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124-482: In its inaugural season, the league had a salary cap of $ 5,050 per week. The roster was limited to 20 players for the first six games and 17 thereafter. A handful of National Hockey League players and draft picks joined the ranks, most notably Pierre Dagenais and Billy Tibbetts . Dagenais, who played 142 games for the New Jersey Devils , Montreal Canadiens and Florida Panthers , played two seasons for

248-515: A pulled goaltender ). Since 2013, the league has used hybrid icing , where a linesman stops play due to icing if a defending player (other than the goaltender) crosses the imaginary line that connects the two face-off dots in their defensive zone before an attacking player is able to. This was done to counter a trend of player injury in races to the puck. Fighting in the NHL leads to major penalties while IIHF rules, and most amateur rules, call for

372-463: A bruised ankle, Team USA's Kendall Coyne Schofield competed in the Fastest Skater competition in his place, becoming the first woman to officially compete in the NHL's All-Star festivities. The attention led the NHL to include a 3-on-3 women's game before the 2020 All-Star Game . Rheaume returned to perform as a goaltender for the 2022 NHL All-Star Game 's Breakaway Challenge. From

496-586: A game on February 10, 2012. The FHL would appeal the judgment, citing that their lawyer never properly filed their legal response, but lost the appeal leading to speculation that the current league would have to fold in order to avoid the payment. On May 20, 2015, the Berlin River Drivers announced their resurrection as the FHL's 7th team, to play at Notre Dame Arena in Berlin, New Hampshire. A year prior,

620-689: A goal by Igor Karlov. Back in Dayton for game three, the Demonz sported new jerseys. Mike Brown, a Boston Bruins draft pick from the early 2000s, was injured and Kevin Hoy took over in net for Danbury. Dayton captain Brian Marks scored in overtime to force a fourth game, which Dayton also won. Dayton won game five and the Commissioner's Cup in a 9–2 victory. Jeff Rose was awarded the playoff MVP award. In

744-811: A massive boycott of Molson Brewery products by Canadian fans resulted in the Montreal Canadiens, which was owned by Molson, reversing its position, along with the Vancouver Canucks. In a second vote, the plan was approved. Wayne Gretzky played one season in the WHA for the Indianapolis Racers (eight games) and the Edmonton Oilers (72 games) before the Oilers joined the NHL for the 1979–80 season . Gretzky went on to lead

868-440: A memorandum of understanding on the new deal, allowing teams to begin their training camps the next day, with a shortened 48-game season schedule that began on January 19. Player safety has become a major issue in the NHL, with concussions resulting from a hard hit to the head being the primary concern. Recent studies have shown how the consequences of concussions can last beyond player retirement. This has significant effects on

992-755: A new franchise to play in Southwest Pennsylvania to begin play in the 2014–15 season, named the Southwest Pennsylvania Magic. The Magic were to play at the Rostraver Ice Garden in Belle Vernon, Pennsylvania. This brought the league to five teams and mark the FHL's return to Pennsylvania. In an interview, commissioner Don Kirnan stated he hoped to see as many as 7–8 teams in the FHL by the next season. However, after playing one game in which they lost 10–2 to

1116-439: A physical altercation between head coach Brent Clarke and a linesman. Mahfouz then broke his stick over the goalpost and tossed it over the glass into the stands before leaving the ice. Finally, Enforcers' goaltender Passingham was still disputing the goal with the official before leaving for the visitor's locker room, with the walkway passing directly next the fans, and a fan threw a filled cup at Passingham. Passingham then attacked

1240-615: A player safety lawsuit. From 1952 to 1955, Marguerite Norris served as president of the Detroit Red Wings , being the first female NHL executive and the first woman to have her name engraved on the Stanley Cup. In 1992, Manon Rhéaume became the first woman to play a game in any of the major professional North American sports leagues, as a goaltender for the Tampa Bay Lightning in a preseason game against

1364-537: A preseason consisting of six to eight exhibition games . Split squad games, in which parts of a team's regular season roster play separate games on the same day, are occasionally played during the preseason. During the regular season, clubs play each other in a predefined schedule. Since 2021, in the regular season, all teams play 82 games: 41 games each of home and road, playing 26 games in their own geographic division—four against five of their seven other divisional opponents, plus three against two others; 24 games against

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1488-737: A rapid expansion in the 1920s, adding the Montreal Maroons and the Boston Bruins in 1924, the latter being the first American team to join the league. The New York Americans began play in 1925 after purchasing the assets of the Hamilton Tigers, and they were joined by the Pittsburgh Pirates . The New York Rangers were added in 1926, and the Chicago Black Hawks and Detroit Cougars (later

1612-682: A record no team has matched. In 1948, Asian Canadian Larry Kwong became the first Asian player in the NHL by playing for the New York Rangers. In 1958, Willie O'Ree became the first black player in the league's history when he made his debut with the Boston Bruins. By the mid-1960s, the desire for a network television contract in the United States, coupled with concerns that the Western Hockey League

1736-536: A referee after the first period of a game against the Carolina Thunderbirds . The game was immediately cancelled by the officials, and subsequently led the FHL's officiating supervisor resigning from the league and pulling all the referees from the FHL citing the need to protect his personnel. Nichols was issued the league-maximum fine of $ 25,000. The league then recruited local officials for the remaining games. The Thunderbirds and Enforcers met again in

1860-566: A seating capacity of approximately 200, in nearby Centerville, Ohio . After one home game at South Metro, the Demolition returned to Hara Arena. On January 17, the FHL removed Dadds as owner and on January 19, Joe Pace Sr., the former coach of the Danville Dashers , was announced as the head of the new ownership group for the Demolition. At the conclusion of the regular season, Danbury, Danville, Dayton, and Port Huron qualified for

1984-408: A second positive test, and a lifetime suspension for a third positive test. At the end of regulation time, the team with the most goals wins the game. If a game is tied after regulation time, overtime ensues. During the regular season, overtime is a five-minute, three-on-three sudden-death period, in which whoever scores a goal first wins the game. If the game is still tied at the end of overtime,

