Welcome to Puck Pursuit, an interview-style podcast hosted by John Matisz, theScore's national hockey writer.

Subscribe to the show on iTunes, SoundCloud, Stitcher, and Spotify.

Todd Woodcroft, former Winnipeg Jets assistant coach and new University of Vermont head coach, joins the show to discuss a variety of topics, including:

• Why Todd left the NHL/Jets for the NCAA/UVM
• Short- and long-term challenges for UVM
• Lessons learned from old boss Paul Maurice
• What ex-Jet Dustin Byfuglien meant to Winnipeg
• Patrik Laine's underrated strength, physicality

... and much more!

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Alex Ovechkin and Wayne Gretzky took their talents to the virtual world, and they didn't disappoint.

The Great One and the Great Eight faced off Wednesday night in NHL 20 on the Washington Capitals' Twitch stream to raise money for coronavirus relief.

In the first of two games they played, Gretzky opened the scoring, and it's safe to say Ovi was not happy.

Late in the second period, Ovechkin evened things up with the help of a relatively new addition to the Capitals' lineup.

The Capitals superstar's flair for the dramatic and penchant for exuberant celebrations extend to video games, too, as Ovechkin forced overtime with a goal in the dying seconds.

However, No. 99 got the last laugh in the extra frame.

Ovechkin exacted some revenge in the second game, scoring as himself less than a minute in.

Gretzky played alongside his son, Ty, in the first game, but switched to his other son, Trevor, for the second contest. After Ovechkin scored to make it 2-0 in the latter affair, the Great One had a great line about his decision to change partners.

Ovechkin held on for a 4-1 victory, which they agreed to end after two periods.

Both competitors shared parting messages on Twitter afterward.

The event raised more than $20,000, and both participants' families matched half of that total apiece to bring it up to $40,000, the Capitals announced. The funds will be split between the Edmonton Food Bank and Monumental Sports and Entertainment Foundation's "Feeding the Frontlines" fund.

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New York Knicks and Rangers owner James Dolan has recovered from the coronavirus, a Knicks spokesperson told The Athletic's Shams Charania.

Dolan has donated his blood plasma toward research for potential treatments, Charania adds.

The 64-year-old executive tested positive for COVID-19 on March 28. He was said to be experiencing little-to-no symptoms and continued to oversee the team.

A day after the Knicks announced Dolan's diagnosis, it was reported that the NBA requested personnel within the league to consider donating plasma to the National COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma Project.

Dolan is the only NBA team owner known to have contracted the virus.

In the state of New York, there have been more than 257,000 confirmed cases of the coronavirus and over 15,000 deaths as of Wednesday, according to The New York Times.

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The NHL is targeting July as a potential return date as it continues to evaluate all options for resuming the 2019-20 season, Florida Panthers president Matthew Caldwell said Wednesday, according to The Florida Channel.

"At least for the NHL, we're trying to target sometime in July and then when we feel that players are safe, we have enough testing, and have enough ways to get back on the ice, it's probably going to be contained to playing at four or five neutral sites so that's all being discussed right now," Caldwell said. "My guess is that we would start with either limited fans or empty arenas.

"None of this has been finalized but this is the direction things are going."

What Caldwell means by neutral sites is unclear, as ESPN's Greg Wyshynski and Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman both reported earlier Wednesday that the league's plan to host games at non-NHL arenas has been abandoned. According to the report, the league is now shifting it's focus toward two-to-four regular NHL cities where the coronavirus outbreak is contained and restrictions would allow it.

The league's ability to test players for COVID-19 will also be paramount to its return, and commissioner Gary Bettman reportedly has plans to connect with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to discuss potential testing options.

Another hurdle is the fact players have been self-quarantining in their own homes for over one month, and haven't been able to skate or train to a degree that would keep them in game shape.

"I know for the NHL, our players are quarantined until the end of April which will probably be extended into May," Caldwell said. "When we are able to come out from the quarantined period, players are going to need time to work out. I think all leagues are considering some type of mini training camp before the start of the season so that's going to take us into June."

