NHL Atlantic

The Toronto Raptors, Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators will limit home games to a 50 percent crowd capacity amid Ontario's new rules to combat the COVID-19 surge, per Sportsnet.

"This measure is being taken to reduce opportunities for close contact in high-risk indoor settings with large crowds and when masks are not always worn," the province wrote in a press release.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford offered more explanation for the decision in a press conference.

"Let's be very clear, you've got to target the largest venues," Ford said.

He also added: "Sports games, large concerts—people aren't masking as much as (organizers) implore them to mask. They all aren't masking. You're sitting side by side for hours. Compared to a restaurant, that's comparing apples and bananas as far as I'm concerned, not even apples and oranges."

The province unveiled the new rules Wednesday, and they will go into effect Saturday. They are in effect for all indoor venues that can hold 1,000 or more people.

COVID-19 cases have steadily been on the rise since Oct. 11, per the World Health Organization Coronavirus Dashboard. The week of Oct. 11 saw 2,822,302 confirmed cases worldwide, while the week of Dec. 6 had 4,253,897 confirmed cases.

The situation in Ontario mirrors the COVID-19 picture worldwide. Per the province's official website, there were 269 new cases on Oct. 26. That number has since jumped to 1,808 reported new cases on Dec. 15.

The Raptors were scheduled to host the Chicago Bulls on Thursday, but that game has been postponed because of a COVID-19 outbreak within the Bulls roster. Therefore, the limited capacity mandate will begin to take effect on Saturday when the Golden State Warriors visit Scotiabank Arena.

Ottawa is out of town until Sunday, when the Sens host the Boston Bruins. The Maple Leafs' next home game is Dec. 23 against the St. Louis Blues.

Boston Bruins winger Brad Marchand was placed in the NHL's COVID-19 protocol Tuesday.

Marchand joins Bruins forward Craig Smith in protocols.

The Bruins are set to host the Las Vegas Golden Knights later Tuesday night. Marchand's and Smith's placement in the protocols comes three days after Boston visited the Calgary Flames, who had six players and a staff member placed in protocols Monday. The NHL postponed Calgary's next three games. 

A player must sit out 10 days or provide two negative tests 24 hours apart in order to be cleared for a return to game action.

Marchand has 27 points (11 goals, 16 assists) in 21 games this season. 

The NHL suspended Boston Bruins forward Brad Marchand for three games for slew-footing Vancouver Canucks defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson in Boston's 3-2 win Sunday.

The league's Department of Player Safety said Marchand's "use of both his upper and lower body to take Ekman-Larsson to the ice in a dangerous fashion" meant his infraction was worthy of a suspension.

He will have to forfeit $91,875 from his 2021-22 salary because of the punishment.

The NHL also noted Marchand has previously been suspended six times, including once for slew-footing then-New York Rangers forward Derick Brassard in 2015.

It's possible Marchand's history and reputation impacted his punishment.

New Jersey Devils defenseman P.K. Subban only drew a fine for slew-footing Anaheim Ducks forward Trevor Zegras. San Jose Sharks forward Kevin Labanc, meanwhile, got a one-game ban for the same infraction.

Coincidentally, Marchand will be eligible to return on Dec. 8, when the Bruins play the Canucks in Vancouver. He's unlikely to receive a warm reception from the Rogers Arena crowd.

Through 18 appearances, Marchand leads the Bruins in goals (nine) and assists (15). Even though he won't be out for long, Boston is likely to feel his absence this week.

The Montreal Canadiens announced Sunday general manager Marc Bergevin has been fired as part of a massive front-office shakeup.

Assistant general manager Trevor Timmins and senior vice president Paul Wilson have also been relieved of their duties.

Jeff Gorton will remain with the team and serve as the executive vice president of hockey operations.

The Canadiens have been one of the worst teams in the NHL to this point, totaling only six wins and 14 points through 23 games. 

The Ottawa Senators are the only team in the Atlantic Division with a worse record, but they have played four fewer games than Montreal.

The Canadiens are coming off a trip to the Stanley Cup Final last season. They narrowly made the playoffs but went on a miracle run that included wins over the Toronto Maple Leafs, Winnipeg Jets and Vegas Golden Knights before losing to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

However, Montreal now appears set to miss the playoffs for the third time in five years. Last year's run was the only time since 2015 that the squad advanced beyond the first round of the postseason.

"We wish them all the success they deserve in the pursuit of their careers," owner Geoff Molson said in a statement. "I think, however, that the time has come for a leadership change within our hockey operations department that will bring a new vision and should allow our fans and partners to continue cheering for a championship team."

Bergevin was in his 10th year as the Canadiens general manager. The 56-year-old had also spent 20 years in the NHL playing for eight different organizations, including six years with the St. Louis Blues. 

The team will now begin a search for a new GM while Gorton will lead the front office in the interim. Gorton served as general manager of the New York Rangers for six seasons before he was fired in May.     

The Ottawa Senators' next three games have been postponed amid a COVID-19 outbreak with the team.

Games against the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday, the Nashville Predators on Thursday and the New York Rangers on Saturday are impacted. The Senators currently have 10 players in the NHL's health and safety protocols.

“You’re almost crossing your fingers every single day hoping that you get through with a negative (test),” veteran defenseman Michael Del Zotto told reporters. “It is a learning experience, with the different tests we’re doing, and trying to keep everyone safe, not just the players but their families and staff as well. It’s a great opportunity for guys to learn the mental side of the game.”

The Senators have essentially been on lockdown between games, with their players unable to practice or leave their homes. The team has understandably struggled under the mounting pressure and has lost seven of its last eight games overall.

