National Hockey League

The National Hockey League (NHL) (French:Ligue nationale de hockey (LNH)) is a North American professional ice hockey league. Founded in 1917, the NHL is internationally regarded as the best ice hockey league worldwide, and top talent from all across the globe play in the league, and one of the North American major professional sports leagues. The NHL is divided into two conferences, each of which consists of two divisions.
The league was founded in 1917 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada with four teams, and through a series of expansions, contractions and relocations, the league is now composed of 31 teams, 24 of which are based in the United States and seven in Canada. After a labour dispute that led to the cancellation of the entire 2004–05 season, the league has staged a successful comeback, including revenue and profit growth.
Because the sport originated in Canada, Canadians have historically constituted a large majority of the players in the NHL. Over the past 30 years, the percentages of American and European players have increased because of the NHL's continued expansion into the United States, its high standard of play compared to other leagues, and the availability of highly skilled European players. Nevertheless, more than half of the league's players on the 2005–06 roster were born in Canada.
The Florida Panthers are the current defending champions of the Stanley Cup, the league's championship trophy, after winning the 2024 playoffs. The New York Rangers are the current regular season champions (winners of the Presidents' Trophy).
== History ==
===Early and Original Six Eras===
After a series of disputes in the Canadian National Hockey Association (NHA) between Eddie Livingstone, owner of the Toronto Blueshirts and the owners of other teams, the owners of the Montreal Canadiens, Montreal Wanderers, Ottawa Senators, and Quebec Bulldogs met at the Windsor Hotel in Montreal to talk about the NHA's future.[McFarlane], pp.15-16 Their discussions eventually led to the creation of the National Hockey League in 1917; the founding teams were the Canadiens, Wanderers and Senators. A Toronto franchise, because of the dispute, was given temporarily to the Toronto Arena Corp to operate, and is often referred to as the Arenas, though they operated without a nickname.Toronto Arena Hockey Club was founded in October 1918. 
Even though the league struggled to stay in business during its first decade, the NHL's teams were very successful on the ice; only once, in 1925, did a team from any other league win the Stanley Cup, and by 1926 the NHL was the only league competing for the Cup.[McFarlane], pp.5 The NHL then started a process of expansion: the Boston Bruins (the first U.S.-based NHL franchise) and Montreal Maroons entered the league in 1924–25; the New York Americans and the Pittsburgh Pirates entered in the 1925–26 season; and the New York Rangers, Chicago Black Hawks (now spelled Blackhawks), and Detroit Cougars (now known as the Red Wings) entered in the 1926–27 season, raising the number of teams in the NHL to ten. The Great Depression and the onset of World War II, took a toll on the league, and by 1942 the NHL was reduced to six teams. These six teams (the Montreal Canadiens, Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings, Chicago Black Hawks, Boston Bruins, and New York Rangers) are collectively known as the Original Six, and for the next quarter-century were the only teams in the National Hockey League.
===First Expansion Era===
By the mid 1960s, the desire for a network television contract in the U.S., and concerns that the Western Hockey League was planning to declare itself a major league and challenge for the Stanley Cup, spurred the NHL to undertake its first expansion since the 1920s. Six new teams were added to the NHL roster in 1967, and placed in their own newly-created division. The teams were the Philadelphia Flyers, St. Louis Blues, Minnesota North Stars, Los Angeles Kings, Oakland Seals, and Pittsburgh Penguins. Three years later, the NHL added the Vancouver Canucks and Buffalo Sabres.