2108-536: A team could be located in the market as early as the 2014–15 season. The Demonz defeated the Privateers 7 to 5 in front of a crowd of 2,440 people. The Demonz battled the Danbury Whalers for first place for most of the season but finished second. The regular season record was 33-7-3-14 which was 33 wins in regulation, 7 wins in overtime, 3 losses in overtime, and 14 losses in regulation. Dayton finished

2232-536: A vicious hit by Eddie Shore . The second was held in 1937, in support of Howie Morenz 's family when he died of a coronary embolism after breaking his leg during a game. The Great Depression and the onset of World War II took a toll on the league. The Pirates became the Philadelphia Quakers in 1930, then folded a year later. The Senators likewise became the St. Louis Eagles in 1934, also lasting only

2356-629: A year. The Maroons did not survive, as they suspended operations in 1938. The Americans were suspended in 1942 due to a lack of available players, and they were never reactivated. For the 1942–43 season , the NHL was reduced to six teams: the Boston Bruins, the Chicago Black Hawks, the Detroit Red Wings, the Montreal Canadiens, the New York Rangers, and the Toronto Maple Leafs, a line-up, often referred to as

2480-587: Is a professional ice hockey league in North America consisting of 32 teams – 25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The Stanley Cup , the oldest professional sports trophy in North America, is awarded annually to the league playoff champion at the end of each season. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada and is considered to be

2604-399: Is awarded one point. Shootout goals and saves are not tracked in hockey statistics; shootout statistics are tracked separately. There are no shootouts during the playoffs . Instead, multiple sudden-death, 20-minute five-on-five periods are played until one team scores. Two games have reached six overtime periods, but none have gone beyond six. During playoff overtime periods, the only break

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2728-683: Is to clean the loose ice at the first stoppage after the period is halfway finished. The National Hockey League season is divided into a preseason (September and early October), a regular season (from early October through early to mid-April) and a postseason (the Stanley Cup playoffs ). Teams usually hold a summer showcase for prospects in July and participate in prospect tournaments, full games that do not feature any veterans, in September. Full training camps begin in mid-to-late September, including

2852-469: Is typically held from October to April, with each team playing 82 games. Following the conclusion of the regular season, 16 teams advance to the Stanley Cup playoffs , a four-round tournament that runs into June to determine the league champion. Since the league's founding in 1917, the Montreal Canadiens have won the most combined NHL titles with 25, winning three NHL championship series before

2976-481: The 1979 NHL expansion . Between 1991 and 2000, the NHL further expanded to 30 teams. It added its 31st and 32nd teams in 2017 and 2021, respectively. Salt Lake City was awarded an expansion franchise in 2024 as it acquired the hockey assets of the Arizona Coyotes , which were deactivated, thus maintaining the total number of teams at 32. The NHL is the fifth-highest grossing professional sport league in

3100-664: The 2000–01 season , when the Minnesota Wild and the Columbus Blue Jackets joined the league as expansion teams, until 2017. That expansion capped a period in the 1990s of rapid expansion and relocation, when the NHL added nine teams to grow from 21 to 30 teams, and relocated four teams mostly from smaller, northern cities to larger, more southern metropolitan areas ( Minneapolis to Dallas , Quebec City to Denver , Winnipeg to Phoenix , and Hartford to Raleigh ). The league has not contracted any teams since

3224-746: The 2017–18 season to the 2019–20 season , the NHL consisted of 31 teams—24 based in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL divided the 31 teams into two conferences: the Eastern Conference and the Western Conference . Each conference was split into two divisions : the Eastern Conference contained 16 teams (eight per division), while the Western Conference had 15 teams (seven in the Central and eight in

3348-817: The Akwesasne Warriors amassing 107 goals and 197 points in 68 regular season games, and helped Akwesasne win the first Commissioner's Cup. Tibbetts, who played the role of an enforcer in his brief 82 game NHL career, mostly with the Pittsburgh Penguins , played for the Cape Cod Bluefins in 2011–12, scoring 10 goals, 40 points, and 109 PIM in only 15 games. During the 2010–11 season, the Broome County Barons relocated to Cape Cod due to lack of fan support, and Rome Frenzy suspended operations mid-season. Akwesasne won

3472-655: The Berkshire Battalion , citing the market to be a better fit. During the previous season, a group of local investors worked to purchase the Watertown Privateers, owned by Don Kirnan. On May 14, 2014, news circulated that the owners group, named Top Shelf Hockey, LLC and led by local businessman Stanley Tibbles, had acquired Kirnan's franchise rights and started a new team, eventually named the Watertown Wolves . On October 30, 2014, it

3596-829: The Boston Pride of the National Women's Hockey League and the Les Canadiennes of the Canadian Women's Hockey League , as part of the 2016 NHL Winter Classic weekend festivities. In 2019, the NHL invited four women from the US and Canadian Olympic teams to demonstrate the events in All-Star skills competition before the All-Star Game . Due to Nathan MacKinnon choosing not to participate following

3720-565: The Carolina Thunderbirds in Winston-Salem, North Carolina . In February 2017, the FHL announced it was partnering with a developmental league called the International Developmental Hockey League (IDHL) for the 2017–18 season. It was originally intended to be focused on players between the ages of 20 to 23 who had aged out of junior leagues. At one point, the league website listed teams called

3844-739: The Cleveland Barons were merged into the Minnesota North Stars in 1978. The league expanded for the first time in 17 years to 31 teams with the addition of the Vegas Golden Knights in 2017, then to 32 with the addition of the Seattle Kraken in 2021. In April 2024, a new expansion team in Utah was created, after Alex Meruelo sold the hockey assets of the Arizona Coyotes to Ryan Smith , owner of

