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The Vancouver Canucks are the latest Canadian club to make a pitch to be one of the NHL's hub cities if and when play resumes.
Vancouver is among numerous teams that have submitted bids to the league, reports TSN's Ryan Rishaug, who adds that the NHL is reviewing the proposals.
The Edmonton Oilers are also among the squads that have applied, Rishaug reported Friday.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Sunday that anyone entering the country would have to abide by quarantine guidelines amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The NHL is considering holding games in four hub cities if the current campaign ultimately proceeds.
The San Jose Sharks have signed netminder Alexei Melnichuk, agent Dan Milstein confirmed Monday.
Melnichuk posted a .930 save percentage in 16 games with SKA Saint Petersburg this season.
The Sharks were reportedly the front-runners to land the 21-year-old.
San Jose was in need of goaltending depth, considering the struggles of starter Martin Jones and the pending unrestricted free-agent status of backup Aaron Dell.
Melnichuk was the youngest of SKA's three primary goalies this season, but he outperformed his older counterparts.
Artemi Panarin is clearly making the most of the NHL's hiatus.
The New York Rangers star showed off his multitasking skills Saturday, sharing a video on Instagram in which he took time to perfect his follow-through and leg-kick celebration while putting a fresh coat of paint on the wall.
Panarin started incorporating the leg kick into his goal celebrations earlier this season.
The Russian sniper was a Hart Trophy candidate at the time of the shutdown, sitting in a tie for third in the league's points race while helping the resurgent Rangers join the playoff hunt.
Evander Kane is hoping the NHL and his fellow players do a better job of showcasing what makes them special when the league gets back up and running.
"It's part of hockey culture to shy away from a lot of things," the San Jose Sharks forward told TSN's Mark Masters on Friday. "The more we embrace uniqueness and people's differences and use it to our advantage, the greater our league is going to be."
Kane, who's long been one of the league's most outspoken players, emphasized how important exposure is to furthering the game.
"I wouldn't say there's a ton of guys lined up willing to do their own reality TV show or wanting to be in front of the camera at all times, so that's on us as players to want to embrace that side of the game a bit more and help the sport grow a bit more, especially when it comes to the United States," he said.
"People need to see our faces," he added. "People need to know who we are because, as biased as I may be, I think hockey's the greatest sport by far on Earth and we don't get enough credit as players and our league doesn't get enough respect for what we do."
Kane has rarely shied away from the public eye. He criticized the NHL Department of Player Safety following a suspension in February and called a linesman's actions "an absolute joke" after the league suspended him in September.
The veteran winger also continues to take part in an ongoing feud with Vegas Golden Knights grinder Ryan Reaves, saying earlier this week that he enjoys it and that the rivalry makes things "entertaining for fans."
Kane posed nude for ESPN's Body Issue last year and has also called out racism directed toward him on Instagram.
More than a handful of NHL players have burst onto the scene with an elite season, or produced a terrific campaign that significantly outshined the rest of their career.
Each of these forwards, defensemen, and goaltenders looked like stars for a year before falling back down to earth.
Here are 10 players who put together one outstanding campaign but never reached that level of production again:
Jim Carey
Carey became known as "The Net Detective" by virtue of sharing a name with a certain Hollywood star who played Ace Ventura. The netminder debuted with the Washington Capitals not long after the film was released in 1994, winning the Vezina Trophy in 1995-96 after going 35-24-9 with a .906 save percentage, 12.68 goals saved above average, and nine shutouts across 71 games in only his second NHL season. He parlayed that performance into an ill-fated four-year, $11-million contract.
He had shown promise in his rookie year, going 18-6-3 with a .913 save percentage, but he made only 28 appearances in that lockout-shortened 1994-95 campaign. Carey also never came close to equaling his 1995-96 performance, and injuries caused his workload to steadily decline before he was out of the NHL by 1999.
Jonathan Cheechoo
Don Smith / Getty Images Sport / Getty
Cheechoo had more than one solid NHL season, but none of them compared to 2005-06, when he amassed a league-best 56 goals to go along with 93 points while playing all 82 games for the San Jose Sharks.
Skating alongside elite playmaker Joe Thornton clearly aided his offensive explosion, as Cheechoo piled up 49 of those markers and 78 of those points in the 58 games that followed the Thornton trade. Cheechoo collected 37 goals and 69 points in 2006-07, but his production decreased in every season after 2005-06 until he played his final NHL game in 2010.
Andrew Raycroft
Raycroft arrived in style, winning the Calder Trophy after posting a .926 save percentage and a 24.24 GSAA across 57 contests with the Boston Bruins in 2003-04.
However, it was all downhill from there, as the goaltender struggled in the following campaign before the Bruins traded him to the Toronto Maple Leafs in the now-infamous Tuukka Rask deal in June 2006. Raycroft tied Toronto's record for wins in a season in 2006-07, but that was mainly because he played a whopping 72 games and recorded three shootout wins, which didn't exist before 2005-06. He allowed a league-high 205 goals in 2006-07 while authoring a GSAA of -22.02.
The netminder bounced around with a few more teams before his NHL career ended in 2011-12, and he ultimately played two campaigns in Europe before retiring.
Scott Bjugstad
The uncle of current Pittsburgh Penguins forward Nick Bjugstad poured in 43 goals and 76 points across 80 games in 1985-86 with the Minnesota North Stars, but never again managed more than 10 markers and 22 points. He collected only 33 markers and 35 assists in the 237 career games outside of his stellar season, landing with the Penguins and Los Angeles Kings before ending his career in the IHL.