===Second Expansion Era===
In 1972, the World Hockey Association (WHA) was formed, and its status as a potential rival to the NHL did not go unnoticed. In response, the NHL decided to rush its own expansion plans by adding the New York Islanders and Atlanta Flames (which soon became the Calgary Flames) in 1972 to forestall WHA franchises in newly constructed arenas in those markets, followed by the addition of the Kansas City Scouts and Washington Capitals two years later.[McFarlane], pp.116-117,119 The two leagues fought for the rights of players and fans until the WHA folded in 1979 as part of an agreement whereby four of the remaining six WHA teams would enter the NHL as expansion teams: the Hartford Whalers (now the Carolina Hurricanes, 1997-present), Québec Nordiques (now the Colorado Avalanche, 1996-present), Edmonton Oilers, and Winnipeg Jets (now the Phoenix Coyotes, 1996-present).[McFarlane], pp.166-167
===Third Expansion Era===
After a period of stability in the 1980s, the NHL further expanded with nine new franchises in ten years. The San Jose Sharks entered in 1991; a season later the Ottawa Senators would return to the NHL along with the addition of the Tampa Bay Lightning. In 1993, the league added two additional teams, the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim and the Florida Panthers. Next came the Nashville Predators in 1998, the Atlanta Thrashers in 1999, and then the Minnesota Wild and the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2000, bringing the total to 30 teams. In 2011 the Thrashers moved to Winnipeg, and became the new Winnipeg Jets.
===2017 Expansion===
On June 22, 2016, Commissioner Bettman announced that Las Vegas, Nevada was chosen unanimously to become the 31st member team. The ownership group of the team had run a season ticket campaign which landed 14,000 season ticket deposits and sold all of the suites at the T-Mobile Arena.
The other group in the running for an expansion team Quebec City was deferred at this point an not rejected. Three main reasons were cited by the commissioner during the announcement of the expansion vote; the geographic imbalance of the league with 16 teams in the east and 15 now in the west. The present weakness and volatility of the Canadian dollar (which has dipped to as low as $.68) during the year long expansion process, and difficulty for the existing teams to prep for two new teams entering the league at once as each team will lose one player in the upcoming expansion draft. Quebecor (the group backing the Quebec City bid) stated we want it to be a success and we need to be patient, timing has to be right we already lost the Nordiques once we don't want to lose them twice. The league did not give a time frame for the reevaluation of the Quebec City bid, but Quebec City is said to be on the league's radar screen they are aware of the interest and capabilities of the people and ownership group in Quebec City.
On November 22, 2016, the name of the Las Vegas team was revealed as being the Vegas Golden Knights.
==Game==
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Each National Hockey League regulation game is an ice hockey game played between two teams and is 60 minutes long. The game is composed of three 20-minute periods with an intermission of either 15½ or 17 minutes (if nationally televised) between periods. Television timeouts are taken at the first stoppage of play after 6, 10, and 14 minutes of elapsed time unless there is a power play or the first stoppage is the result of a goal. In these cases the timeout will occur at the first stoppage after the penalty expires or the second stoppage after the goal. At the end of the 60 minute regulation time, the team with the most goals wins the game. If a game is tied after regulation time, overtime ensues. During the regular season, overtime is a five-minute, four-player on four-player sudden-death period, in which the first team to score a goal wins the game. Until the 2005–06 season, if no team was able to score in the 5 minute overtime, the game ended in a tie. For the 2015-16 season the overtime was changed to 3-on-3 for the five minute overtime
Beginning in 2005–06, if the game is still tied at the end of overtime, the game enters a shootout. Three players for each team in turn take a penalty shot. The team with the most goals during the three round shootout wins the game. If the game is still tied after the three shootout rounds, the shootout continues, but becomes sudden death. Whichever team ultimately wins the shootout is awarded a goal in the game score and thus awarded two points in the standings. The losing team in overtime or shootout is awarded only one. Shootout goals and saves are not tracked in hockey statistics; shootout statistics are tracked separately.
Shootouts do not occur during the playoffs. In the playoffs, sudden-death 20-minute five-on-five periods are played until one team scores. While a game could theoretically continue forever, only four games have reached five overtime periods, two have reached six, and none have gone beyond six.
==Teams==
The National Hockey League originated in 1917 with four teams, and through a sequence of team expansions, reductions, and relocations currently consists of 31 teams, 24 of which are based in the United States and 7 in Canada.