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3968-809: The Delaware Federals , would replace them on the schedule as a road-only team; the Federals played their first game on December 16, 2011, against Cape Cod. The New Jersey Outlaws won the FHL title by sweeping the Danbury Whalers in three games. In May 2012, it was announced that the Brooklyn Aviators were ceasing operations and that an expansion team was being added in Dayton, Ohio , the Dayton Demonz (originally announced as

4092-542: The Kansas City Scouts were added, bringing the league up to 18 teams. The NHL fought the WHA for players, losing 67 to the new league in its first season of 1972–73 , including the Chicago Black Hawks' Bobby Hull , who signed a 10-year, $ 2.5 million contract with the Winnipeg Jets , then the largest in hockey history. The league attempted to block the defections in court, but a counter-suit by

4216-702: The New York Bluefins with the intent to play home games in Syracuse, New York ; however the league only used them as a travel team for 13 games and the Bluefins folded at the end of the season. On January 27, 2013, the first game in FHL history to be completed with no penalties was played between the New York Bluefins and the Danville Dashers at Palmer Arena in Danville, Illinois, a 7–4 Danville win officiated by referee Matt Spaeth. On March 22, 2013,

4340-558: The North Shore Knights . By December 2017, the Knights would forfeit or attempt to reschedule most of their home games before the team would forfeit all remaining home games after February 11. At the end of March, the Knights released all players and staff. The Cornwall Nationals folded during the season due to lack of funds despite sitting in second place at the time. The five Nationals' games that were to take place against

4464-588: The St. Clair Shores Civic Arena . On July 13, 2016, the "Dayton Pro Hockey" team, formerly known as the Dayton Demolition before removing references of the Demolition name in March 2016, announced it would be going dormant for the 2016–17 season. Owner Joe Pace Sr. claimed that Hara Arena was unable to sign leases to tenants and he did not believe he could put together a team without a proper lead up time and secured arena. He also stated he would look to keep

4588-406: The St. Louis Blues , stopping seven of nine shots. In 2016, Dawn Braid was hired as the Arizona Coyotes ' skating coach, making her the first female full-time coach in the NHL. The first female referees in the NHL were hired in a test-run during the league's preseason prospect tournaments in September 2019. In 2016, the NHL hosted the 2016 Outdoor Women's Classic , an exhibition game between

4712-625: The Utah Jazz . Meruelo was granted until 2029 to secure an arena in Arizona in order to re-activate the team, bringing the total number of franchises in the NHL up to 33; however, these efforts were abandoned two months later, leaving the NHL at 32 franchises once again. According to Forbes , in 2023, the top five most valuable teams were four of the " Original Six " teams and the Los Angeles Kings: The remaining members of

4836-546: The Williamsport Outlaws , as well as their first ever home game at Hara Arena , a 4-2 defeat of the Danville Dashers . The Demonz would continue to dominate the other teams in the Federal Hockey League , having possession of first place the entire season and ending the regular season with a record of 36-6-3-6, for a points percentage of .804. This included only one regulation loss at Hara Arena

4960-462: The " Original Six ", that would remain constant for the next 25 years. In 1947, the league reached an agreement with the Stanley Cup trustees to take full control of the trophy, allowing it to reject challenges from other leagues that wished to play for the Cup. In 1945, Maurice "Rocket" Richard became the first player to score 50 goals , doing so in a 50-game season . Richard later led the Canadiens to five consecutive titles between 1956 and 1960,

5084-467: The 2016–17 season, after their arena renovations are completed. On June 26, 2015, the owner of the Berkshire Battalion , Williams Dadds, announced that he intends to relocate the team from North Adams, Massachusetts, before the 2015–16 season after lease negotiations for the ice rink fell through. The city administration asked the team to only play a maximum of three Friday night games next season and repay all current debts prior to any lease being signed by

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5208-414: The Atlanta Thrashers relocated to Winnipeg, and the Winnipeg Jets were revived. On July 21, 2015, the NHL confirmed that it had received applications from prospective ownership groups in Quebec City and Las Vegas for possible expansion teams, and on June 22, 2016, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman announced the addition of a 31st franchise, based in Las Vegas and later named the Vegas Golden Knights , into

5332-463: The Baldwinsville Bandits, Elmira Express, Newark Diamonds, Palmyra Battalion, Syracuse Crush, and Watertown Whalers. The league held a tryout camp on June 15, 2017, for prospective players. However, on June 26, the IDHL then announced it would not play and instead purchased the Watertown Wolves when the team's local ownership group, said to be exhausted from the emotional investment in running a professional sports franchise, backed out. After making it to

5456-413: The Battalion to Dayton and play in Hara Arena . On July 25, Dadds announced his Dayton team would be called the Dayton Demolition . On December 23, the Dayton Demolition announced that it had postponed its December 26 game against Danbury due to "scheduling issues" with Hara Arena. On December 28, the Demolition then announced that its new home arena would be South Metro Sports , a recreation center with

5580-470: The Berkshire Battalion, the Magic's membership in the league was revoked due to financial problems. They were replaced, under new ownership, by the Steel City Warriors, again located in Belle Vernon. On July 14, 2014, the FHL announced another new franchise to begin play in Berlin, New Hampshire , to be called the Berlin River Drivers. However, on September 8, 2014, the league announced that the league would expand instead into North Adams, Massachusetts , with

5704-425: The Canadiens the league champion after they defeated the Toronto St. Patricks (formerly the Arenas) in the semi-final. Montreal was then defeated by the Victoria Cougars of the Western Canada Hockey League (WCHL) in 1925 . It was the last time a non-NHL team won the trophy, as the Stanley Cup became the de facto NHL championship in 1926, after the WCHL ceased operation. The National Hockey League embarked on

5828-447: The Commissioner's Cup. The postseason was announced as the Ignite Cup, a five-game series between the top two teams that had played at least 16 regular season games. By March, Danbury had opted out of the season and Danville had lost their home arena when it was replaced by a Southern Professional Hockey League expansion team. For the 2021–22 season, Delaware, Watertown and Danbury all returned, while Motor City stayed on hiatus. Elmira

