A week ago, we were in this space talking about the entertaining unpredictability of the early NHL season and the “to be determined” storylines we start tracking. One of those storylines, so far, continues to play out in intriguing fashion. The Carolina Hurricanes are good. And entertaining. MORE: Travis Green “pissed off” as Canucks lose Elias Pettersson to concussion Though the Canes finally suffered their first regulation defeat in their sixth game – a 3-1 loss to the Winnipeg Jets at Bell MTS Place that was anything but a whimper for Rod Brind’Amour’s troops, Carolina pounded the Jets at even strength....

“[Peters] walked in before a morning pre-game skate and said ‘Hey Akim, I’m sick of you playing that n— s—.’ He said ‘I’m sick of hearing this n—s f—ing other n—s in the ass stuff,’” Aliu told TSN’s Frank Seravalli. “He then walked out like nothing ever happened. You could hear a pin drop in the room, everything went dead silent. I just sat down in my stall, didn’t say a word....

X-clinched playoff, Y-clinched division Eastern Conference Atlantic Division Y- Boston Bruins (115 pts, 2 games remaining) X-Montreal Canadiens (98pts, 1 games remaining) X-Tampa Bay Lightning (97 pts, 2 games remaining) Metropolitan Division Y-Pittsburgh Penguins (107 pts, 2 games remaining) X- New York Rangers (95 pts, 1 games remaining) X-Philadelphia Flyers (91 pts, 2 games remaining) Wild Card X-Columbus Blue Jackets (91 points, 2 games remaining) X- Detroit Red Wings (90 pts, 2 games remaining) Western Conference...

Tonight’s game between the Penguins and the Senators was no laugher, unlike what we saw Wednesday night. Pittsburgh eked by with a 3-2 victory in Ottawa, with the last 36 seconds of the game an absolute frenzy. Ottawa’s Tom Pyatt scored a late goal in the third to bring the Senators within one, but Penguins goaltender Matt Murray shut the door on the Senators in the closing minutes of the game....

As Wilson went to retrieve a loose puck along the boards, Stralman checked the Capitals winger from behind. Stralman made contact with both the No. 43 on the back of Wilson’s jersey as well as his head. Wilson immediately fell to the ice and Stralman was assessed a boarding minor. Alex Ovechkin took issue with the hit and confronted Stralman before being seperated by officials. MORE: On Tom Wilson and becoming an NHL villain...

Penguins general manager Jim Rutherford told reporters Thursday he did not see what he wanted to this season and changes will be coming after Pittsburgh was swept by the Islanders and knocked out in the first round of the playoffs. “In (2016 and 2017), we were a team. We were a very tight-knit team,” Rutherford said, via NHL.com. “I didn’t see that this year almost from Day 1. I didn’t see a point where guys came together as a team....

Not bad. Looks warm. The street hockey courts are a nice touch. From the NHL release: Platinum recording artist Jordin Sparks will sing the U.S. national anthem while singer/songwriter John Ondrasik of Five for Fighting will perform during the second intermission on the stage located at home plate. That stage will feature a special design created by Los Angeles art legend Mister Cartoon and children from the Los Angeles-based nonprofit, Para Los Niños....

That place is Humboldt, Saskatchewan. After a bus carrying the Humboldt Broncos of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League collided with a tractor-trailer late Friday afternoon outside of Tisdale, Saskatchewan, killing at least 15 of the 29 people on board , the NHL community responded by coming together. Teams, players and coaches posted heartfelt tributes to the victims on social media and helped raise money for a fundraiser benefiting the victims’ families....

The 27-year-old defenseman had a morning meeting with his camp and the team in Vancouver to discuss a potential contract extension, and it reportedly did not go as planned. In turn, Carolina is now said to be shopping him as the NHL Draft approaches. Faulk has one more year left on his contract and a cap hit of $4.83 million next season. It appears that Carolina has plenty of space to work with to re-sign Faulk, but his asking price may have been too high for the Hurricanes, who already have a surplus of blueliners, especially on the right side....

