point). It really has been an historical...

It's not quite the American Electoral system, but the NHL awards still mystify fans who try to figure out how the ballots, candidates, votes and all the rest of the process, actually work. On this week's Hockey Night in Canada podcast, Rob Pizzo and Sophia Jurksztowicz deserve a public service award themselves for shining light on the opaque business of picking the five most deserving players (and coach) of the regular hockey season. Maybe the most interesting thing we learn this week is who...

On March 4th 2019 the hockey world lost a legend when the great Ted Lindsay passed away at the age of 93. Lindsay was one of the most talented yet feared players on the ice and garnered the nickname "Terrible Ted". He was part of the famed "Production Line" which featured Red Wing greats Gordie Howe and Sid Abel. He won the Art Ross trophy in 1950 and won four Stanley Cups with Detroit. In 2017 he was voted one of the NHL's 100 greatest players. Despite all the on ice accolades his greatest...

Despite being an open and inclusive game racism in hockey like in society unfortunately still exists. Recently there have been several alarming incidents involving fans and minor hockey teams that have garnered national media attention in the U.S. and Canada. In December, Divyne Apollon II, a 13 year old member of the Maryland-based Metro Maple Leafs youth hockey team, faced racial taunts during a game against a team from Pennsylvania. In February, Jonathan Diaby, a 24-year-old defenseman...

It has been 110 years since the first official International Women's day. 18 years later the first documented all-women's hockey game took place. Women's hockey has seen some remarkable growth since that first game. Manon Rheaume became the first women to compete in an NHL exhibition game playing in goal for the Tampa Bay Lightning in 1992. Women's hockey made it's Olympic debut in Nagano in 1998 as the United States defeated Canada for the gold medal. There are now two professional...

Now that the trade deadline has come and gone, it's time to turn our focus back to the ice. The Tampa Bay Lightning are without question the best team in the league right now. They are on pace for 130 points this season, which would be the most by any team in the salary cap era. Only the 1977 Montreal Canadiens (132) and the 1996 Detroit Red Wings (131) had more. After that, though, it's kind of a crap shoot. There's arguably a group of six or seven other teams with a legitimate shot at the...

We are less than a week away from one of the most anticipated days on the NHL calendar, trade deadline day. The one day that can put a team over the hump and get them one step closer to hoisting Lord Stanley, or handicap them for years to come. That's the uniqueness of this day, it can make or break a team's fortune. This year four Canadian teams have a legitimate shot at winning the Stanley cup which makes the next few days all the more intriguing. Another interesting aspect to this day is...

When Canadians were introduced to Russian hockey at the Summit series in 1972 many in the hockey world were surprised at the skill and grace the Soviet's exuded. They rarely retaliated when they were met with physical adversity. There stoic nature was amazing to watch but they were labelled as "soft". Many experts thought you couldn't win a Stanley Cup with Russians on the roster. Boy things have changed. This summer Alex Ovechkin became the first Russian player to captain his team to the...

At only 15 years old, Alexandre Despatie took his first Olympic dive at the 2000 Games in Sydney. He placed fourth against some of the world's best, but when his excitement was met with media disappointment over a 'missed podium', Alexandre discovered that measuring up to his own standards was the most important thing. The lesson stuck with Alexandre as he went on to win two Olympic silver medals, become a nine time Commonwealth Game champion, and a 37 time Canadian National champion. Listen...

The Dreaded Drought blows through the Hockey Night In Canada Podcast this week. Rob Pizzo talks to Former Leafs GM Gord Stellick about the 52 (and counting) dry years for the Leafs, and broadcaster Sam Rosen is happy to reminisce about how his beloved New York Rangers escaped their 54 seasons in the doghouse. Any Canadian can list ten reasons to dislike Toronto, but if you want some sympathy for HogTown? just say 1967. The Maple Leaf's long drought turns hockey lovers maroon with pain in...

For many people hockey has a voice. It's the narrative that makes it come to life. The sound track for the story of so many great games, glorious moments and achievements. Too many to remember. This week former Hockey Night In Canada reporter Scott Russell fills in for host Rob Pizzo. Scott talks to three legendary voices of the game. Foster Hewitt was the pioneer?and the three people on this show have all been honoured by the Hockey Hall of Fame with the Foster Hewitt Award because of the...

It's All-Star weekend on this week's episode of the Hockey Night In Canada podcast. The first official All-Star game was held in 1947 and became an annual tradition where the defending Stanley Cup Champions took on a group of All-Stars. Since then there have been various format changes and some memorable moments. Gordie Howe returning to Detroit in 1980 to a very long standing ovation. Wayne Gretzky scoring 4 goals in the 3rd period of the 1983 All-Star game and Owen Nolan calling his goal...

In this week's episode of the Hockey Night In Canada podcast we are talking chirping. The good, bad and ugly of it. Some people call it trash talking or smack talk. Call it what you will but its been a big part of the game for some time now. If there was a Mount Rushmore of "chirping" Matthew Barnaby would be all four faces! He was one of the all-time great trash talkers and agitators of the game. Barnaby talks candidly about his days of chirping including getting under the skin of one Eric...

In this week's episode of the Hockey Night In Canada podcast we focus on women and the impact they have made in hockey. Women's hockey has come a long way in the last 30 years. It made its debut at the Olympics in 1998 and the gold medal game is must see TV, and because of that there are multiple professional leagues. Women are coaching, scouting, broadcasting and being inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. But more can be done. Why not a women referee, head coach or GM in the NHL? 5-time...

With the halfway point of the NHL season upon us it's time to take a look at the highs and lows of the year so far. There's been plenty to talk about since the start of the season in October. Who better to break down what's transpired than former Stanley Cup champion Glenn Healy. Rob and Glenn discuss a myriad of topics including goal scoring, Alexander Ovechkin and the favourites to win the Stanley Cup, the Tampa Bay Lightning. Also one of the biggest surprises in the NHL season has been...