5952-420: The Danbury Whalers swept the Dayton Demonz to win the Commissioner's Cup. The attendance at the final game was 3,116, the largest single-game attendance in the history of the league. The FHL played with four teams for the season, and in a bid for expansion played neutral site games in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and Connellsville, Pennsylvania. Dayton Demonz forward Ahmed Mahfouz led the league in scoring and

6076-431: The Danbury Whalers who finished in fourth. The Wolves won the FHL championship in the playoffs over the Dashers in a five-game series. On April 2, 2015, the FHL announced an expansion team, the Port Huron Prowlers , to begin play in the 2015–16 season. On April 3, 2015, the Danbury Ice Arena announced that it did not want to renew its contract with the Danbury Whalers and gave them a notice to evict by April 17, leaving

6200-402: The Dayton Devils) at the Hara Arena . The Dayton expansion draft and the Brooklyn player dispersal draft were both held on June 15. In July, it was announced that the defending champion New Jersey Outlaws were relocating to Williamsport, Pennsylvania, after only one season in New Jersey. Rather than playing in a traditional ice arena, they played outside on an ice rink at Bowman Field , home to

6324-438: The Demonz and Herm Sorcher was appointed as the Managing Partner for the Demonz by the league until a new owner could be found. With the Demonz lease on the arena up after the season, the league was able to agree to a new deal on June 4, 2015 but with no mention that the team to occupy the building would be the Demonz. On July 16, 2015, the expansion team Port Huron Prowlers , owned by Barry Soskin, announced that it had acquired

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6448-413: The Demonz were created as an expansion team in the FHL. The team played their home games at the Hara Arena in nearby Trotwood . The team was originally known as the Dayton Devils before changing names prior to their inaugural season. The Demonz were an affiliate of the ECHL 's Fort Wayne Komets . The Demonz, in their first season of FHL play, won their first franchise regular season game, 5-2 over

6572-474: The Elmira/Watertown series was then cancelled and no further games were scheduled until other teams would be able to participate. On February 11, the league announced the start of a four-team season beginning of February 19 consisting of Carolina, Columbus, Elmira, and Port Huron, with Carolina playing all games on the road. The schedule left room for the return of other teams. The league also stated there would be an end-of-season tournament, but it would not be for

6696-399: The FHL Western Division championship, and were eventually swept in three games by the Danbury Whalers in the Commissioners' Cup Finals. On December 18, 2013 it was announced that the Dayton Demonz would play against the Watertown Privateers in a neutral site game at the LJVM Coliseum Annex , located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina . The goal of the game is to test local fan interest so

6820-408: The FHL had been unable to establish a team in Vermont and included the Niagara Falls Nationals with the Dashers and Outlaws in an expansion draft. But by July 2011, the Nationals were gone and the Green Mountain Rock Crushers (which later changed its name to the Vermont Wild in September) were re-added to the schedule. In December 2011, the FHL announced that the Vermont Wild had folded and a new team,

6944-456: The Motor City Rockers in Fraser, Michigan . However, both teams eventually withdrew from the 2020–21 season. The start of the 2020–21 season was postponed several times amidst the ongoing capacity and travel restrictions in the pandemic into 2021. The Delaware Thunder also withdrew while the Mentor Ice Breakers folded entirely. On January 12, 2021, the league planned to start its season on February 3 with Elmira and Watertown and staggered starts for

7068-417: The NHL adopted the existing NHA set of rules. The NHL's rules are the basis for rules governing most professional and major junior ice hockey leagues in North America. The NHL hockey rink is 200 by 85 feet (60.96 m × 25.91 m), approximately the same length but much narrower than IIHF standards. A trapezoidal area appears behind each goal net. The goaltender can play the puck only within

7192-447: The NHL for the 2017–18 season . On December 4, 2018, the league announced a 32nd franchise in Seattle , later named the Seattle Kraken , which joined in the 2021–22 season . On April 18, 2024, the Arizona Coyotes suspended operations and sold their hockey assets, including players and other personnel, to a new team in Salt Lake City , Utah . Two months after Utah's foundation, the Coyotes ceased their efforts to re-activate within

7316-476: The NHL had four teams, all in Canada, thus the adjective "National" in the league's name. The league expanded to the United States in 1924, when the Boston Bruins joined, and has since consisted of both American and Canadian teams. From 1942 to 1967, the NHL had only six teams, collectively nicknamed the " Original Six ". The league added six new teams to double its size as a result of the 1967 NHL expansion , then increased to 18 teams by 1974, and to 21 teams due to

7440-474: The National Hockey League. In this context, each team is a member of the league, and each member appoints a Governor (usually the owner of the club), and two alternates to the Board. The current chairman of the Board is Boston Bruins owner Jeremy Jacobs . The Board of Governors exists to establish the policies of the league and to uphold its constitution. Some of the responsibilities of the Board of Governors include: The Board of Governors meets twice per year, in

7564-415: The Oilers to win four Stanley Cup championships in 1984 , 1985 , 1987 and 1988 , and set single-season records for goals (92 in 1981–82 ), assists (163 in 1985–86 ) and points (215 in 1985–86), as well as career records for goals (894), assists (1,963) and points (2,857). In 1988, he was traded to the Los Angeles Kings in a deal that dramatically improved the league's popularity in the United States. By

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7688-420: The Original Six, the Chicago Blackhawks and the Detroit Red Wings , respectively ranked sixth at US$ 1.87 billion and hypothetically 12th at US$ 1.3 billion. Compared with 2022, the Maple Leafs surpassed the Rangers as the most valuable NHL team, and Los Angeles overtook both Chicago and Boston, making its way into the top five. Notes: The Board of Governors is the ruling and governing body of