A host of teams would like to sure up their blueline depth ahead of a playoff push, and the San Jose Sharks defenseman would provide a boost in that area. Two clubs that have shown interest in him are the Boston Bruins and Carolina Hurricanes, according to TSN’s Pierre LeBrun. TRADE RUMORS: Chris Kreider | Jason Zucker | Trevor Daley | Alexander Georgiev “He’s a defenseman that’s going to be dealt by the Sharks,” LeBrun said with conviction on TSN’s ‘Insider Trading’ panel Tuesday, adding that half a dozen teams have thrown their hats into the ring....

Reports from Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman have suggested that a number of teams are interested in trading for the New York Rangers forward. With 31 points in 47 games, the eighth-year Ranger is eyeing a career-high season — he is on pace for 54 points which would set the new mark by a single point. TRADE RUMORS: Does Toronto have interest in Alexandar Georgiev? So while Kreider is having what could end up being a career year, he has also been a staple for the Rangers with two prior 50-plus-point seasons....

Hall of Famer Mike Bossy died after battling lung cancer, it was announced on Thursday morning. He was 65 years old. The four-time Stanley Cup champion was one of hockey’s greatest goal scorers. Bossy spent all 10 years in the NHL with the Islanders, helping the franchise to four consecutive Stanley Cups in the 1980s. Bossy ended his career as the Islanders’ all-time goal leader with 573. He potted 50 goals in nine straight seasons, an accomplishment that has yet to be repeated....

WATCH: Arsenal target hits hat-trick for Monaco Lucien Favre’s side had responded to a 3-0 defeat against league leaders Monaco with victory over Saint-Etienne in midweek, but they soon found themselves two goals behind to Rennes - and lost top-scorer Alassane Plea to injury before half-time. Morgan Amalfitano opened the scoring after seven minutes, lifting a fine finish over Yoan Cardinale following a one-two with Giovanni Sio, who then added a second in controversial circumstances....

Less than a week after he was stretchered from the ice, the Blue Jackets forward took a Jack Johnson slap very, very close to his face and, again, had to leave the game. His dad, Mike, was watching from the Devils bench — he’s an assistant coach. On Oct. 26 against the Kings, Foligno collided with a linesman and wound up with a stinger. It was a scary scene, but he turned out to be fine....

Name, Image and Likeness has taken the college sports world by storm and changed the way many view amateurism, but it hasn’t shaped up exactly the way the Alabama coach had envisioned it. Speaking at an event promoting the World Games 2022 on Wednesday, Saban spent seven minutes addressing and critiquing NIL, its enforcement and the spirit of the rule, while also taking aim at Texas A&M and Jackson State as two programs perhaps abusing the spirit of NIL:...

Debate whether Saban’s reign over college football — which has produced a 100-18 record and four national championships during his term in Tuscaloosa — is good for college football. MORE: Ranking Saban’s Tide teams | SEC coach rankings It is, by the way. Dynasties are always good for college football, even one that’s as methodical as Alabama. “I’m going to sit up and very seriously talk about our team and everything I’m going to say about our team you’ve already written about,” Saban said....

During a fist-pounding rant, Saban said satellite camps aren’t regulated, which could be detrimental to schools and prospective players. MORE: Sporting News’ preseason top 25 | Freeze addresses Ole Miss allegations “Anybody can have a camp now,” Saban said Tuesday, via SECCountry.com. “If they have a prospect, they can have a camp and then you’re expected to go to that camp and then they can use you to promote their camp because Ohio State is coming, Alabama is coming, whoever else is coming....

So it was a perfect opportunity to follow up with some of the coaches on hot topics from last week — like Plaxico Burress’ Twitter rant against Nick Saban. MORE: Top 15 programs since 2000 | 10 bowl matchups we want | HAYES: No excuses, Nick Saban was glad to speak about his former player’s comments. Burress, who played for Saban at Michigan State, got hot under the collar after Saban’s comments about college players being too focused on the NFL when there still are games to be played....

Alabama did have a few unnecessary penalties at the end of the game but to be fair Arkansas is a good team so it’s best to take the win and get out of there. Look at that passion and it’s only the first quarter. Who wouldn’t have high expectations for a team with that coach? I’m a Georgia fan and almost want to root for them on that gif alone....