The Montreal Canadiens are the most successful franchise with 24 Stanley Cup championships; in the four major North American professional sports leagues the Montreal Canadiens are only surpassed in the number of championships by the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball, who have 3 more. The next most successful franchise is the Toronto Maple Leafs with 13 Stanley Cups, but they have not won a championship since 1967. The Detroit Red Wings, with ten Stanley Cups, is the most successful American franchise. The longest streak of winning the Stanley Cup in consecutive years is five, held by the Montreal Canadiens from 1955-56 to 1959-60; the New York Islanders (1980-1983) and the Montreal Canadiens (1976-1979) have four-year championship streaks. The 1977 edition of the Montreal Canadiens, the second of four straight Stanley Cup champions, was named by ESPN as the second greatest sports team of all-time.
Of all the major leagues in North America, the NHL is the only league to field teams that play in two countries' capital cities, Ottawa and Washington, D.C.
The league divides the teams into two conferences. Each conference has two divisions, and each division has seven (Central)or eight (Atlantic, Metropolitan, Pacific) teams. This change was made in an attempt to cut down on the travel. The previous organization had roots in the 1998–99 season where a league realignment added two divisions to bring the total number of divisions to six; the current team alignment began with the 2000–2001 season when the Minnesota Wild and the Columbus Blue Jackets joined the league as expansion teams. The newest team alignment happened in after the 2012-2013 season due to the move of the Atlanta Thrashers to Winnipeg. On December 5, 2011, the NHL Board of Governors proposed a relocation plan. The NHLPA rejected it and said to wait for the Draft to see if they would change their decision. In February 2013, they proposed the idea again. On March 7, 2013, the NHLPA approved the plan which would move the Detroit Red Wings and Columbus Blue Jackets to the Eastern conference and the Winnipeg Jets to the Western conference. The realignment started in the 2013/2014 season. The current league organization divides the teams into two conferences, the Eastern and Western. Each conference has two divisions. The Eastern conference includes the Atlantic and Metropolitan divisions. The Western conference includes the Pacific and Central divisions.
===Eastern Conference===
Division 	Team 	City 	Arena 	Capacity 	Joined NHL
Atlantic 	Boston Bruins 	Boston, Massachusetts 	TD Garden 	17,565 	1924
Atlantic 	Buffalo Sabres 	Buffalo, New York 	KeyBank Center 	18,690 	1970
Atlantic 	Detroit Red Wings 	Detroit, Michigan 	Little Caesars Arena 	20,066 	1926
Atlantic 	Florida Panthers 	Sunrise, Florida 	BB&T Center 	19,452 	1993
Atlantic 	Montreal Canadiens 	Montreal, Quebec 	Bell Centre 	21,273 	1917
Atlantic 	Ottawa Senators 	Ottawa, Ontario 	Canadian Tire Centre 	20,500 	1992
Atlantic 	Tampa Bay Lightning 	Tampa, Florida 	Amalie Arena 	19,500 	1992
Atlantic 	Toronto Maple Leafs 	Toronto, Ontario 	Scotiabank Arena 	18,800 	1917
Metroplitan	Carolina Hurricanes 	Raleigh, North Carolina 	PNC Arena 	18,639 	1979