Bettman said players will need at least two-to-three weeks of training camp before the season resumes.

The campaign was officially suspended March 12. All eight NHL players who tested positive for the virus have since recovered.

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Find out the latest on COVID-19's impact on the sports world and when sports are returning by subscribing to Breaking News push notifications in the Sports and COVID-19 section.

The NHL is abandoning the idea of potentially resuming its 2019-20 season using non-league arenas as a solution, ESPN's Greg Wyshynski and Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman report.

Despite interest from various cities, the plan never gained traction due to a lack of accommodations and difficulty televising games. The league is now shifting its focus toward two-to-four regular NHL cities where the coronavirus outbreak is contained and restrictions would allow games to be played, but there's no timetable at this point, Wyshynski adds.

The NHL is focusing on one arena per division. The home rinks of the Carolina Hurricanes (Metropolitan), Edmonton Oilers (Pacific), and Minnesota Wild (Central) are currently the front-runners. A location for the Atlantic Division is yet to be determined.

Four cities contacted the league after the NHL went on pause March 12: Saskatoon, Saskatchewan; Grand Forks, North Dakota; and Manchester, New Hampshire.

Washington Capitals forward T.J. Oshie was among the players to speak out on potentially playing neutral-site games, saying he'd play anywhere if it brought back the chance to compete for a Stanley Cup.

The NHL pushed its self-quarantine period to April 30 last week, and several options to ensure a fair format for all teams and safety for players are being considered as the pandemic persists across North America.

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Find out the latest on COVID-19's impact on the sports world and when sports are returning by subscribing to Breaking News push notifications in the Sports and COVID-19 section.

NHL general managers and executives will be paying close attention to the NFL's first-ever virtual draft on Thursday, as they could be following suit in a few months.

"It's going to be really interesting," Flames general manager Brad Treliving told The Canadian Press. "I know the NHL is watching what they're doing closely. We may be following their lead."

"Certainly our draft is going to be remote, that would be safe to say," Treliving continued. "For sure I'm going to be watching (the NFL draft) and doing a lot of homework on not only that, but different ideas of how we could potentially do our draft."

The NFL's draft will be held virtually due to coronavirus-related restrictions on mass gatherings. Teams recently went through a trial run, and despite some technical glitches at the start, the overall success of the proceedings satisfied GMs.

The NHL draft, originally scheduled for June 26-27 in Montreal, was postponed last month. A makeup date and potential new format haven't been determined yet.

Montreal Canadiens assistant general manager Trevor Timmins believes the NFL's execution of a virtual draft will give the NHL a solid example.

"We can learn a lot from that - what works, what doesn't work," Timmons said. "I've been in contact with my NFL contacts discussing how they are preparing with the limitations."

"We should all pay attention," he added.

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Despite a free-agency landscape that's completely up in the air, Arizona Coyotes general manager John Chayka won't let the NHL's current stoppage prevent him from trying to lock up forward Taylor Hall to a long-term deal.

Hall was recently asked whether he'd prefer to seek a long-term deal as an unrestricted free agent this offseason, or if he'd rather settle for a one-year contract in case teams are wary of big commitments after the coronavirus-induced pause. The winger said he wants security, and Chayka won't let the hiatus affect Arizona's efforts to retain its star.

"At the end of the day, the NHL will still be here, once we work through everything," Chayka told ESPN's Greg Wyshynski. "The Coyotes will be as well. I don't think long term vs. short term is a huge discussion vs. what it's going to look like. There's certainly implications of this. I'm not saying it doesn't apply. But we weren't afraid to have a discussion about a longer term before, and this doesn't change that opinion."

The Coyotes made a major splash by acquiring Hall from the New Jersey Devils in December. The 28-year-old headlines the list of pending free-agent forwards slated to hit the market whenever the NHL's signing period opens.

Hall had notched 52 points in 65 games this season before the break began on March 12, including 27 points in 35 games after the trade to Arizona.

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