The arena's parent company, Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment, recently notified the club in writing that the window to renegotiate the terms of the license agreement is open, as per the terms of the deal.
Baumbach and Brodsky further explain what this means:
The two sides have until Jan. 1, 2018, to renegotiate the terms, according to the summary of the license agreement previously obtained by Newsday. If no new deal is reached, the two sides can stay with the current deal or choose to opt out. Each side would have until Jan. 30, 2018, to deliver an opt-out notice in writing.
If the Islanders decide to opt out, the team can choose to leave at the end of next season or at the end of the 2018-19 season. If Barclays triggers the opt-out, the Islanders would have to leave after the 2018-19 season.
Back in April, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman confirmed the Islanders are planning to submit a bid to build an arena in Belmont Park, while Baumbach and Brodsky report the operators of Barclays Center will present a plan that would send the team back to a freshly renovated Nassau Coliseum.
The letter is described as a procedural step, and both the Islanders and Barclays Center declined to comment.
The Golden Knights hope Vadim Shipachyov brings his hot streak to Sin City.
After signing a two-year deal Thursday with the NHL's newest franchise, the former KHL star has given Golden Knights fans a preview of his game as he skates with Team Russia at the World Championship.
In early tournament action, Shipachyov has put up two goals and four assists through three games, good for third in team scoring behind Nikita Kucherov and Artemi Panarin, who have recorded seven and nine points, respectively.
Shipachyov spent this season with St. Petersburg SKA of the KHL, where he was second in team scoring with 76 points. He finished two points shy of former NHL superstar Ilya Kovalchuk, despite playing in 10 fewer games.
Shipachyov is the second free agent to sign with the Golden Knights after the club agreed to terms with Brandon Wheat Kings forward Reid Duke in March.
But he may not be the only KHL free agent to sign in Sin City. General manager George McPhee confirmed reports the Golden Knights are pursuing Shipachyov's KHL teammate Evgeny Dadonov.
Dadonov, 28, appeared in 53 games with St. Petersburg SKA this season, finishing with 30 goals and 36 assists.
Lombardi last served as general manager of the Kings, leading the team to Stanley Cup championships in 2012 and 2014. He was fired in April following a second playoff miss in three seasons.
While it's unclear what role Lombardi would have with the Flyers, his addition would mark a reunion with Flyers general manager Ron Hextall.
Hextall was a part of the Kings organization from 2006-13, where he served as assistant GM to Lombardi. He joined the Flyers in 2013.
Lombardi is also familiar with Philadelphia, as he served as a scout with the Flyers from 2003-06 prior to joining Los Angeles.
Game 6 goes Monday night from Pittsburgh, and the Caps will have to deal with a Pens squad attempting to shake things up.
Enter the HBK line.
Last postseason, ahead of another Game 6 second-round matchup against the very same Capitals, head coach Mike Sullivan decided to throw together a third-line combination that had some people raising brows.
Believe it or not, the move paid off immediately - Hagelin had three points, Kessel had two goals, and Bonino buried the overtime game-winner.
Coach Sullivan and the rest of the Penguins are surely hoping for the same kind of success in this year's Game 6 against Washington, as the bench boss has once again reunited the unlikely trio.
— Pens Inside Scoop (@PensInsideScoop) May 8, 2017
The shakeup was felt up and down Pittsburgh's lineup, with the successful combo of Jake Guentzel and Sidney Crosby being split up, and Chris Kunitz dropped to the fourth line.
Last year, the HBK line lit a fire in the Penguins that carried them all the way to a Cup title.
Expecting them to do the same thing this year is child's play. But can the trio provide a spark to get the Pens by the Caps and into the Eastern Conference Final for a second straight year?
Heading into Monday's Game 6 in Pittsburgh, the two-time defending Presidents' Trophy winners face elimination at the hands of the rival Penguins for the second consecutive year.
Faced with the prospect of history repeating itself, head coach Barry Trotz is encouraging his players to focus on the present while being mindful of the past, all with a view to changing the narrative going forward.
