Fred Sasakamoose, one of the first Indigenous players in NHL history, has been hospitalized due to a suspected case of COVID-19.

The hockey pioneer was admitted to a health facility Friday for treatment after having symptoms for a couple of days, according to a Facebook post from the official account of his national hockey championship. He was presumed positive at the time and was awaiting test results.

Sasakamoose's son, Neil, said Saturday afternoon that though his mother was initially misinformed about Fred's diagnosis, they were later told it was a presumed positive test. Neil added that Fred was experiencing shortness of breath and wheezing before being admitted to hospital Friday.

On Saturday evening, a nurse at the hospital took a photo of Sasakamoose smiling beside her, and the image was uploaded to the same Facebook account with a caption stating, "We just talked to him and he is fighting." One day later, Sasakamoose said in a short video he is "OK" and feeling better.

The 86-year-old played 11 games with the Chicago Blackhawks in 1953-54 and was named to the Order of Canada in 2017.

Copyright © 2020 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Never doubt the tortoise's ability to cross the finish line on top.

U.S. authorities allowed Braden Holtby and his two pet reptiles to leave the country and cross into Canada on Friday, following an ordeal that left the Vancouver Canucks goaltender and his animal companions stranded at the border for several days.

On Wednesday, Holtby's wife, Brandi, asked her Twitter followers for help dealing with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service because the couple hadn't realized they needed to file export papers for the creatures in addition to import documents.

The next day, she revealed the government agency was on the case.

Finally, on Friday, she provided an update that brought the snafu to a satisfying conclusion.

Holtby, who was born in Saskatchewan, will play for a Canadian team for the first time in his NHL career next season. He signed a two-year, $8.6-million contract with the Canucks in October after spending 10 years with the Washington Capitals.

Copyright © 2020 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Aesop once wrote that "slow and steady wins the race," and it appears U.S. Customs is doing its best to pay tribute to the classic fable.

On Wednesday, Vancouver Canucks goaltender Braden Holtby's wife, Brandi, asked her Twitter followers for help with a pet-related problem.

Later, she explained in a reply that the couple filed papers with the Canadian government but didn't realize they needed to do the same with the American authorities.

She also reiterated that Braden himself can't get into Canada because of the issue.

The netminder signed with the Canucks in October after playing 10 seasons with the Washington Capitals.

In May, the two animal lovers rescued a trapped kitten with the help of some passersby.

Copyright © 2020 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The ECHL's six North Division clubs will suspend play for the 2020-21 campaign, the league announced Wednesday.

The Adirondack Thunder, Brampton Beast, Maine Mariners, Newfoundland Growlers, Reading Royals, and Worcester Railers will each sit out the season due to the ECHL's COVID-19 policy. All six teams are scheduled to return for 2021-22.

All players on the North Division clubs are now free agents.

"As we continue to navigate the continually changing regulations across North America, we recognize the difficult nature of this decision," ECHL commissioner Ryan Crelin said in a statement. "While some of our teams' host cities have allowed upcoming plans to include fans inside arenas, we unfortunately do not see the same path for these highly affected areas in the Northeast."

Here are the division's NHL affiliations:

Wednesday's decision leaves 18 ECHL teams set to participate in 2020-21. The Atlanta Gladiators - who are affiliated with the Boston Bruins - and the unaffiliated Norfolk Admirals previously opted out of the campaign.

The ECHL is set to use a two-tiered system for the coming season. Thirteen teams will begin 72-game schedules on Dec. 11, while the other clubs will open 62-game slates on Jan. 15 "upon jurisdictional approval," according to ESPN's Greg Wyshynski.

Copyright © 2020 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Akim Aliu is pleased the Florida Panthers are hiring Brett Peterson, the former player agent who's believed to be the NHL's first Black assistant general manager.

"It's massive," Aliu, the co-head of the Hockey Diversity Alliance, told TSN's Kate Beirness. "It's a huge step in hopefully the right direction, and I couldn't be more thrilled. ... This is kind of what we're pushing for, and it's long overdue.

"We feel that there's a lot of people of color that are deserving of jobs and also people from different genders - obviously, women I think are very (adept at) doing a good job in the game of hockey - so we think this is a step in the right direction where hopefully this is the first of many."

Though Aliu approves of the move, he believes the NHL still has room for improvement.

"Honestly, it's a relief to see that things are kind of starting to come together, but I just think we've still got a lot of work to do," he said. "I think there are still people that are not super happy with some of the issues that are going on in our game and are not ready to accept the issues that have been going on in our game."

The Panthers hired Peterson on Tuesday, reuniting new Florida GM Bill Zito with his former colleague in player representation. The two worked together with Acme World Sports, the company Zito founded before leaving for the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2013.

Peterson's hiring continues a recent trend of minority hires in the NHL. Manny Malhotra joined the Toronto Maple Leafs as an assistant coach in September while the Philadelphia Flyers added Chris Stewart to their player development staff. In October, the Pittsburgh Penguins tabbed Trevor Daley as a hockey operations advisor upon his retirement. Stewart and Daley are two of the nine founders of the HDA.

Copyright © 2020 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Florida Panthers made a historic hiring Tuesday, naming Brett Peterson assistant general manager.

Peterson is believed to be the NHL's first Black assistant GM, according to the club.

The 39-year-old most recently served as vice president of hockey for Wasserman Media Group, a multi-sport marketing and talent management company. He's been a certified NHL player agent since 2009.