Nikolai Borschevsky
B Winkler / Bruce Bennett / Getty
Borschevsky played nine years in Russia before the Leafs drafted him at age 27 in 1992 on the strength of a couple of encouraging campaigns. The winger made an immediate impact, notching 34 goals and 74 points in 78 games while helping Toronto get to Game 7 of the Campbell Conference Final in 1993.
However, the wheels soon fell off, as Borschevsky produced 14 goals and 34 points across 45 contests in 1993-94 before managing just one marker and 13 helpers over 39 games in the next two seasons split between the Leafs, Calgary Flames, and Dallas Stars. He played his final NHL game at age 30 in November 1995.
Wayne Babych
The St. Louis Blues had high hopes for Babych after drafting him third overall in 1978, and the winger showed promise in his first two seasons, burying 27 and 26 goals, respectively, while collecting 63 and then 61 points. He busted out with 54 goals and 96 points in 1980-81, leading the NHL (including Wayne Gretzky and Mike Bossy) in even-strength markers with a remarkable 40.
However, Babych couldn't match that production in the following years, failing to surpass the 20-goal or 54-point marks, both of which he notched in 1984-85. His career was over by 1987.
Warren Young
One year before Bjugstad's outlier campaign, Young had a similarly surprising season in 1984-85, as the center piled up 40 goals and 72 points across 80 games for the Penguins. He hadn't played more than 15 games or scored more than a single marker in the three previous (albeit extremely abbreviated) campaigns, and his 22-goal output in 1985-86 was the closest he came to duplicating his one impressive season. Young was out of the league by 1988.
Fernando Pisani
Dave Sandford / Getty Images Sport / Getty
Edmonton Oilers fans surely remember Pisani for his incredible playoff output in 2006. The depth player wasn't known for his scoring ability throughout his eight-year career, except for during that postseason, when he racked up a league-leading 14 goals in 24 games while helping the Oilers get to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final.
Pisani produced a career-high 18 goals during the regular season, but that was over an 80-game span. He never managed to replicate the offensive prowess he enjoyed that spring, and he played his final NHL game in 2011.
Brad Maxwell
Following a 47-point season as a rookie in 1977-78, Maxwell - a defenseman - failed to match that production until he exploded for 73 points across 78 games with the North Stars in 1983-84. However, he never came close to duplicating that success and was out of the league by 1987.
Doug Lidster
Lidster, another blue-liner, played 16 NHL seasons and twice hoisted the Stanley Cup. However, he barely played during either of those title runs (four games and only 32 minutes in the 1999 playoffs, and only nine games in the 1994 postseason). Lidster produced 343 points in 897 career contests, averaging only 21 points per campaign.
But something clicked for him in 1986-87 with the last-place Vancouver Canucks, as he poured in 51 assists and 63 points across 80 games. He hadn't broken 30 points beforehand, and a 38-point season in 1990-91 was the best he could do after his breakout.
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NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said the idea of beginning the next NHL campaign two months later than usual isn't out of the realm of possibility.
"We have a great deal of flexibility in terms of when we can start," Bettman told the NHL Network on Thursday. "There's no magic for next season of starting in October as we traditionally do. If we have to start in November or December, that's something that will be under consideration."
Bettman also made it clear there's still no definitive timeline for a resumption of the currently paused season.
"I don't think anybody knows for certain," he said. "We're going to have to take things one step at a time, because the health and well-being of our players is paramount to anything we're focused on."
It was reported earlier this week that the league discussed the possibility of pushing the start of next season until December and that it still wanted to play a full 82-game slate next campaign.
That followed a report that suggested the NHL would be willing to delay the opening of the season until November to complete the current one.
On Wednesday night, the NHL and NHLPA said in a joint statement that they may be able to move on to "Phase 2" of a return-to-play plan - which would involve reopening team facilities - by mid-to-late May if conditions continue to progress.
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Georges Laraque has the coronavirus.
The former NHL enforcer revealed his diagnosis Thursday on Twitter and Instagram.
Bon je ne suis pas invincible, je viens tout juste d’être diagnostiqué avec le Covid, pas la meilleure nouvelle étant donné que je suis asthmatique, ca va aller! I guess I’m not invincible, just got diagnosed with Covid, since I’m asthmatic, not the best news, will fight it off! pic.twitter.com/KIgo8Ra0sT
The Ottawa Senators are ready to sign KHL defenseman Artyom Zub to a one-year, entry-level contract, reports TSN's Darren Dreger, who adds that no delays are expected, so the pact should soon be finalized.
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The NHL could move on to the second stage of an eventual return over the next month.
In a memo to teams and players, the league said Wednesday it may be able to reopen facilities in mid-to-late May, "provided we continue to trend favorably," TSN's Frank Seravalli reports.
The document also instructed players currently outside their club cities to "consider whether to plan to return" to where their teams are located. For the time being, however, Seravalli added that teams and players have been told to continue abiding by the previous recommendations the NHL issued since pausing the campaign amid the coronavirus pandemic March 12.
Players, coaches, and team staff were most recently asked to self-quarantine through April 30. That end date has been extended three times during the hiatus.
It was reported last week that at least one NHL team informed its players to get ready to report for informal workouts beginning May 15.
The Vancouver Canucks' No. 1 goaltender has been given the green light to return, general manager Jim Benning said Wednesday.
Markstrom underwent a minor procedure in late February after suffering an injury against the Boston Bruins. Benning said at the time that the netminder could miss three-to-four weeks.
The NHL paused its season March 12 amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Markstrom, a pending unrestricted free agent, said last week that he hopes to sign a long-term deal with the Canucks, but he stressed that hockey is secondary at the moment.
The Swede was in the midst of his best NHL campaign to date when he was hurt, having posted a .918 save percentage in 43 games.