7812-406: The Pacific). The league temporarily realigned for the 2020–21 season but returned to the previous alignment the following year. With the addition of the Seattle Kraken in 2021–22 to the Pacific Division and the Arizona Coyotes' move from the Pacific to the Central, all four divisions now have eight teams each and both conferences have 16 teams. The number of NHL teams held constant at 30 teams from

7936-479: The Port Huron and Danville teams and formerly owned the Dayton Demonz. The Danbury Whalers were officially considered to be on hiatus for the season by the FHL, but gave up their naming and territorial rights to Brewster. On June 22, 2015, the Watertown Wolves announced that they would suspend operations for the 2015–16 season due to their arena being renovated and an inability to find a temporary arena to use in Northern New York. The Wolves plan to resume operations for

8060-450: The Red Wings) were added after the league purchased the assets of the defunct WCHL. A group purchased the Toronto St. Patricks in 1927 and immediately renamed them the Toronto Maple Leafs. In 1926, Native American Taffy Abel became the first non-white player in the NHL and broke the league's colour barrier by playing for the New York Rangers. In 1934, the first NHL All-Star Game was held, to benefit Ace Bailey , whose career ended on

8184-517: The River Drivers were slated to join the FHL in 2014–15 before the league reassessed their options and expanded into North Adams, MA instead. On June 3, 2015, due to the eviction of the Danbury Whalers, the Federal Hockey League announced a new team based in Brewster, New York , to be called the Stateline Whalers , and would play at the Brewster Ice Arena under former the Danbury Whalers CEO and managing partner Herm Sorcher. The Stateline Whalers were announced as being owned by Barry Soskin, who also owns

8308-417: The United States, so the league responded by adding the Vancouver Canucks in 1970 , along with the Buffalo Sabres , both located on the Canada–United States border . Two years later, the emergence of the newly founded World Hockey Association (WHA) led the league to add the New York Islanders and the Atlanta Flames to keep the rival league out of those markets. In 1974, the Washington Capitals and

8432-491: The WHA led to a Philadelphia judge ruling the NHL's reserve clause to be illegal, thus eliminating the elder league's monopoly over the players. Seven years of battling for players and markets financially damaged both leagues, leading to a merger agreement in 1979 that saw the WHA cease operations while the NHL absorbed the Winnipeg Jets, the Edmonton Oilers , the Hartford Whalers , and the Quebec Nordiques . The owners initially rejected this merger agreement by one vote, but

8556-421: The Wanderers to cease operations, and the NHL continued on as a three-team league until the Bulldogs returned in 1919. The NHL replaced the NHA as one of the leagues that competed for the Stanley Cup, an interleague competition at the time. Toronto won the first NHL title, and then defeated the Vancouver Millionaires of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association (PCHA) for the 1918 Stanley Cup . The Canadiens won

8680-434: The Watertown Wolves were replaced by a travel-only team called the Northern Federals. All other games were immediately considered forfeits and were cancelled. On July 17, 2018, Robbie Nichols announced he had acquired an expansion team in Elmira, New York , called the Elmira Enforcers , one year after the Elmira Jackals had ceased operations. In the same press conference, FHL commissioner Kirnan confirmed that North Shore

8804-586: The Wolves and River Dragons. The two teams split the first two games, setting up for a winner take all third game in Watertown. The game would go the distance and some, as it became the longest game in FPHL history at just over 90 minutes of game action. At the 10:08 mark of Double Overtime, Lane King put home a loose puck past Columbus goalie Bailey MacBurnie to win the series, and win the Wolves' third Commissioners Cup. National Hockey League The National Hockey League ( NHL ); French : Ligue nationale de hockey [liɡ nɑsjɔnal də ɔkɛ] ( LNH ),

8928-780: The championship in the 2016–17 season , the Berlin River Drivers ceased operations due to the increased overhead costs of running the team and not selling enough season tickets for the following season. The Danbury Titans would also fold for citing overhead costs and specifically workers' compensation insurance in Connecticut. When the schedule was released for the season, the Fighting Saints were listed with home games in Gravenhurst, Ontario , Témiscaming, Quebec , South River, Ontario , and Kingsville, Ontario . They were eventually announced to have relocated to Kingsville as

9052-556: The city but Dadds decided that the demands were unreasonable. On June 27, it was reported that the FHL had approved of a new team Danbury, Connecticut, to replace the now departed Whalers. Local businessmen, Bruce Bennett and Edward Crowe were announced as the ownership group. Bennett would announce the new team as the Danbury Titans and had signed a six-year lease to play at the Danbury Ice Arena. On July 15, during

9176-615: The city of Cornwall, Ontario , approved a team called the Cornwall Nationals to begin play for the 2016–17 season out of the Ed Lumley Arena . On September 16, the FHL approved of the addition to the league for the upcoming season. The new team replaces the recently folded Cornwall River Kings and is led by Mitch Gagne and Rodney Rivette. The first expansion team of the 2017–18 season was announced in August 2016 as

9300-401: The eight remaining non-divisional intra-conference opponents—three games against every team in the other division of its conference; and 32 against every team in the other conference twice—home and road. The league's regular season standings are based on a point system. Two points are awarded for a win, one point for losing in overtime or a shootout, and zero points for a loss in regulation. At

9424-417: The ejection of fighting players. Usually, a penalized team cannot replace a player that is penalized on the ice and is thus short-handed for the duration of the penalty, but if the penalties are coincidental, for example when two players fight, both teams remain at full strength. Also, unlike minor penalties, major penalties must be served to their full completion, regardless of number of goals scored during

9548-597: The end of the regular season, the team that finishes with the most points in each division is crowned the division champion, and the league's overall leader is awarded the Presidents' Trophy . Dayton Demonz The Dayton Demonz were a professional ice hockey team based in Dayton, Ohio , in the Federal Hockey League . After the Dayton Gems of the Central Hockey League ceased operations,

