In this installment of the NHL’s new, expanded coverage, NHL.com and TSN take a closer look at the big stories shaping the NHL season, including the arrival of the new Stanley Cup champion Los Angeles Kings and the NHL Awards, which will be televised this season.
Here are some highlights:The new NHL season starts in February.
For the first time in league history, the playoffs are not televised, but the NHL will broadcast two of the three regular-season games.
The Kings, who will take on the Buffalo Sabres on Feb. 15, will be the only team not on the NHL schedule.
The league is hosting the first-ever NHL Awards telecast.
The ceremony will be held Feb. 16 at 9 p.m.
ET on TSN.
The event will be broadcast on TBS and TNN and will feature NHL players and officials from around the league.
The NHL’s official website will feature live coverage of the event, as well as an interactive hub for fans to vote on who should receive the award.
The Los Angeles Clippers, who are in their third season in the league, will become the first team to win the franchise’s first Stanley Cup since the New York Islanders in 1993.
The NHL will also broadcast the NHLPA-mandated anthem before the game.
The league is taking this step to allow fans and players to join in the anthem as a way to pay homage to the late Colin Kaepernick, who started a movement last year protesting police brutality and racial inequality in America.
In the meantime, the league’s commissioner and commissioner of hockey operations will be taking part in a live Twitter chat to discuss the league and its upcoming schedule, which is expected to be unveiled this week.
“We will have a very robust and thoughtful approach to this year’s slate,” NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said at the league meeting, which took place in New York City on Monday.
“We have a lot of very important things to do, and we are excited about it.”
The Kings will begin the season with the most points in the NHL at 95.
The New York Rangers and New York Bruins will both be the top teams in the Eastern Conference.
The Nashville Predators will take the top spot in the Metropolitan Division.