The Seattle Krakens defeated the Vancouver Canucks 6-1 on Wednesday night; their first-ever win over the Canucks in their history. With this victory, the Krakens surpass their entire win total from last season.

Seattle finished last season 27-49-6 in what was their inaugural campaign in the NHL. With a record of 28-14-5, The Krakens have done a complete turnaround, keeping themselves in contention for the Pacific Division title.

“It’s a different team that’s definitely figured some things out this season,” Oliver Bjorkstrand, the scorer of two goals against the Canucks, said. “We’re on to some good stuff. Consistency is a huge thing and I think throughout the season for the most part, I think we’ve been pretty consistent.”

While the Kraken now sits in 1st place on the Pacific Division standings, the team suffered an injury setback during the Canucks game when rookie center Matty Beniers knocked his head on the ice after being hit from the side by Vancouver defenceman Tyler Myers. Beniers’ injury status remains unclear as Kraken coach Dave Hakstol simply revealed that he would not be returning for the third period of the game.

The post Seattle Kraken Gets First Ever Win Over Canucks appeared first on SportzBonanza.

NHL will most likely resume its 2019/20 season in Canada. According to multiple reports, the league is favoring Toronto and Edmonton as hub cities to stage play-in-tournament and Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The decision won’t be final until later this week when the National Hockey League Players’ Association is set to take a vote on this and several other elements of season restart.

TSN Hockey Insider Bob McKenzie first reported the news.   

It was previously believed that the league will end up choosing Las Vegas as the hub city since it offered more accommodation options and could serve as a strong bubble environment. However, the rise of coronavirus cases and several other factors made it a less favorable option in recent weeks and gave an advantage to Toronto and Edmonton.

Toronto and Edmonton make sense from both hockey and financial standpoint for the league. Besides offering a desirable infrastructure, it will also be a lot cheaper to organize games in these two cities.

NHL is set to resume its activities between July 10th and July 13th when the teams are set to enter mandatory training camps.

The post NHL Favors Toronto and Edmonton as Hub Cities for 2019/20 Season Resume appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The resume of the NHL season might see more teams getting in the Stanley Cup race than ever before. The National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA) announced on Monday that they have voted in favor of having 24-team playoffs as part of the efforts to finish out 2019/20.

According to the plan, the season would resume immediately with the playoffs, which would see 24 teams taking part. The top four seeded teams from each conference would get the boot in the first round, while teams currently seeded from 5th to 12th position would meet in the five-game series. The winners of the first round would then play the top-seeded teams in a standard Stanley Cup playoff format of 16 teams.

“The Executive Board of the National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA) has authorized further negotiations with the NHL on a 24-team return to play format to determine the winner of the 2020 Stanley Cup,” an NHLPA statement reads. “Several details remain to be negotiated, and an agreement on the format would still be subject to the parties reaching agreement on all issues relevant to resuming play.”

This format, however, is still yet to be put in front of the league for voting. NHL is reportedly in favor of the proposal, as it would include the teams that have realistic chances of getting to the postseason but wouldn’t make it 2019/20 season would resume with traditional 16-team playoffs.

NHL is currently discussing several options for season resume, but the most likely outcome seems to be a centralized approach. According to sources, the league would choose two cities in which it would gather teams and play out all the games. Reportedly, nine cities are being considered, with Las Vegas being the overwhelming favorite.

The post NHLPA Gives a Green Light for 24-Team Playoffs to Resume the 2019/20 Season appeared first on SportzBonanza.

NHL season is currently suspended due to coronavirus and there is no indication of when and how it could be resumed. Washington Capitals’ captain Alex Ovechkin recently decided to offer his view on the matter, saying it would be best to skip the rest of the regular season.

Ovechkin recently had a chat with reporters via video call and said that he would prefer to skip straight to the playoff despite the fact that he was on pace to score 50 goals for the ninth time in his NHL career.

“I’d rather start the playoffs right away,” said Ovechkin. “Sorry, guys.”

However, Ovechkin acknowledges that this solution would not suit everyone.

“We don’t want to play extra games, but I know for different guys who fight for a playoff spot — and we’re still fighting for a playoff spot — some guys want extra games. For me, of course, the more games we will play, it will be better for fans and better for teams who are fighting for playoffs,” he added.

Ovechkin isn’t the only NHL star who would be down with NHL season resuming with playoffs. Pittsburgh Pirates’ Sidney Crosby recently said that he would like to play in as many games as possible, but wouldn’t “mind starting right in the playoffs.”

NHL hasn’t made any decisions regarding the continuation of the season so far, but the league is considering a number of options in order to avoid jeopardizing the 2020/21 season. One of the possibilities is reportedly extending the current season to August.