9672-414: The entire season. Other highlights of the season included a 12-game win streak from January 18 to February 10, and 11 straight home wins from October 27 through December 21. Dayton was second in the FHL in attendance, attracting an average of 1,146 fans per game, behind only the Danbury Whalers . The Demonz went on to sweep the Danville Dashers 3 games to none in the first round of the FHL playoffs, earning

9796-577: The fan before they were eventually separated. Clarke, Mahfouz, and Passingham were all suspended by the league: Mahfouz for one game, Passingham for two, and Clarke for five games. The Enforcers then won the next game before the Thunderbirds won the championship in game four. Following the 2018–19 season, the league fully branded itself as the Federal Prospects Hockey League with a new FPHL logo. Between May and July 2019,

9920-425: The final game of the regular season between Danville and Dayton, two friends and former teammates decided to stage a fight in the 3rd period. With a 4–0 Danville lead and less than 10 minutes to go, Jesse Felten and Matt Puntureri squared off at center ice, and as punches would have been thrown, both players hugged it out instead. Next, Puntureri pulled a can of beer from his pads, opened it, and in each other's embrace,

10044-726: The first Commissioner's Cup title with a 3–1 series win over the New York Aviators . In February 2011, the FHL announced it would add new teams in Morrisville, Vermont , and Danville, Illinois , later named the Green Mountain Rock Crushers and the Danville Dashers , respectively. In May, the FHL announced an expansion team in Wayne, New Jersey , called the New Jersey Outlaws . By June,

10168-494: The five-year window granted to do so, bringing the NHL back to 32 franchises. There have been four league-wide work stoppages in NHL history, all occurring after 1992 . The first was an April 1992 strike by the National Hockey League Players' Association , which lasted for ten days but was settled quickly with all affected games rescheduled. A lockout at the start of the 1994–95 season forced

10292-663: The former Whalers. On July 15, the Battalion announced via their Facebook page that the team was moving to Dayton, Ohio, to replace the Dayton Demonz. On July 16, the Port Huron Prowlers announced that the protected player list from the Demonz had been transferred to their team and officially announcing the end of the Demonz. In the same press release, the Prowlers also confirmed that Dadds would be relocating

10416-765: The four teams voted instead to suspend the NHA, and, on November 26, 1917, formed the National Hockey League. Frank Calder was chosen as the NHL's first president, serving until his death in 1943. The Bulldogs were unable to play in the NHL, and the remaining owners founded the Toronto Arenas to compete with the Canadiens, Wanderers and Senators. The first games were played on December 19, 1917. The Montreal Arena burned down in January 1918, causing

10540-438: The game enters a shootout . Three players for each team in turn take a penalty shot . The team with the most goals during the three-round shootout wins the game. If the game is still tied after the three shootout rounds, the shootout continues but becomes sudden-death. Whichever team ultimately wins the shootout is awarded a goal in the game score and thus awarded two points in the standings. The losing team in overtime or shootout

10664-518: The goal frames by 4 inches (10 cm) on each side and reduced the size of the goalies' leg pads. The league has regularly modified its rules to counter perceived imperfections in the game. The penalty shot was adopted from the Pacific Coast Hockey Association to ensure players were not being blocked from opportunities to score. For the 2005–06 season, the league changed some of the rules regarding being offside. First,

10788-580: The last remaining team from the inaugural FHL season homeless. On April 17, 2015, the Steel City Warriors announced that it had suspended operations, stating that the team was unable to find a suitable home arena, but had hopes to return for the 2016–17 season. Also in April 2015, the FHL lost a lawsuit in which the league was ordered to pay former player Kyler Moje a sum of $ 800,000, after Moje became legally blind due to an injury incurred during

10912-466: The league again locked out the players . The owners proposed reducing the players' share of hockey-related revenues from 57 percent to 47 percent. All games were cancelled up to January 14, 2013, along with the 2013 NHL Winter Classic and the 2013 NHL All-Star Weekend . On January 6, a tentative agreement was reached on a 10-year deal. On January 12, the league and the Players' Association signed

11036-867: The league announced four expansion teams: the Battle Creek Rumble Bees of Battle Creek, Michigan ; the Columbus River Dragons of Columbus, Georgia ; the Danbury Hat Tricks of Danbury, Connecticut ; and the Delaware Thunder of Harrington, Delaware . On March 16, 2020, the league canceled the remainder of the 2019–20 season schedule due to the COVID-19 pandemic . The league announced two expansion teams: an unnamed team in Bloomington, Illinois , and

11160-466: The league championships, with the Thunderbirds opening the series with winning the first two games. In the second game, the Thunderbirds won in overtime with a game-winning goal landing on the back of the Enforcers' goaltender and then fell across the goal line when he got up. The Enforcers heavily contested the call, with team-leading scorer Ahmed Mahfouz verbally confronting the officials and leading to

11284-527: The league mandated hybrid no-touch icing for the 2013–14 NHL season . On November 25, 2013, ten former NHL players (Gary Leeman, Rick Vaive, Brad Aitken, Darren Banks, Curt Bennett, Richie Dunn, Warren Holmes, Bob Manno, Blair Stewart, and Morris Titanic) sued the league for negligence in protecting players from concussions. The suit came three months after the National Football League agreed to pay former players US$ 765 million due to

11408-432: The league removed the "offside pass" or "two-line pass" rule, which required a stoppage in play if a pass originating from inside a team's defending zone was completed on the offensive side of the centre line, unless the puck crossed the line before the player. Furthermore, the league reinstated the "tag-up offside" which allows an attacking player a chance to get back onside by returning to the neutral zone. The changes to

11532-594: The league title in 1919, but the series in the Stanley Cup Finals against the PCHA's Seattle Metropolitans was abandoned due to the Spanish Flu epidemic. In 1924, Montreal won their first Stanley Cup as a member of the NHL. The Hamilton Tigers won the regular season title in 1924–25 , but refused to play in the championship series unless they were given a C$ 200 bonus. The league refused and declared

