Nhl, Hockey | featured news

The N.H.L. has formed a partnership with an advocacy group pledged to fight homophobia in sports, and plans training and counseling on gay issues for its teams and players.

Beau Bennett and Evgeni Malkin scored 13 seconds apart in the third period and the Pittsburgh Penguins clinched the Atlantic Division title by beating the free-falling Carolina Hurricanes 5-3 on Tuesday night.

Rookie Brandon Saad and Jonathan Toews scored 55 seconds apart midway through the third period, and the Chicago Blackhawks rallied to beat the Nashville Predators 5-3 on Sunday night to become the first team to clinch a NHL playoff spot this season.

The Pittsburgh Penguins' run at a record-breaking streak is over. Playing without injured star Sidney Crosby, the Penguins fell to the Buffalo Sabres 4-1 on Tuesday night to end their 15-game winning streak.

The Anaheim Ducks have re-signed captain Ryan Getzlaf to an eight-year contract.

NHL hockey is finally back, and this time it's official. Nearly one week after a tentative labor deal was agreed to by the league and its players, the sides agreed to a required memorandum of understanding (MOU) on Saturday night that truly makes the lockout a thing of the past.

NHL owners have ratified the tentative labor deal. All that now remains is player approval to finally start the hockey season.

The National Hockey League and NHL Players' Assn. reached tentative agreement on a new collective bargaining agreement early Sunday morning, opening the way for training camps to open later this week after both sides put on paper and ratify the terms of the complex agreement.

On the ice, the National Hockey League has never been more competitive than over the course of its last collective bargaining agreement, which began with the 2005-06 season. A different team has won the Stanley Cup each season, ranging from big-market clubs like Los Angeles and Chicago to small ones such as Pittsburgh and Raleigh. A total of 12 different teams reached the finals during the seven-year CBA.

Stop us if you’ve heard this before — following another round of failed CBA negotiations, the NHL has canceled a slate of games and a marquee league event. This time, it’s all contests from Dec. 1-14 and the 2013 All-Star Game, which was to be played at Nationwide Arena in Columbus on Jan. 27.