Metroplitan	Columbus Blue Jackets	Columbus, Ohio 	Nationwide Arena 	18,136 	2000
Metroplitan	New Jersey Devils 	Newark, New Jersey 	Prudential Center 	17,625 	1974
Metroplitan	New York Islanders 	Brooklyn, New YorkUniondale, New York	Barclays CenterNassau Coliseum	16,23413,900	1972
Metroplitan	New York Rangers 	New York, New York 	Madison Square Garden 	18,200 	1926
Metroplitan	Philadelphia Flyers 	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 	Wells Fargo Center 	19,500 	1967
Metroplitan	Pittsburgh Penguins 	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 	PPG Paints Arena 	18,087 	1967
Metroplitan	Washington Capitals 	Washington, D.C. 	Capital One Arena 	18,277 	1974
===Western Conference===
Division	Team 	City 	Arena 	Capacity	Joined NHL
Central 	Chicago Blackhawks 	Chicago, Illinois 	United Center 	19,717 	1926
Central 	Colorado Avalanche 	Denver, Colorado 	Ball Arena 	18,007 	1979
Central 	Dallas Stars 	Dallas, Texas 	American Airlines Center	18,500 	1967
Central 	Minnesota Wild 	St. Paul, Minnesota 	Xcel Energy Center 	18,568 	2000
Central 	Nashville Predators 	Nashville, Tennessee 	Bridgestone Arena 	17,113 	1998
Central 	St. Louis Blues 	St. Louis, Missouri 	Enterprise Center 	19,022 	1967
Central 	Utah Hockey Club 	Salt Lake City, Utah 	Delta Center 	16,200 	2024
Central 	Winnipeg Jets 	Winnipeg, Manitoba 	Bell MTS Place 	18,750 	2011
Pacific 	Anaheim Ducks 	Anaheim, California 	Honda Center 	17,174 	1993
Pacific 	Calgary Flames 	Calgary, Alberta 	Scotiabank Saddledome 	19,289 	1972
Pacific 	Edmonton Oilers 	Edmonton, Alberta 	Rogers Place 	18,641 	1979
Pacific 	Los Angeles Kings 	Los Angeles, California 	Staples Center 	18,118 	1967
Pacific 	San Jose Sharks 	San Jose, California 	SAP Center at San Jose 	17,496 	1991
Pacific 	Seattle Kraken 	Seattle, Washington 	Climate Pledge Arena 	17,100 	2021
Pacific 	Vancouver Canucks 	Vancouver, British Columbia	Rogers Arena 	18,630 	1970
Pacific 	Vegas Golden Knights	Las Vegas, Nevada 	T-Mobile Arena 	17,368 	2017
===Former Member Teams===
* Montreal Wanderers - folded after arena fire
* Quebec Bulldogs - moved to Hamilton
* Ottawa Senators - won the Cup several times before becoming the St. Louis Eagles
* Hamilton Tigers franchise rights transferred to New York Americans
* Toronto Arenas/Toronto St. Pats - became the Toronto Maple Leafs
* Montreal Maroons - folded
* New York Americans - moved to Brooklyn
* Detroit Cougars/Detroit Falcons - became the Detroit Red Wings
* Pittsburgh Pirates - moved to Philadelphia
* Philadelphia Quakers - folded
* St. Louis Eagles - folded
* Brooklyn Americans - folded
* Minnesota North Stars - moved to Dallas, won the cup
* Oakland Seals/California Golden Seals - moved to Cleveland
* Cleveland Barons - merged with the North Stars
* Atlanta Flames - moved to Calgary, won the cup
* Kansas City Scouts - moved to Denver
* Colorado Rockies - moved to New Jersey, won the cup
* Quebec Nordiques - moved to Denver, won the cup
* Winnipeg Jets - moved to Phoenix
* Hartford Whalers - moved to Raleigh (North Carolina), won the cup
* Atlanta Thrashers - moved to Winnipeg
* Arizona Coyotes - folded
Teams in Italic indicates that they eventually received another franchise after some years of waiting for one.