11656-407: The league to reduce the schedule from 84 games to 48, with the teams playing only intra-conference games during the reduced season. The resulting collective bargaining agreement (CBA) was set for renegotiation in 1998, and extended to September 15, 2004. With no new agreement in hand when the contract expired, league commissioner Gary Bettman announced a lockout of the players union and closed

11780-628: The league took full exclusivity of the Stanley Cup in 1926, and 22 Stanley Cups afterwards. The reigning league champions are the Florida Panthers , who defeated the Edmonton Oilers in the 2024 Stanley Cup Finals . The National Hockey League was established in 1917 as the successor to the National Hockey Association (NHA). Founded in 1909, the NHA began play in 1910 with seven teams in Ontario and Quebec , and

11904-492: The league's head office for the 2004–05 season . The league vowed to install what it dubbed "cost certainty" for its teams, but the Players' Association countered that the move was little more than a euphemism for a salary cap , which the union initially said it would not accept. The lockout shut down the league for 310 days, making it the longest in sports history, as the NHL became the first professional sports league to lose an entire season. A new collective bargaining agreement

12028-750: The league, as elite players have suffered from the aftereffects of concussions (such as Sidney Crosby being sidelined for approximately ten and a half months), which adversely affects the league's marketability. In December 2009, Brendan Shanahan was hired to replace Colin Campbell, and was given the role of senior vice-president of player safety. Shanahan began to hand out suspensions on high-profile perpetrators responsible for dangerous hits, such as Raffi Torres receiving 25 games for his hit on Marian Hossa . To aid with removing high-speed collisions on icing, which had led to several potential career-ending injuries, such as to Hurricanes' defenceman Joni Pitkanen ,

12152-625: The minor league baseball team the Williamsport Crosscutters . This venture was unsuccessful as the team folded on January 21, 2013, only to be resurrected by the league as the Pennsylvania Blues, a travel team that played four road games to fill in other teams' home schedules for the remainder of the season. On December 15, 2012, control of the Cape Cod Bluefins was transferred to the league and renamed

12276-725: The months of June and December, with the exact date and place to be fixed by the Commissioner. The chief executive of the league is commissioner Gary Bettman . Some other senior executives include chief legal officer Bill Daly , director of hockey operations Colin Campbell , and senior vice president of player safety George Parros . A committee led by Bettman and chairman Jeremy Jacobs is responsible for vetting new ownership applications, collective bargaining, and league expansion. Other members include Mark Chipman , N. Murray Edwards , Craig Leipold , Ted Leonsis , Geoff Molson , Henry Samueli , Larry Tanenbaum , Jeff Vinik , and David Blitzer . The National Hockey League's rules are one of

12400-431: The offside rule were among several rule changes intended to increase overall scoring, which had been in decline since the expansion years of the mid-nineties and the increased prevalence of the neutral zone trap . Since 2005, when a team is guilty of icing the puck they are not allowed to make a line change or skater substitution of any sort before the following face-off (except to replace an injured player or re-install

12524-514: The other members as they are cleared to play. Elmira and Watertown played three exhibition games at the end of January before traveling to Watertown for the February 3 game. However, the game was cancelled with the Wolves awarded a forfeit win due to a pregame altercation after an Elmira player attempted to enter the Wolves locker room, leading to the police being called to the arena. The remainder of

12648-412: The playoffs as the number two seed. The Danville Dashers defeated the Demonz in the first round, 2 games to 1. This marked the first time that the Demonz did not make it to the finals in their short history. The Demonz were second in league attendance for the third straight year drawing close to 1,200 fans per game. Despite the attendance, owner Barry Soskin decided he no longer wanted to be involved with

12772-430: The playoffs. Port Huron would sweep the regular season champion Danbury Titans for the Commissioner's Cup. The Watertown Wolves completed renovations to their ice rink and signed a new one-year lease agreement with the city of Watertown in order to return after one season off. In addition, the league expanded to St. Clair Shores, Michigan ( Metro Detroit ) with the new St. Clair Shores Fighting Saints , playing out of

12896-403: The power play. The league also imposes a conduct policy on its players. Players are banned from gambling and criminal activities have led to the suspension of players. The league and the Players' Association agreed to a stringent anti-doping policy in the 2005 collective bargaining agreement. The policy provides for a twenty-game suspension for a first positive test, a sixty-game suspension for

13020-499: The season second in attendance for back to back seasons attracting on average 850 people per game. The Demonz defeated the Watertown Privateers in the opening round of the playoffs two games to one. They then advanced on to play the Danbury Whalers in the FHL playoffs finals. After being down two games, the Demonz battled back to win three straight games and capture the Commissioner's Cup. The Demonz qualified for

13144-404: The situation under control thanks to the arrival of local police. The next meeting between the two teams resulted in a sellout at Watertown Municipal Arena, but there were no further incidents. The Dayton Demonz won the first series over the Watertown Privateers, two games to one, to play top seeded Danbury in the finals. Danbury won the first two games of the finals, with game one in overtime from

13268-430: The suspension of operations of its predecessor organization, the National Hockey Association (NHA), which had been founded in 1909 at Renfrew, Ontario . The NHL immediately took the NHA's place as one of the leagues that contested for the Stanley Cup in an annual interleague competition before a series of league mergers and foldings left the NHL as the only league competing for the Stanley Cup in 1926. At its inception,

13392-492: The team in Dayton in 2017 even if Hara Arena is still not available. Hara Arena would end up closing permanently in August 2016. In June 2016, Brewster Bulldogs owner, Bruce Bennett mentioned to The News-Times that he would solely focus on his Danbury Titans team and would no longer be involved with the Bulldogs. Without finding new ownership, Bennett decided to suspend Bulldogs operations on July 14, 2016. On September 14,

