Canadian-born actor and comedian Will Arnett will host the annual NHL Awards show in Las Vegas on June 22, the league announced Tuesday.

For the first time ever, the show will be held at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino. Other iconic Vegas venues including the Palms Hotel and MGM Grand have previously hosted the event.

A full lineup of celebrity presenters and entertainment will be released at a later date, but Arnett, a Toronto Maple Leafs fan, was happy to jump on the opportunity to host the awards this year.

"I'm excited to host the 2016 NHL Awards because we all know in 2017 I'll be too busy celebrating the Leafs winning the Stanley Cup," Arnett said.

Finalists for each award will be announced starting April 27, when the finalists for the Vezina Trophy will be revealed.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Vancouver Canucks have signed center Markus Granlund to a two-year contract extension.

The deal is believed to be worth $1.8 million.

The 23-year-old, acquired by the Canucks from Calgary in exchange for Hunter Shinkaruk back in February, recorded two goals and an assist in 16 games with Vancouver this season.

Originally drafted by the Flames in the second round of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft, Granlund has scored 16 goals and added 15 assists in 102 career games.

He is set to represent Finland at the 2016 IIHF World Championship in May.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Warning: This video contains NSFW language

Things got tense as Dan Boyle addressed the media for the final time this season.

The New York Rangers defenseman, who announced Tuesday he's leaning towards retirement, made it clear he wanted New York Post columnist Larry Brooks removed from the scrum before proceeding.

"I don't want him here," Boyle said.

Then, to Brooks himself, he said, "Nobody likes you. Nobody respects you. Just so you know."

More from the exchange, from Puck Daddy's Greg Wyshynski:

"At least I'm leaving here with the respect of my teammates," said Boyle. "Instead of (expletive) someone like you, who tries to bury somebody. That's all you do. It's not a critique. I'm telling you I don't want you here. I have no respect for you. I want you to get the (expletive) out."

"I don't care what you think," said Brooks.

"I can tell you to get the (expletive) out if I want to!" said Boyle, his voice now raised.

"You can, but I don't have to listen to you," said Brooks.

"Yeah, ya do!" said Boyle. "I want him out. And that other (expletive) clown, Brett, or whatever the (expletive) his name is. Where's he at? Everyone else is fine. I want him out. It's my right."

Rangers staff stepped in to calm the scene down, and suggested Boyle not speak to the media at that time.

Boyle also asked for the removal of Brett Cyrgalis, also of the Post, who was not in attendance to begin with.

Once the dust had settled, Boyle said he is indeed leaning towards calling it a career, although he believes he can still physically handle the rigors of professional hockey.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

When the Chicago Blackhawks and Los Angeles Kings fell behind in each of their first-round matchups, the following Tweet from user @Slaylen began generating plenty of buzz in hockey's social-media realm:

So on Tuesday - the morning after the Blackhawks were "bounced" along with the Kings - Daylen Hopkins, the New York Rangers fan behind the @Slaylen account, appeared on ESPN, and confirmed he would indeed follow through with his promise.

Hopkins said he plans to get it done in the next few weeks, but might "crowd fund it" if the people want it sooner.

Also, there's this:

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Derick Brassard will wear the maple leaf for the first time in more than a decade.

The New York Rangers announced Tuesday that Brassard will head to Russia and represent Canada at next month's World Championship.

Brassard scored a career-best 27 goals and totalled 58 points this season, also sharing the postseason scoring lead with a goal and three assists in five games.

He won a silver medal with Canada at the 2005 world junior tournament.

The Rangers also confirmed that defender Brady Skjei will head to Russia, and represent the United States.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

No one has built up more momentum than Patrik Laine before draft night.

Four days before the NHL Draft Lottery, the projected No. 2 overall selection was awarded the Jarri Kurri Trophy as the MVP of the Finnish league playoffs.