==Team/Venue Listing (Chronological)==
Team 	Location 	Arenas 	Tenure 	Notes
Montreal Canadiens 	Montreal, Quebec 	Montreal Arena (1917-January 2, 1918),Jubilee Arena (January 3, 1918-1919Mount Royal Arena (1919-1926),Montreal Forum (1926-1996)Bell Centre (1996-present)(known as Molson Centre 1996-2002) 	1917-present 	
Montreal Wanderers 	Montreal, Quebec 	Montreal Arena 	1917-1918 	withdrew on January 4, 1918 after arena burned down on January 2, 1918
Ottawa Senators (original)	Ottawa, Ontario 	Dey's Arena (1917-1923),Ottawa Auditorium (1923-1931) 	1917-1931 	suspend operations for 1931-1932 season
Toronto Hockey Club 	Toronto, Ontario 	Arena Gardens 	1917-1918 	reorganized as Toronto Arenas
Toronto Arenas 	Toronto, Ontario 	Arena Gardens 	1918-1919 	withdrew February 20, 1919
Quebec Bulldogs 	Quebec City, Quebec 	Quebec Arena 	1919-1920 	franchise sold and relocated to Hamilton, Ontario; renamed Hamilton Tigers (NHL)
Toronto St. Patricks 	Toronto, Ontario 	Arena Gardens 	1919-1927 	renamed Toronto Maple Leafs
Hamilton Tigers (NHL) 	Hamilton, Ontario 	Barton Street Arena 	1920-1925 	franchise revoked; players form nuclues of New York Americans
Boston Bruins 	Boston, Massachusetts 	Boston Arena (1924-1928);Boston Garden (1928-1995);TD Garden (1995-present)(planned to be known as the Shawmut Center but was renamed when bank merged with Fleet Bank), FleetCenter 1995–2005, From February 10, 1995 to March 13, 1995 between naming rights deals the name changed daily as a charity fundraiser),  TD Banknorth Garden 2005–2009)	1924-present 	
Montreal Maroons 	Montreal, Quebec 	Montreal Forum 	1924-1938 	suspend operations; franchise cancelled in 1947 after several attempts to restart franchise fell through
New York Americans 	New York, New York 	Madison Square Garden (1925) 	1925-1941 	renamed Brooklyn Americans but do not move
Pittsburgh Pirates (NHL) 	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 	Duquesne Gardens 	1925-1930 	relocated to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; renamed Philadelphia Quakers (NHL)
Chicago Black Hawks 	Chicago, Illinois 	Chicago Coliseum (1926-1929);Chicago Stadium (1929-1994); United Center (1994-present) 	1926-1986 	renamed Chicago Blackhawks when its discovered original team charter was worded as such
Detroit Cougars (NHL) 	Windsor, Ontario (1926-1927);Detroit, Michigan (1927-1930) 	Border Cities Arena (1926-1927); Olympia Stadium (1927-1930) 	1926-1930 	renamed Detroit Falcons (NHL)
New York Rangers 	New York, New York 	Madison Square Garden (1925) (1926-1968);Madison Square Garden (1968-present) 	1926-present 	
Toronto Maple Leafs 	Toronto, Ontario 	Arena Gardens (1927-1931);Maple Leaf Gardens (1931-1999);Scotiabank Arena (1999-present)(known as Air Canada Centre 1999-2018) 	1927-present 	
Detroit Falcons (NHL) 	Detroit, Michigan 	Olympia Stadium 	1930-1932 	franchise renamed Detroit Red Wings when sold out of bankruptcy
Philadelphia Quakers (NHL)	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 	Philadelphia Arena 	1930-1931 	folded
Ottawa Senators (original)	Ottawa, Ontario 	Ottawa Auditorium 	1932-1934 	relocated to St. Louis, Missouri; renamed St. Louis Eagles
Detroit Red Wings 	Detroit, Michigan 	Olympia Stadium (1932-1979);Joe Louis Arena (1979-2017); Little Caesars Arena (2017-present) 	1932-present 	
St. Louis Eagles 	St. Louis, Missouri 	St. Louis Arena 	1934-1935 	suspend operations; franchise sold back to league
California Seals 	Oakland, California 	Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum 	1967-1967 	renamed Oakland Seals partway through 1967-68 season