13516-705: The team's inaugural booster club meeting, Danbury Titans ownership confirmed that the league had re-organized and they will own the new Brewster team (formerly announced as the Stateline Whalers); Barry Soskin will continue to own the Danville Dashers and Port Huron Prowlers, but no longer be involved in Brewster. On July 18, Bennett announced the team would be called the Brewster Bulldogs and that neither of his teams would be connected to

13640-408: The top two seeds getting byes in the first round. The top-seeded team in each round picked the team they would play. All rounds were set to be best-of-three. In the first round, #5 seeded Carolina swept #6 seeded Port Huron, while #3 seeded Danbury, beat Binghamton in three. In the second round, Danbury and Carolina were swept by Columbus and Watertown respectively. Putting a best of three series between

13764-613: The top-ranked professional ice hockey league in the world, with players from 17 countries as of the 2023–24 season . The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) also views the Stanley Cup as one of the "most important championships available to the sport". The NHL is headquartered in Midtown Manhattan . The National Hockey League was organized at the Windsor Hotel in Montreal on November 26, 1917, after

13888-458: The trapezoid or in front of the goal line; if the goaltender plays the puck behind the goal line and outside the trapezoidal area, a two-minute minor penalty for delay of game is assessed. The rule is unofficially nicknamed the " Martin Brodeur rule"; Brodeur at the time was one of the best goaltenders at getting behind the net to handle the puck. Since the 2013–14 season, the league trimmed

14012-904: The turn of the century, nine more teams were added to the NHL: the San Jose Sharks , the Tampa Bay Lightning , the Ottawa Senators , the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim , the Florida Panthers , the Nashville Predators , the Atlanta Thrashers , and, in 2000, the Minnesota Wild and the Columbus Blue Jackets . Also, in the mid to late 1990s, the Quebec Nordiques, original Winnipeg Jets, and Hartford Whalers relocated to Denver, Phoenix, and Raleigh. In 2011,

14136-570: The two skated around center ice toasting the crowd to mixed reactions. The league announced that Felten would be suspended for the remainder of the season and the playoffs, and he took a year off of organized hockey before returning to the FHL to play for Dayton in the 2015–16 season. No immediate discipline for Puntureri was announced, since it was Danville's last game of the season. Puntureri later stated that he believed he would be banned for life, which turned out to be correct; as he never played another professional game in North America. The FHL awarded

14260-705: The two standard sets of professional ice hockey rules in the world, the other being the rules of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF), as used in tournaments such as the Olympics . The IIHF rules are derived from the Canadian amateur ice hockey rules of the early 20th century, while the NHL rules evolved directly from the first organized indoor ice hockey game in Montreal in 1875, updated by subsequent leagues up to 1917, when

14384-604: The world by revenue , after the National Football League (NFL), Major League Baseball (MLB), the National Basketball Association (NBA), and the Premier League (PL). The league's headquarters have been in Manhattan since 1989, when the head office moved from Montreal. There have been four league-wide work stoppages in NHL history, all occurring after 1992. The NHL's regular season

14508-595: Was announced that a neutral site game would take place on January 31, 2015, in Port Huron, Michigan , at McMorran Place , with an eye towards future expansion into Port Huron. The Danville Dashers defeated the Danbury Whalers 4–1 in the Port Huron game. The attendance at the game was 1,709. The Watertown Wolves captured first place by the end of regular season and were followed by the Dayton Demonz in second place. The Danville Dashers finished in third followed by

14632-677: Was barred from their arena, as the team's lease ended with First Arena and the CCIDA, which put the Enforcers dormant for the 2021-22 season. Watertown owner Andreas Johansson brought a team back to Binghamton after the relocation of the Binghamton Devils AHL franchise. Named the Black Bears, the team plays at the Visions Veterans Memorial Arena . The top six teams qualified for the playoffs, with

14756-484: Was eventually ratified in July 2005, including a salary cap. The agreement had a term of six years with an option of extending the collective bargaining agreement for an additional year at the end of the term, allowing the league to resume as of the 2005–06 season . On October 5, 2005, the first post-lockout season took to the ice with all 30 teams. The NHL received record attendance in the 2005–06 season, with an average of 16,955 per game. However, its television audience

14880-540: Was not returning. The following week, the league announced another expansion team in Mentor, Ohio , called the Mentor Ice Breakers to bring the league back to six teams. The league also slightly altered its primary logo, changing the branding from Federal Professional Hockey League to Federal Prospects Hockey League, while still using the FHL abbreviation. On March 10, 2019, Enforcers' owner Nichols assaulted

15004-545: Was one of the first major leagues in professional ice hockey. However, by its eighth season , a series of disputes with Toronto Blueshirts owner Eddie Livingstone led team owners of the Montreal Canadiens , the Montreal Wanderers , the Ottawa Senators , and the Quebec Bulldogs to hold a meeting to discuss the league's future. Realizing the NHA constitution left them unable to force Livingstone out,

15128-654: Was planning to declare itself a major league and challenge for the Stanley Cup, spurred the NHL to undertake its first expansion since the 1920s . The league doubled in size to 12 teams for the 1967–68 season , adding the Los Angeles Kings , the Minnesota North Stars , the Philadelphia Flyers , the Pittsburgh Penguins , the California Seals , and the St. Louis Blues . However, Canadian fans were outraged that all six teams were placed in

15252-402: Was slower to rebound due to American cable broadcaster ESPN 's decision to drop its NHL coverage. The league's post-lockout agreement with NBC gave the league a share of revenue from each game's advertising sales, rather than the usual lump sum paid up front for game rights. The league's annual revenues were estimated at $ 2.27 billion. On September 16, 2012, the labour pact expired, and

15376-466: Was the league's Most Valuable Player. The Danville Dashers twice were the center of national sports attention, first in a brawl during a game against the Watertown Privateers in which a collision between Danville goalie Nick Niedert and Watertown enforcer Jeff Dill took place, sparking a brawl, and soon spilled between benches, and punches were briefly thrown between Danville coach Mike Kellermeyer and Privateers coach Brad Zangs. Officials managed to get

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