The floodgates opened up at noon and the first email hit the ol’ inbox at 12:06 p.m. ET announcing the Stars’ signing of defenseman Ryan Suter. After that, news was breaking fast and furious. Despite the flat cap, a number of teams backed up the armored trucks to get their guy and now some of the NHL’s best will be donning new sweaters come October. Per CapFriendly, 163 contracts were signed on the first day with more than $785 million dollars being spread around (cap hit under $300 million)....

Rosters will be frozen until Feb. 23. The 16-day halt on peddling is the only pause between now and March 5 trade deadline. Who might be on the move? There are plenty of rumor, with names including the New York Islanders' Thomas Vanek and the New York Rangers' Ryan Callahan. Teams also have one more shot at Buffalo Sabres goalie Ryan Miller. Stay tuned to Sporting News right through the deadline to get the latest news and analysis of all the movement....

The 25-year-old Russian Philadelphia Flyers player was detained in St. Petersburg earlier this week and was told to register with the Russian army. Under Russian law, men aged between 18 and 27 must spend at least one year in the army. Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree in March ordering 134,500 conscripts into the armed forces as part of the country’s ongoing war with Ukraine, according to Reuters....

Each week, AccuScore will update its 2018 Stanley Cup playoffs forecast by simulating the remainder of the NHL season 10,000 times to predict win totals, division winners and probabilities of reaching the playoffs on the road to the Stanley Cup. Below are the probabilities and Vegas odds of making the NHL playoffs and how they have changed. MORE: Stanley Cup 2018 betting odds AccuScore’s odds to make NHL playoffs Probability vs....

There are a great many variables that go into determining a Stanley Cup champion. Many of them are uncontrollable. Yes, talent reigns supreme, but more than any sport, fortune good or bad — pure, unadulterated luck — can swing a road trip in December or a series in May, almost all of which is unpredictable. So it can become a fool’s errand to try and predict in October how the hockey season will play out....

As great as Wayne Gretzky was, perhaps even more impressive were his showcases in the playoffs. That man turned it up to another level when the games became even more important. He produced some of the greatest postseason runs in NHL history. Most recently, Nikita Kucherov has worked his way into the NHL record book with his play in the postseason. During the Lightning’s back-to-back Stanley Cup runs in 2020 and 2021, the Russian winger posted some of the highest playoff assist totals....

“I thought he was the best all-around player on the ice tonight,” Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said. “Kuch tonight flexed his muscles.” After the Devils jumped out to an early 1-0 lead on Kyle Palmieri’s 5-on-3 power play goal, Kucherov assisted on J.T. Miller’s tying tally at 11:30 of the first period and then roofed a shot from the slot over the shoulder of Cory Schneider to make it 2-1 less than four minutes later....

This is the 15th postseason meeting between the Original Six franchises and first since Boston’s infamous come-from-behind stunner in the 2013 conference quarterfinals. Toronto owns an 8-6 series edge in the previous 14 matchups, but the teams are even as can be with a 34-34-1 ledger all time. Sporting News’ NHL experts Brandon Schlager, Evan Sporer and Jim Cerny make their series predictions below. SN STAFF PREDICTIONS Eastern Conference | Western Conference | Stanley Cup...

Despite fighting for the first time since Dec. 12, 2010, Ovechkin’s 40 pound and 14-year advantage on the 19-year-old Svetchnikov made the fight seem somewhat unfair and the Hurricanes made that clear postgame. “I don’t really know what to say,” Carolina defenseman Dougie Hamilton said postgame. “I kept thinking about him the whole game. I hated seeing that. I just feel so bad for him. The game doesn’t really matter when something like that happens, you just can’t get it out of your head....

Kucherov first tripped Nutivaara and then slammed the defenseless Nutivaara’s head against the boards from behind. The Lightning finished the regular season with an NHL record-tying 62 victories and were expected to dominate the eighth-seeded Blue Jackets in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoff series. Instead, the Blue Jackets won the first two games of the best-of-seven series on the road. Friday’s 5-1 loss came two days after Tampa Bay jumped out to a 3-0 first-period lead only to lose 4-3....