"I think we just said, 'Embrace our past,'" Trotz said, per Tom Gulitti of NHL.com. "Our past is what it is. We can't change it, but what we can do is change our future. I think we've changed our mindset on that. You don't have to tell us what the past is. We already know.
"That's what I'm saying. We're just focusing on this game."
A loss would signal the latest in a string of playoff failures for the franchise, magnifying the reality that Washington has not advanced past the second round in the Alex Ovechkin era.
The Penguins, of course, went on to win the Stanley Cup after eliminating the Capitals last year, just as they did upon setting Washington aside in 2009.
A win for the Capitals in Game 6 would set up a decisive Game 7 back in the nation's capital on Wednesday.
The Washington Capitals are coming off their third-best season in franchise history, after pacing the league with 118 points. However, the playoffs have been another story.
The Capitals squeaked by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first round, needing three overtime victories to get by the rookie-heavy squad. In the second round, they're up against the reigning Stanley Cup champs, the Pittsburgh Penguins, and, after falling behind 3-1 in the series, will look to avoid elimination for the second straight game Monday night.
Heading into their second do-or-die game of the series, the Capitals will hope Alex Ovechkin and Braden Holtby are up to their old tricks, and that they get some help elsewhere.
However, if they're unable to come back to take the series, some major questions will have to be asked, and none of them are easy to answer.
Can you tear down a dominant regular-season team?
Answering questions about the Capitals' future is so hard because they've been so dominant in the regular season over the last two campaigns.
The team has won back-to-back Presidents' Trophies, and has ranked atop the league in almost every statistical category during that span.
Category
Stat
League rank
GF/G
3.10
2
GA/G
2.24
1
PP%
22.5%
1
PK%
84.5%
3
Shots/G
30.5
T-8
SA/G
28.1
4
CF%
51.42
6
Some argue the Capitals need to tear it down or make some drastic changes to their core, but it's hard to wreck a club that has been so good in so many facets of the game.
Suggesting that Barry Trotz's job could be in jeopardy also doesn't seem realistic, given he's led Washington to the best record in the league in his only two years with the club.
Will they have the money to make moves in offseason?
Of course, an early exit will mean an attempt to upgrade in the offseason.
In all, the team is expected to have $22.8 million in cap space, but the problem is they also have some restricted free agents who could be in line for raises.
Evgeny Kuznetsov, Andre Burakovsky, and Dmitry Orlov highlight a list of six roster players who will be RFAs, and it can be argued that both Kuznetsov and Orlov deserve a pay bump.
That means what seems like a surplus of riches might not be so, and the Capitals could be hard-pressed to entertain free agents July 1.
Can a roster with this core succeed?
It's the daunting question that general manager Brian MacLellan might have to ponder very hard.
On paper, Ovechkin, Holtby, Nicklas Backstrom, and John Carlson appear to be as strong of a core as any around the league - with all being among the best at their respective positions.
They've been together full time since the 2012-13 season - when Holtby took over between the pipes - but in that time the Capitals have never made it past the second round. In fact, they haven't made it that far since the 1997-98 season.
It seems far-fetched that the team would ever deal one of the four, but after countless playoff failures, maybe it's worth considering.
And that's the biggest issue of them all: the fact that - at least on paper - there are no glaring problems with this team; that questions such as this have to be asked. The Capitals have all the skill in the world, and during the regular season have proven to be the team to beat.
They aren't done yet, but if they don't get two victories in their next two games - beginning Monday night - these questions will become very real.
The NHL has a problem - a really big problem - that is beginning to overshadow this year's Stanley Cup playoffs.
Goaltender interference.
It has never been more apparent than in Games 4 and 5 of the Western Conference second-round series between Edmonton and Anaheim, where the Oilers were clearly on the wrong end of botched goaltender interference calls - and it cost them both games in the series.
The rule leaves too much for interpretation. And in some situations, even though the rule is clear, it still isn't called properly.