The post Capitals’ Alex Ovechkin Would Skip to Playoffs When NHL Resumes appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The Seattle Krakens defeated the Vancouver Canucks 6-1 on Wednesday night; their first-ever win over the Canucks in their history. With this victory, the Krakens surpass their entire win total from last season.

Seattle finished last season 27-49-6 in what was their inaugural campaign in the NHL. With a record of 28-14-5, The Krakens have done a complete turnaround, keeping themselves in contention for the Pacific Division title.

“It’s a different team that’s definitely figured some things out this season,” Oliver Bjorkstrand, the scorer of two goals against the Canucks, said. “We’re on to some good stuff. Consistency is a huge thing and I think throughout the season for the most part, I think we’ve been pretty consistent.”

While the Kraken now sits in 1st place on the Pacific Division standings, the team suffered an injury setback during the Canucks game when rookie center Matty Beniers knocked his head on the ice after being hit from the side by Vancouver defenceman Tyler Myers. Beniers’ injury status remains unclear as Kraken coach Dave Hakstol simply revealed that he would not be returning for the third period of the game.

The post Seattle Kraken Gets First Ever Win Over Canucks appeared first on SportzBonanza.

NHL will most likely resume its 2019/20 season in Canada. According to multiple reports, the league is favoring Toronto and Edmonton as hub cities to stage play-in-tournament and Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The decision won’t be final until later this week when the National Hockey League Players’ Association is set to take a vote on this and several other elements of season restart.

TSN Hockey Insider Bob McKenzie first reported the news.   

It was previously believed that the league will end up choosing Las Vegas as the hub city since it offered more accommodation options and could serve as a strong bubble environment. However, the rise of coronavirus cases and several other factors made it a less favorable option in recent weeks and gave an advantage to Toronto and Edmonton.

Toronto and Edmonton make sense from both hockey and financial standpoint for the league. Besides offering a desirable infrastructure, it will also be a lot cheaper to organize games in these two cities.

NHL is set to resume its activities between July 10th and July 13th when the teams are set to enter mandatory training camps.

The post NHL Favors Toronto and Edmonton as Hub Cities for 2019/20 Season Resume appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The resume of the NHL season might see more teams getting in the Stanley Cup race than ever before. The National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA) announced on Monday that they have voted in favor of having 24-team playoffs as part of the efforts to finish out 2019/20.

According to the plan, the season would resume immediately with the playoffs, which would see 24 teams taking part. The top four seeded teams from each conference would get the boot in the first round, while teams currently seeded from 5th to 12th position would meet in the five-game series. The winners of the first round would then play the top-seeded teams in a standard Stanley Cup playoff format of 16 teams.

“The Executive Board of the National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA) has authorized further negotiations with the NHL on a 24-team return to play format to determine the winner of the 2020 Stanley Cup,” an NHLPA statement reads. “Several details remain to be negotiated, and an agreement on the format would still be subject to the parties reaching agreement on all issues relevant to resuming play.”

This format, however, is still yet to be put in front of the league for voting. NHL is reportedly in favor of the proposal, as it would include the teams that have realistic chances of getting to the postseason but wouldn’t make it 2019/20 season would resume with traditional 16-team playoffs.

NHL is currently discussing several options for season resume, but the most likely outcome seems to be a centralized approach. According to sources, the league would choose two cities in which it would gather teams and play out all the games. Reportedly, nine cities are being considered, with Las Vegas being the overwhelming favorite.

The post NHLPA Gives a Green Light for 24-Team Playoffs to Resume the 2019/20 Season appeared first on SportzBonanza.

NHL season is currently suspended due to coronavirus and there is no indication of when and how it could be resumed. Washington Capitals’ captain Alex Ovechkin recently decided to offer his view on the matter, saying it would be best to skip the rest of the regular season.

Ovechkin recently had a chat with reporters via video call and said that he would prefer to skip straight to the playoff despite the fact that he was on pace to score 50 goals for the ninth time in his NHL career.

“I’d rather start the playoffs right away,” said Ovechkin. “Sorry, guys.”

However, Ovechkin acknowledges that this solution would not suit everyone.

“We don’t want to play extra games, but I know for different guys who fight for a playoff spot — and we’re still fighting for a playoff spot — some guys want extra games. For me, of course, the more games we will play, it will be better for fans and better for teams who are fighting for playoffs,” he added.

Ovechkin isn’t the only NHL star who would be down with NHL season resuming with playoffs. Pittsburgh Pirates’ Sidney Crosby recently said that he would like to play in as many games as possible, but wouldn’t “mind starting right in the playoffs.”

NHL hasn’t made any decisions regarding the continuation of the season so far, but the league is considering a number of options in order to avoid jeopardizing the 2020/21 season. One of the possibilities is reportedly extending the current season to August.

The post Capitals’ Alex Ovechkin Would Skip to Playoffs When NHL Resumes appeared first on SportzBonanza.