Peterson suited up for four seasons with Boston College as a defenseman from 2000-2004, helping the school win the national championship in 2001.

The Massachusetts-born executive reunites with Panthers GM Bill Zito, who founded Acme World Sports. Wasserman acquired Acme in June. Zito worked with Peterson at Acme before the Columbus Blue Jackets hired the now-Florida GM in 2013.

The Panthers also brought in former agent Paul Krepelka as an assistant GM earlier in November.

Copyright © 2020 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Wayne Gretzky is second to none in the hockey world, but he'll happily play second fiddle to support a certain golfer in the family.

The Great One posed with Dustin Johnson while wearing full Masters caddie attire after the world No. 1 won the tournament in record fashion Sunday, as Paulina Gretzky's friend, Kristina Melnichenko, captured in her Instagram story.

Well, almost full caddie attire.

Johnson is engaged to Paulina, Wayne's daughter, and they have two young sons. The elder Gretzky has often supported Johnson in person at his events, though he now appears to have taken things to an entirely new level.

Copyright © 2020 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

University of Wisconsin head coach Tony Granato isn't happy Hockey Canada is prying away one of his best players for a significant portion of the college season.

Granato is frustrated the governing body of Canadian hockey is taking Dylan Holloway - the Edmonton Oilers' first-round pick in this year's draft - for its lengthy evaluation camp ahead of the upcoming World Junior Hockey Championship. The promising forward will miss the final 10 games of the NCAA campaign's first half as a result.

"They've said all along that they need and want and he has to be here," Granato told the Wisconsin State Journal's Todd D. Milewski after a victory over Notre Dame on Saturday. "So from my side of things, I don't think it's right because his opportunity here to get ready for a world junior tournament playing games like this is a heck of a lot better than scrimmaging (with) 20 of your teammates that you're going to be in the tournament with."

Holloway left the Badgers on Sunday to fly to Red Deer, Alberta, site of the 28-day camp. The tournament ultimately begins Dec. 25 in Edmonton.

By contrast, USA Hockey plans to begin gathering players around Dec. 10 and already hosted initial evaluation sessions in October, according to Milewski. Wisconsin star and Montreal Canadiens prospect Cole Caufield could be among those considered for the U.S. squad.

Holloway, a sophomore center, scored the game-winner in highlight-reel fashion Saturday after tallying in the season opener Friday. Hockey Canada cut him at its evaluation camp before the previous world junior tournament.

Copyright © 2020 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The unique circumstances of the 2019-20 NHL season will give the Tampa Bay Lightning an opportunity no other club has ever enjoyed.

For the first time, the Stanley Cup winners' names will already be engraved when each member of the championship team gets their day with the trophy.

"We've been thinking outside of the box," Phil Pritchard, one of two keepers of the Cup, told the Tampa Bay Times' Eduardo A. Encina. "(We've been asking ourselves,) 'How can we make some positives in a non-traditional, kind of negative time in the world?' and this (was) one of them. Let's get the Cup engraved so when we do have that opportunity, the guys can celebrate it. So, it's a huge positive I think, and everyone (agreed) with it."

Usually, the champions' names are engraved just before the start of the following season, after each title-winning player has already spent their day with the Cup. Because of pandemic protocols pertaining to travel, the Lightning haven't had the chance to take turns bringing the trophy to their respective hometowns, according to Encina.

While waiting for the go-ahead to carry out that tradition, the hardware was sent to Montreal to be engraved.

"Not every player has seen their name on it as of yet," Pritchard said. "A lot have, and it's pretty cool. To me, if there's one thing we could do moving forward when we go back to, say, a regular year, I would push for that. The emotions are so powerful when someone sees their name on the Cup."

The Lightning won Lord Stanley's mug Sept. 28 and partied with it during their much-criticized parade two days later.

Copyright © 2020 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Brent Seabrook says he'll be ready to contribute next season and is motivated to prove it after having his 2019-20 campaign cut short by multiple surgeries.

"I feel like I'm 19 years old again trying to make the team," the Chicago Blackhawks defenseman told The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun earlier this week. "I'm skating and doing treatment and doing all these extra things here and there. Just trying to get prepared and ready, get the flexibility back - which was a battle for a while - and get the skating back, which has been great. The last two-to-three weeks I've felt really good on the ice. … It's been incredible."

Seabrook added that he has no plans to quit despite his injuries, advanced age, and declining production.

"I'm excited for training camp," he said. "I'm excited for the opportunity to get back out there and show everybody what I got. I'm not done playing hockey. I get that 35 is old in the sports world, but I don't feel old, I still feel young."

The blue-liner was limited to 32 games last season. He underwent three procedures over a six-week span beginning in late December, having his right shoulder repaired followed by both of his hips. The 15-year veteran, who played his final game of the campaign Dec. 15, tried to return for the playoffs but failed to crack Chicago's postseason roster.

Seabrook collected only four points while posting a 41.22 expected goals for percentage and a 41.53 scoring chances for rate during his abbreviated 2019-20 season.

He's spent his entire career with the Blackhawks, helping them win the Stanley Cup in 2010, 2013, and 2015. However, Seabrook's playing time has steadily declined in the years since those titles.

Seabrook has four years left on his contract at a cap hit of $6,875,000. The Blackhawks parted with two key members of their championship core this offseason, as goaltender Corey Crawford signed with the New Jersey Devils and forward Brandon Saad was traded to the Colorado Avalanche.

Copyright © 2020 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.