The blown calls even have Hall Of Fame goaltender Grant Fuhr crying foul:
So now you can hang on to the goalies pad in the crease and that's okay #NHL#this is becoming a running joke
Ryan Getzlaf's first goal in Game 4 is clearly goaltender interference. Linemate Corey Perry comes through the front of the net on Oilers netminder Cam Talbot's blocker side, and slightly bumps his skate and stick. Getzlaf shoots and scores on the same side Perry had come across on Talbot.
Talbot has to be given the freedom to make a save attempt on the play. Perry's bump totally disregards that and throws the goaltender off. Edmonton is up 2-0 at the time and it completely changes the momentum as Anaheim went on to win the game.
Then, in Game 5, with the Oilers up 3-2 and with 15 seconds to go in regulation, Ducks forward Ryan Kesler is pushed into Talbot. This isn't Kelser's fault - in fact, if I'm him, if I get an inch I'm taking a mile. However, as he's down, he grabs Talbot's pad. What he's done is the epitome of goalie interference.
Anaheim scores to make it 3-3 and then goes on to win in overtime. Kesler grabbing Talbot's pad - and the call being missed - is unacceptable to me.
(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)
On the ice, I don't blame the officials. These are tough calls that happen quickly. Players shoot fast, everything happens fast, and that split second of interference can cause a goal. The officials, with some help from Toronto, are then pressured by 20,000 fans and two teams to make a decision on a tiny high-definition screen.
My favorite in all of this, however, is the conspiracy theory on my Twitter line which claims the NHL doesn't want the Oilers in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Right. No one wants to see Connor McDavid in the finals. It's terrible for the league.
Really? Ugh ... I can only shake my head.
My solution?
Make the rule black and white. No grey area.
When the goalie has any part of his body in the crease, even a fingernail, you cannot physically touch the goalie ever. Period. You can go in after the puck, but pushed in or not, when the goalie has any part of his body in the crease, you have to make your best effort to not touch the goalie. If you go after the puck and end up on the goalie, pushed or not, you took that risk.
I would also make it mandatory that the league must have a former NHL goalie in the video room in Toronto for every game. In a lot of situations, you have to have played the position to know what will affect a goalie and what won't. The position is completely different than any other in the game.
Oh, and if you don't like it ... you can call Grant.
It was raining hats in Edmonton on Sunday night at Rogers Place, courtesy of Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl, who netted three goals in the team's 7-1 victory over the Anaheim Ducks in Game 3 of their second-round series.
If you didn't happen to catch the game, the ice was covered with hats following the German's third goal of the game. Take a look:
Thanks to the amount of lids that were tossed onto the ice, the Edmonton Oilers Community Foundation will be donating them to various charities across the city.
The following five players are all key ingredients in the Washington Capitals' winning formula, but they haven't been up to the task through five games against the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Capitals will need better showings from all of them in Games 6 and 7 if they want to complete the series comeback after trailing 3-1.
T.J. Oshie
Oshie has yet to score in this series. If the Caps are going to pull off a comeback, they need more from a player who tied for the team lead in goals with 33 during the regular season.
What's most concerning about Oshie's play is that he has only taken seven shots through five games. That's simply not enough, especially considering he has averaged 20:37 minutes of ice time this series - the most among Capitals forwards.
Braden Holtby
(Photo courtesy: Action Images)
Facing the high-flying Penguins is obviously a tough task, but, frankly, Holtby has been terrible, sporting an .876 save percentage in the series.
He won the Vezina Trophy last season as the league's top goaltender, and was nominated again this year. They need him to start playing like the perennial Vezina candidate he is.
The Caps have outplayed the Pens all series. The only thing holding them back is Holtby, who has been bested by Marc-Andre Fleury in the opposite crease. It's been the difference in the series thus far.
Justin Williams
(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)
Williams is 35 years old, so it's hard to ask him to produce offensively like he did in his prime.
However, the Capitals signed him based on his postseason pedigree. He scored clutch goals throughout three Stanley Cup runs, and has seven game-winners in his playoff career.
Washington needs a big marker from this grizzled veteran, who has put up a goose egg in the goal column so far this series, if they plan on advancing past the Penguins.
