NHL

8:00 AM ET DENVER — The Colorado Avalanche stars dominated headlines before Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final. Valeri Nichushkin was dominant on the ice. To the uninitiated, Nichushkin’s terrific all-around performance in Colorado’s 4-3 overtime victory in Game 1 against the Tampa Bay Lightning — including a goal and a key assist on

5:58 PM ET NHL commissioner Gary Bettman isn’t sure if he’ll be open to reinstating Joel Quenneville if the former coach asks to return to the league. “I don’t know. That’s something I’ll have to address with him directly,” Bettman told ESPN’s Jeremy Schaap on Friday’s episode of The Point. Quenneville resigned as Florida Panthers

7:05 AM ET There are different ways for teams to enter the NHL free-agent pool. There are big splashes for star players. Other teams methodically wade in, making sure their feet (and their finances) remain grounded. Some just dip their toes in. The Tampa Bay Lightning and Colorado Avalanche, currently playing in the Stanley Cup

7:00 AM ET DENVER — During their back-to-back Stanley Cup championships, the Tampa Bay Lightning had a secret weapon. Their checking line of Yanni Gourde, Blake Coleman and Barclay Goodrow had the unique ability to shut down their opponents’ top players while contributing huge goals of their own. The lone goal in Game 7 against

3:24 PM ET Now that the Arizona Coyotes have reached an agreement with the Tempe City Council to continue negotiations on a new arena and entertainment district in the Phoenix suburb, their team president and CEO, Xavier A. Gutierrez, says the next challenge is to clear up misconceptions about what is in the works —

8:30 AM ET DENVER — Even the best in the world can have his bad moments. Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final marked the first time Tampa Bay Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy had given up three goals in the first period of a playoff game. Two of those Colorado Avalanche tallies uncharacteristically trickled through

8:00 AM ET The 2022 Stanley Cup Final between the Colorado Avalanche and Tampa Bay Lightning got off to a rollicking start, with Colorado jumping out to a 3-1 lead in the first period, Tampa Bay tying it in the second, and the Avalanche prevailing 4-3 in overtime. What did we learn in Game 1

1:05 AM ET DENVER — Tampa Bay Lightning coach Jon Cooper said “the right team won” Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals, but that he believes the Colorado Avalanche haven’t seen anything close to his players’ best effort yet. “Give them credit for pulling it out,” Cooper said after the Avs won 4-3 in

8:00 AM ET DENVER — The Colorado Avalanche are no overnight success. Joe Sakic knows that better than anyone. He was Colorado’s captain when the franchise last won a Stanley Cup, in 2001. Now, 21 years later, Sakic is the architect behind the Avalanche’s return to a Final, this one opening Wednesday against the Tampa

7:00 AM ET ESPN staff The 2022 Stanley Cup Final is set to begin Wednesday night in Denver, and it promises to be one of the best matchups in recent memory. The Tampa Bay Lightning are looking to become the first team to three-peat since the New York Islanders won four in a row from

6:38 PM ET DENVER — Tampa Bay Lightning coach Jon Cooper said things are leaning towards Brayden Point returning to the lineup for Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final on Wednesday night against the Colorado Avalanche. “If it’s not tomorrow, then we really anticipate Game 2. But we’ll see how he is tomorrow,” Cooper

7:00 AM ET The 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs are down to the final two teams. The Western Conference champion Colorado Avalanche will host the Eastern Conference champion Tampa Bay Lightning for Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final on Wednesday (8 p.m. ET, ABC and ESPN+). Tampa Bay can become the first three-peat Cup champion

6:59 AM ET ESPN staff It’s all come down to this in the 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs: The Colorado Avalanche and Tampa Bay Lightning are poised to square off for the sport’s ultimate prize. Will it be a three-peat for the Lightning? Or the first Cup in over 20 years for the Avs? Our ESPN

6:35 PM ET ESPN News Services NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Nashville Predators have signed defenseman Jeremy Lauzon to a four-year contract worth $8 million. The Predators announced the move Monday, keeping the defenseman they acquired in March at the trade deadline from the Seattle Kraken. General manager David Poile said they’re excited to keep Lauzon.

7:00 AM ET TAMPA, Fla. — New York Rangers coach Gerard Gallant sat inside a conference room at Amalie Arena, discussing how his team’s surprising Stanley Cup playoffs run ended in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals. On the other side of a wall sat coach Jon Cooper, surrounded by Tampa Bay Lightning conference

5:17 PM ET DENVER — The Colorado Avalanche have long aspired to become the Tampa Bay Lightning. Now, it’s the Lightning standing between the Avalanche and their first Stanley Cup win since 2001. The two-time defending champion Lightning topped the New York Rangers in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals on Saturday to reach

7:45 AM ET The Stanley Cup Final is determined by more than star players. It’s also about star turns. The ones we expect, and often the ones we don’t. The Tampa Bay Lightning know that better than anyone. The two-time defending Stanley Cup champions are back in the Final for a third straight season, facing

10:43 PM ET TAMPA, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Lightning are four wins away from becoming the first NHL team since 1983 to win three straight Stanley Cup championships. “To get there the first time was a dream come true. To get there a second time, the next year, was a dream too. There was