The new year hasn’t been pleasant thus far for the Rangers. With only four victories in their last 11 games entering Thursday’s contest against the Sharks, there’s growing speculation the Rangers could become sellers by the Feb. 26 NHL trade deadline. Following their 7-2 defeat on Jan. 13 to the Islanders, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported the Rangers might consider moving several players. While pending free agents such as Rick Nash and Michael Grabner could become trade candidates, Friedman didn’t rule out the possibility of the Blueshirts entertaining offers for defenseman Ryan McDonagh or winger Mats Zuccarello....

While many argue that last year’s discussion of a $350 million fee was too extravagant, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman sees no problem with the half-billion-dollar fee. MORE: Flyers hire longtime UND coach | Ducks expose Blackhawks | Must-see Western Conference finals photos “Franchise values in all sports have been increasing rather dramatically,’’ Bettman said, in response to queries from the Times’ Geoff Baker. “From your question, you seem to be inferring that that would be a lot of money for an NHL team....

In trading Smith, the Senators sent their formerly longest-tenured roster player (612 games) to Chicago in a swap of 31-year olds that assists both teams on and off the ice. Smith joins former Sens’ associate coach Marc Crawford, who recently found a spot on Blackhawks’ head coach Jeremy Colliton’s staff. NHL free agency 2019: Full list of signings, best players available As with most NHL trades today, it’s as much about managing the salary cap as it is about making a fair deal that suits each team’s needs....

Nice at 80/1 odds to win Ligue 1 The 20-year-old has spent each of the past two seasons on loan at Bundesliga side Hannover and Bastia, respectively, but now joins Nice on a permanent basic. The terms of the transfer were not disclosed by either club. Earlier on Monday, Nice completed the signing of experienced Netherlands playmaker Wesley Sneijder on a free transfer. Lucien Favre’s side began their Ligue 1 campaign with a 1-0 defeat to Saint-Etienne and face Napoli in the first leg of a keenly anticipated Champions League play-off clash next week....

Ligue 1 title odds The Netherlands international, 33, left Galatasaray last in July but was spotted at the Ligue 1 side’s Champions League qualifying encounter with Ajax a fortnight ago. Now the former Real Madrid and Inter playmaker only has the details to complete before adding to the Allianz Riviera side’s ranks, where he will team up with Mario Balotelli and Dante. He is set to arrive in the Cote d’Azur city on Sunday before undergoing a medical on Monday, after which he will sign a one-year deal, should everything go according to plan....

Bosa, speaking to local reporters on Wednesday, applauded the move of the 49ers taking defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw at No. 13 overall. Appropriately, that was the pick acquired from trading defensive tackle DeForest Buckner to the Colts. “He just embodies what we do as a D-line — just the way he plays the run, he’s just a beast,” Bosa said from briefly watching what Kinlaw did at South Carolina. “He plays the run like we play it....

That’s why his comments on Tuesday about the Astros’ cheating scandal should resonate loudly across baseball as perhaps the greatest indicator of how much anger seethes among MLB players over Houston’s illegal sign-stealing. Though we’ve seen other players bash the Houston squad and MLB’s investigation and rulings, Markakis’ words deserve special attention. “To see something like that, it’s damaging to baseball. It’s anger. I feel like every single guy over there needs a beating," Markakis told reporters Tuesday morning as he reported to spring training....

It’s a problem that has vexed the best of both college football and NFL. And it could reach absurd levels in 2017. Because this could be the year Alabama and New England finally win it all — in the same season. Believe it or not, that hasn’t happened once since Nick Saban took over Alabama in 2007. The Crimson Tide beat Georgia in the College Football Playoff championship game Monday, and the Patriots enter the NFL playoffs looking to defend their latest Super Bowl with the AFC’s top seed after a 13-3 record....

Putting Swaggy P on your “G.O.A.T.” list — at No. 2, ahead of Michael Jordan no less — will get you an autograph for sure. MORE: Matt Barnes, Floyd Mayweather feud | Russell Westbrook interview | Michael Jordan vs. Kobe Bryant Fans shouldn’t say such things. Young might actually start to believe it. Here’s Nick Young’s top 3 (probably): Nick Young Swaggy P Daddy Swag Sorry, Kobe. Source: Bleacher Report

At least 10 attendees of the music festival have passed away after a crowd surge toward the stage at the NRG Park stadium in Houston on November 5 sparked a deadly stampede among the 50,000-strong patrons. In the aftermath, Scott and the event’s organizers have been hit with several lawsuits. Drake, who had joined fellow rapper Scott onstage as a surprise guest at the event, has also been sued....