Los Angeles Kings 	Los Angeles, California 	Long Beach Arena (1967),The Forum (Inglewood, California) (1967-1999)(known as Great Western Forum 1988-2003),Staples Center (1999-present) 	1967-present 	
Minnesota North Stars 	Bloomington, Minnesota 	Met Center 	1967-1993 	relocated to Dallas, Texas; renamed Dallas Stars
Philadelphia Flyers 	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 	The Spectrum (1967-1996),Wells Fargo Center (1996-present)(known as CoreStates Center 1996-1998, First Union Center 1998-2003, Wachovia Center 2003-2010) 	1967-present 	
Pittsburgh Penguins 	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 	Pittsburgh Civic Arena 1967-2010 (known as Mellon Arena 1999-2010),PPG Paints Arena (2010-present)(known as Consol Energy Center 2010-2016) 	1967-present 	
St. Louis Blues 	St. Louis, Missouri 	St. Louis Arena (1967-1994)(known as The Checkerdome 1977-1983),Enterprise Center (1994-present)(known as Kiel Center 1994-2000, Savvis Center 2000-2006, Scottrade Center 2006-2018) 	1967-present 	
Oakland Seals 	Oakland, California 	Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum 	1967-1970 	renamed California Golden Seals early in 1970-71 season
Buffalo Sabres 	Buffalo, New York 	The Aud (1970-1996),KeyBank Center (1996-present)(known as Marine Midland Arena 1996-2000, HSBC Arena 2000-2011, First Niagara Center 2011-2016) 	1970-present 	
Vancouver Canucks 	Vancouver, British Columbia 	Pacific Coliseum (1970-1995),Rogers Arena (1995-present)(known as General Motors Place (1995-2010)) 	1970-present 	
California Golden Seals 	Oakland, California 	Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum 	1970-1976 	relocated to Cleveland, Ohio; renamed Cleveland Barons
Atlanta Flames 	Atlanta Flames 	The Omni 	1972-1980 	relocated to Calgary, Alberta; renamed Calgary Flames
New York Islanders 	Uniondale, New York (1972-2015, 2018-present), New York, New York (2015-present)	Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum (1972-2015, 2018-present)Barclays Center (2015-present) 	1972-present 	
Kansas City Scouts 	Kansas City, Missouri 	Kemper Arena 	1974-1976 	relocated to Denver, Colorado; renamed Colorado Rockies
Washington Capitals 	Landover, Maryland (1974-1997)Washington, DC (1997-present) 	Capital Centre (1974-1997)(known as USAir Arena (1993-1996), US Airways Arena (1996-1997),Capital One Arena (1997-present)(known as MCI Center 1997-2006, Verizon Center 2006-2017) 	1974-present 	
Cleveland Barons 	Richfield, Ohio 	Richfield Coliseum 	1976-1978 	merged into Minnesota North Stars; would later be technically de-merged to form San Jose Sharks
Colorado Rockies 	Denver, Colorado 	McNichols Sports Arena 	1976-1982 	relocated to East Rutherford, New Jersey; renamed New Jersey Devils
Edmonton Oilers 	Edmonton, Alberta 	Northlands Coliseum(known as Edmonton Coliseum 1995–1998 Skyreach Centre 1998–2003, Rexall Place 2003–2016)Rogers Place (2016-present) 	1979-present 	
Hartford Whalers 	Springfield, Massachusetts (1979-1980),Hartford, Connecticut (1980-1997) 	Springfield Civic Center (1979-February 3, 1980)(22 games due to arena closure and then availability in Hartford), Hartford Civic Center (January 11, 1980-1997) 	1979-1997 	relocated temporarily to Greensboro, North Carolina pending arena being built in Raleigh, North Carolina; renamed Carolina Hurricanes
Quebec Nordiques 	Quebec City, Quebec 	Colisee de Quebec 	1979-1995 	relocated to Denver, Colorado; renamed Colorado Avalanche
Winnipeg Jets (1972-1996) 	Winnipeg, Manitoba 	Winnipeg Arena 	1979-1996 	relocated to Phoenix, Arizona; renamed Phoenix Coyotes
Calgary Flames 	Calgary, Alberta 	Stampede Corral (1980-1983),Scotiabank Saddledome (1983-present)(known as Olympic Saddledome 1983-1995, Canadian Airlines Saddledome 1995-2000, Pengrowth Saddledome 2000-2010) 	1980-present 	
