• NHL players poll is insult to Henrik Lundqvist, Patrik Elias

    NHL players poll is insult to Henrik Lundqvist, Patrik Elias

    Who doesn’t love rankings? Rankings exist to spark debate. Rankings are subjective, determined by opinions, educated or otherwise. Opinions can’t be wrong, Except, of course, when they are. Which brings us to the fun exercises in which the good folks at NHL.com have been intermittently engaged throughout this coronavirus-induced stoppage of play. A panel of …
  • Mark Pavelich’s tragic journey: From 1980 Olympic hero to a mental facility 40 years later

    Mark Pavelich’s tragic journey: From 1980 Olympic hero to a mental facility 40 years later

    Barry Beck had a dream. The former Rangers captain woke up one morning in the spring of 2019 in Hong Kong, where he had been coaching hockey for almost 13 years. Not one to easily recollect his dreams, the 61-year-old Beck was startled when he remembered the vision of being on a ranch and riding …
  • Rangers mailbag: Why Neil Smith faded out of the NHL

    Rangers mailbag: Why Neil Smith faded out of the NHL

    You ask, we answer. The Post is fielding questions from readers about New York’s biggest pro sports teams and getting our beat writers to answer them in a series of regularly published mailbags. In today’s installment: the Rangers. Larry, how is it possible that Neil Smith has never really had a run as GM of …
  • NHL restart plans intensify with player health concerns at forefront

    NHL restart plans intensify with player health concerns at forefront

    The NHL and NHLPA are intensifying communications as the league moves forward crafting plans to reopen the season if it is safe to do so. Slap Shots has learned a Return to Play Committee established by the league and the union has conducted a pair of conference calls over the past three days with regularly …
  • NHL team planning May 15 workouts ahead of possible restart

    NHL team planning May 15 workouts ahead of possible restart

    Even as NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said, “we’re not going to rush anything,” in his interview with Sportsnet on Wednesday, the NHL may be on an accelerated timeline to resume the season. The Post has learned that at least one NHL team has told its players to be prepared to report on May 15 to …
  • James Dolan is coronavirus-free and already helping others

    James Dolan is coronavirus-free and already helping others

    Jim Dolan, the 64-year-old CEO of the Garden, has clinically recovered from COVID-19, The Post has learned. An MSG spokesperson confirmed that Dolan, who tested positive the final week of March following exposure to an individual outside the company who carried the coronavirus, recently tested negative and is in good health. Dolan, who had mild …
  • Rangers mailbag: What if they can’t trade Lias Andersson?

    Rangers mailbag: What if they can’t trade Lias Andersson?

    You ask, we answer. The Post is fielding questions from readers about New York’s biggest pro sports teams and getting our beat writers to answer them in a series of regularly published mailbags. In today’s installment: The Rangers. If the NHL allows an amnesty buyout prior to the 2020-21 season, who would the Rangers target, …
  • 24-team playoff? Inside NHL’s new, complicated restart vision

    24-team playoff? Inside NHL’s new, complicated restart vision

    We can tell you that while it is true that the NHL has explored the possibility of completing the 2019-20 season in a remote location such as Manchester, N.H., Sixth Avenue has determined that the infrastructure in such a locale would be insufficient to support such a massive endeavor. Rather, Slap Shots has learned that …
  • NCAA coronavirus halt complicating Morgan Barron’s Rangers decision

    NCAA coronavirus halt complicating Morgan Barron’s Rangers decision

    Morgan Barron chose to play hockey at Cornell because he wanted to win a national championship, now that may never happen. The 2019-20 season, Barron’s third with the Big Red after he was drafted by the Rangers in the 2017 NHL Draft, was beginning to look like his best chance at accomplishing that. But as …
  • Rangers mailbag: Morgan Barron, Vitali Kravtsov could compete for roster spot

    Rangers mailbag: Morgan Barron, Vitali Kravtsov could compete for roster spot

    You ask, we answer. The Post is fielding questions from readers about New York’s biggest pro sports teams and getting our beat writers to answer them in a series of regularly published mailbags. In today’s installment: the Rangers. Do you see any new forwards being on the opening night roster next year that weren’t this …