Dmitry Orlov and Matt Niskanen
(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)
Even as their team dresses seven defensemen, Orlov and Niskanen need to elevate their games. The pairing is relied upon to play substantial minutes, but hasn't been up to the challenge so far.
They've been on the ice for a combined 34 scoring chances for and 43 scoring chances against so far in the postseason at five on five, according to Corsica Hockey.
Furthermore, the pairing has totaled 23 giveaways but only 13 takeaways in the playoffs. With the excellent transition game the Penguins possess, these two need to start making smarter decisions with the puck.
The most valuable member of the Nashville Predators might be a man who hasn't taken to the ice this season - or any season, for that matter.
General manager David Poile has been at the Predators' helm since the team's inception in 1998, and while the team has enjoyed marginal success in the past, it's certainly been no slouch either, with nine previous playoff appearances since the 2003-04 campaign.
With Sunday's Game 6 win over the St. Louis Blues, the Predators punched their ticket to the Western Conference Final for the first time in their history. Below are the biggest moves Poile made to turn his team into the juggernaut it appears to be:
Subban trade
(Photo courtesy: Action Images)
Some Montreal Canadiens fans vowed to never cheer for the team again after P.K. Subban was dealt. Whether they meant it or not, it's a pretty good indication that the Predators won that trade.
Subban has come exactly as advertised - not by Michel Therrien, though. He's been a competitor who gives his all on both ends, and a lively personality, too. Despite what some on-air personalities might think, though, he's also been all business for the Predators.
He posted 10 goals and 40 points during the regular season despite missing 16 games, and has added another seven points during the playoffs. He also helped limit Vladimir Tarasenko to just two goals and an assist in six games, which was certainly a big reason for the club's second-round victory.
Poile gouged his former team back in 2013, acquiring the young Swedish prospect for an aging Erat and Latta.
It took a couple seasons for Forsberg to become a full-time NHLer, but the 22-year-old, now in his third full season with the team, looks to be on his way to becoming a career Predator. He's also been a vital cog in the playoffs, with eight points in 10 games.
Meanwhile, Erat is coming off his first season in the Czech Extraliga, and Latta spent the 2016-17 season in the American Hockey League.
Impeccable draft record
While Poile has struck gold on a lot of his trades, what might be even more impressive is his knack for making the most of his draft selections. The Predators' current roster is proof of that:
Player
Year drafted
Round drafted (selection)
'16-17 Playoff points/SV%
Roman Josi
2008
2 (38)
8
Ryan Ellis
2009
1 (11)
9
Colton Scissons
2012
2 (50)
6
Viktor Arvidsson
2014
4 (112)
5
Mattias Ekholm
2009
4 (102)
3
Kevin Fiala
2014
1 (11)
2
Austin Watson
2010
1 (18)
2
Craig Smith
2009
4 (98)
1
Colin Wilson
2008
1 (7)
2
Miikka Salomaki
2011
2 (52)
0
Pekka Rinne
2004
8 (258)
.951
That's 11 players on the team's current roster. Not a bad haul.
Johansen for Jones
(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)
Before Poile made one of the biggest one-for-one deals - sending Shea Weber to the Canadiens for Subban - he shocked the hockey world by dealing towering defenseman Seth Jones to the Columbus Blue Jackets for center Ryan Johansen last season.
It was a deal that seemingly helped both clubs, and was a great example of asset management, as the Predators were already stocked with defensemen.
The Predators, in turn, got the high-caliber center they had coveted, and they're grateful for that. Johansen's 95 points since joining the team last year are just one shy of Forsberg for the team lead over that time, while his nine points in 10 playoff games this year tie him with Ryan Ellis for the most among all Predators.
The other clutch deals
Besides the blockbusters mentioned above, Poile has also used some smaller deals to help fill out his roster:
There was also the trade for Mike Fisher back in 2011, which - now that he's captain of the team - looks pretty good.
The Predators will now await the winner of Game 7 between the Anaheim Ducks and Edmonton Oilers, but should like their chances either way. The team has a playoff-best 8-2 record, and has made quick work of their two early opponents.
The players are doing their jobs, and that's because the GM has done his.