With the Senators (4-10-1, last in the Atlantic Division) struggling to field an NHL-caliber team and the AHL Belleville Senators also barely scraping by because all of the call-ups, the NHL was forced to take some action. This temporary pause in the schedule should allow a majority of the players currently in health and safety protocols to get back on the ice while mitigating any further potential spread. 

Montreal Canadians goaltender Carey Price shared that he entered a residential treatment facility for substance use in October in a public statement released on Instagram Tuesday:

The NHL and NHLPA announced on Oct. 7 that Price had voluntarily entered the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program.

The 34-year-old netminder helped lead the Canadiens to their first Stanley Cup appearance in 28 years last season.

Canadiens head coach Dominique Ducharme told reporters last week the plan after a month-long absence was for Price to see the team therapists and doctors en route to him ramping up for his return to the ice, although he noted that a definitive timeline was tough to gauge at that moment:

As noted by Stu Cowan of the Montreal Gazette, Price arrived Sunday and met with the Canadiens' training staff.

Price also missed the entirety of training camp after undergoing offseason knee surgery.

In speaking with reporters, Ducharme made clear that Price's well-being was most important.

"It’s not about the hockey player, it’s about the human being," he said Monday. "To see that he’s coming back is a positive sign because he’s doing better. So that’s the most important thing. Our guys care about each other and to see a guy like him doing better, that’s positive."

Ducharme also noted that Price wants to return and help the team, which sits last in the Atlantic Division with a 3-10 record:

He wants to come back and play, but there's other things to manage. The injury that he was coming back from, getting back in shape and playing shape, too. So that's one thing. There's many steps to be taken but, yeah, he wants to play, he wants to be part of our group, he wants to help out.

Per Thomson Reuters (h/t CBC), Price met with teammates and coaches at the team facility Tuesday.

"It was good for me to see him and see how he is doing and for the guys too, to see their teammate back," Ducharme said.

"We have a group of guys that care about each other so having him back, just on the personal side, the guys feel pretty good about seeing him and seeing that he is doing good."

Price is entering his 15th NHL season. He has played with Montreal for his entire career and notably won the Hart and Vezina Trophies following a stellar 2014-15 season that saw him win 44 games, post a .933 save percentage and earn a 1.96 GAA.

He shined in last year's playoffs en route to leading Montreal to its underdog run to the Stanley Cup, going 13-9 with a .924 save percentage and 2.28 GAA.

After getting traded to the Vegas Golden Knights earlier this week, Jack Eichel tweeted a video Saturday in which he thanked the Buffalo Sabres and their fans.

The video featured Eichel's first NHL goal in 2015 and many of his top highlights during his time with the Sabres:

He concluded by saying: "I just wanted to say thank you from the bottom of my heart to all the fans and everyone that supported me in this incredible city."

After Eichel had a disagreement with the Sabres organization regarding what type of neck surgery to receive and requested a trade, Buffalo finally parted ways with him Thursday.

The Sabres sent Eichel and a 2023 third-round pick to the Golden Knights for forwards Peyton Krebs and Alex Tuch, a top-10 protected first-round pick in 2022 and a second-round pick in 2023.

Eichel, 25, was the No. 2 pick in the 2015 draft behind Connor McDavid. He spent most of his six seasons with the Sabres as the captain and enjoyed some highly productive campaigns.

The Massachusetts native finished his time in Buffalo with 139 goals and 216 assists for 355 points in 375 regular-season games, and he was a three-time All-Star selection.

After undergoing surgery and recovering, Eichel will attempt to reach the playoffs for the first time in his NHL career as a member of the Golden Knights.

Now that his tenure with the Buffalo Sabres has come to an end, Jack Eichel has opened up about what went wrong when he was with the organization. 

Speaking to Elliotte Friedman of Hockey Night in Canada, Eichel said the front office changes after the 2019-20 season and the team's struggles last season were major contributing factors to his wanting out:

The Sabres announced on Thursday that they sent Eichel and a 2023 third-round draft pick to the Vegas Golden Knights for Peyton Krebs, Alex Tuch, a 2022 protected first-round pick and a 2023 second-round pick. 

The Sabres fired general manager Jason Botterill on June 16, 2020. They had zero playoff appearances during his three seasons running the front office. 

Kevyn Adams, who took over for Botterill, told WGR 550 in Buffalo (h/t NHL.com) in September 2020 that he wasn't going to trade Eichel. 

"I think it is something that I want to make very clear, we have no intentions and we're not shopping Jack or talking to teams looking to do anything with Jack," Adams said. "People call and ask questions and you have conversations."

That came after TSN's Bob McKenzie reported the Sabres did take some calls from other teams about Eichel's availability, but the 25-year-old wasn't interested in moving on at that time.

Things seemed to take a turn last season, as the Sabres posted the league's worst record (15-34-7). They fired head coach Ralph Krueger on March 17 after 12 consecutive losses. The losing streak reached 18 games before a 6-1 win over the Philadelphia Flyers on March 31. 

Eichel played in only 21 games last season because of a spinal disc herniation that required surgery. He and the Sabres had differing opinions on the type of procedure that would best treat the issue. 

His personal doctor, Chad J. Prusmack, said on the 31 Thoughts podcast (h/t Mike Harrington of the Buffalo News) in July that Eichel wanted an artificial disc replacement. The Sabres preferred the more common anterior cervical discectomy with fusion operation.

Harrington noted the artificial disc replacement procedure has never been done on an NHL player, despite being around since 2000. 

Golden Knights general manager Kelly McCrimmon told reporters Thursday that Eichel will be permitted to have the surgery he wants. 

Eichel was expected to be the face of the franchise and lead the Sabres back to prominence after they selected him with the No. 2 pick in the 2015 NHL draft. He led the team in points in four straight seasons from 2016-19. 

However, the Sabres never finished higher than sixth in their division in any of Eichel's six seasons with the organization.