Laine, who turned 18 last week, dominated the men who play in Finland's top division, scoring 10 goals and adding five assists in 18 games to lead Tappara Tampere in winning the country's club championship.

Related: Watch - Patrik Laine still blowing the top off the Finnish playoffs

Here's Laine's goal from Tuesday's final, likely his last overseas - at least for quite some time.

He finished with 27 goals and 48 points in 64 games across the regular season and playoffs, or .015 points per game better than fellow touted draft-eligible Finn, Jesse Puljujarvi.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The "Spacey in Space" hoodie was one of the best stories to come out of the Florida Panthers' 2015-16 season, but alas, all good things must come to an end.

With the Panthers now out of the playoffs, the team will be retiring "Spacey in Space."

Related: After 'Spacey in Space,' 5 more NHL/celebrity team-ups we want to see

Veteran winger Shawn Thornton said Tuesday that he may auction off the original hoodie, which features Kevin Spacey's face floating in space, to benefit his foundation.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

CHICAGO - No June hockey for the Chicago Blackhawks this year. Heck, even May is a blank slate.

Plenty of time for Chicago to plan for its sticky situation with the salary cap.

The Blackhawks' title defense ended Monday night when they lost 3-2 to the St. Louis Blues in Game 7 of their compelling first-round series. Six of the seven games were decided by one goal, and Brent Seabrook and Andrew Ladd each had a shot go off both goal posts during losses for Chicago.

It's the quickest exit for the Blackhawks since they also dropped their first playoff series in 2012. They won the Stanley Cup the following year, lost to the Los Angeles Kings in an epic Western Conference finals in 2014 and won the championship again last year.

While Chicago should be able to contend for another title next season - most of its talented core is signed to long-term deals - it's also going to have to say goodbye to several players because of its ongoing wrestling match with the salary cap. Ladd, Dale Weise and Tomas Fleischmann - each of them acquired in deadline trades - likely will leave in free agency, and Andrew Shaw, Richard Panik and Brandon Mashinter also could be headed out the door.

The 24-year-old Shaw, who has spent his entire career in Chicago, is eligible for restricted free agency. He had 14 goals and 20 assists in the regular season, and then led the Blackhawks with four playoff goals despite being suspended for Game 5 for using a gay slur.

Coach Joel Quenneville loves Shaw's grit and presence in front of the net, but it's going to be difficult for general manager Stan Bowman to keep the pesky forward. Bowman faced a similar situation last summer with Brandon Saad, a younger, more talented player than Shaw, but also eligible for restricted free agency, and the Blackhawks traded him to Columbus on June 30.

Panik also can become a restricted free agent, and Mashinter is eligible for unrestricted free agency. Panik was acquired in a January trade with Toronto and showed promise in the playoffs against the Blues. Mashinter had four goals and an assist in 41 games this season after beginning the year with no points in 23 career NHL games.

Shedding Bryan Bickell's salary could provide some much needed cap relief, but the Blackhawks have been unable to trade the underperforming winger. Bowman likely would have to pair Bickell with one of Chicago's prospects to pull off such a deal, and the team might be inclined to ride out the last year of the forward's $16 million, four-year contract instead.

No matter who stays or goes, the Blackhawks likely will have a very similar look next season. Patrick Kane, coming off his first career scoring title, and captain Jonathan Toews lead one of the NHL's most potent attacks, and Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook and Niklas Hjalmarsson anchor one of the league's best defenses.

The extra time off for their biggest stars will help, but any hope of any significant improvement likely rests with the development of their younger players, namely on the blue line.

Trevor van Riemsdyk played in 82 games this season and led the team with 155 blocks. Erik Gustafsson, another 24-year-old defenseman, made his NHL debut in October and finished with 14 assists in 41 games.

But van Riemsdyk had a couple of costly gaffes in the playoffs and Gustafsson played just seven minutes in each of the last two games against St. Louis. They have to provide more support for Keith, Seabrook and Hjalmarsson for Chicago to make another deep run in the postseason.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.