New Jersey Devils 	East Rutherford, New Jersey (1982-2007),Newark, New Jersey (2007-present) 	Continental Airlines Arena (1982-2007)(known as Brendan Byrne Arena 1982-1996)Prudential Center (2007-present) 	1982-present 	
Chicago Blackhawks 	Chicago, Illinois 	Chicago Stadium (1986-1994);United Center (1994-present) 	1986-present 	
San Jose Sharks 	Daly City, California (1991-1993)San Jose, California (1993-present) 	Cow Palace (1991-1993),SAP Center (1993-present)(known as San Jose Arena 1993-2001, Compaq Center 2001-2002, HP Pavillion 2002-2013) 	1991-present 	
Ottawa Senators 	Ottawa, Ontario 	Ottawa Civic Center (1992-January 1996),Canadian Tire Centre (January 1996-present)(known as The Palladium Jan. 1996-Feb. 1996, Corel Centre 1996-2006, Scotiabank Place 2006-2013) 	1992-present 	
Tampa Bay Lightning 	Tampa, Florida (1992-1993, 1996-present)St. Petersburg, Florida (1993-1996) 	Expo Hall (1992-1993),Thunderdome (1993-1996),Amalie Arena (1996-present)(known as the Ice Palace 1996-2002, St. Pete Times Forum 2002-2012, Tampa Bay Times Forum 2012-2014) 	1992-present 	
Mighty Ducks of Anaheim 	Anaheim, California 	Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim 	1993-2006 	renamed Anaheim Ducks
Florida Panthers 	Miami, Florida (1993-1998),Sunrise, Florida (1998-present) 	Miami Arena (1993-1998),BB&T Center (1998-present)(known as National Car Rental Center 1998-2002, Office Depot Center 2002-2005, and Bank Atlantic Center 2005-2012) 	1993-present 	
Dallas Stars 	Dallas, Texas 	Reunion Arena (1993-2001),American Airlines Center (2001-present) 	1993-present 	
Colorado Avalanche 	Denver, Colorado 	McNichols Arena (1995-1999),Ball Arena (1999-present)(known as Pepsi Center 1999-2020) 	1995-present 	
Phoenix Coyotes 	Phoenix, Arizona (1996-2003)Glendale, Arizona (2003-2014) 	America West Arena (1996-2003),Jobing.com Arena (2003-2014)(known as Glendale Arena 2003-2006) 	1996-2014 	renamed Arizona Coyotes
Carolina Hurricanes 	Greensboro, North Carolina (1997-1999),Raleigh, North Carolina (1999-present) 	Greensboro Coliseum (1997-1999),PNC Arena (1999-present)(known as Raleigh Entertainment & Sports Arena 1999-2002 and RBC Center 2002-2012) 	1997-present 	
Nashville Predators 	Nashville, Tennessee 	Bridgestone Arena(known as Nashville Arena 1996-1999, 2007, 2010, Gaylord Entertainment Center 1999-2007, and Sommet Center 2007-2010) 	1998-present 	
Atlanta Thrashers 	Atlanta, Georgia 	Phillips Arena 	1999-2011 	relocated to Winnipeg, Manitoba; renamed Winnipeg Jets
Columbus Blue Jackets 	Columbus, Ohio 	Nationwide Arena 	2000-present 	
Minnesota Wild 	St. Paul, Minnesota 	Xcel Energy Center 	2000-present 	
Anaheim Ducks 	Anaheim, California 	Honda Center 	2006-present 	
Winnipeg Jets 	Winnipeg, Manitoba 	Bell MTS Place(known as MTS Centre 2011-2017) 	2011-present 	
Arizona Coyotes 	Glendale, Arizona 	Gila River Arena 	2014-present 	
Vegas Golden Knights 	Paradise, Nevada 	T-Mobile Arena 	2017-present 	
Seattle Kraken 	Seattle, Washington 	Climate Pledge Arena 	2021-expansion	
===Outdoor Games/Venues===
(regular season only)
Event 	Location 	Venue 	Date 	Notes
2003 Heritage Classic 	Edmonton, Alberta 	Commonwealth Stadium (Edmonton) 	November 22, 2003	
2008 Winter Classic 	Orchard Park, New York 	Ralph Wilson Stadium(known as Rich Stadium 1973-1998, New Era Field 2016–2020, Bills Stadium 2020–present)	January 1, 2008 	
2009 Winter Classic 	Chicago, Illinois 	Wrigley Field 	January 1, 2009 	
2010 Winter Classic 	Boston, Massachusetts 	Fenway Park 	January 1, 2010 	
2011 Winter Classic 	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 	Heinz Field 	January 1, 2011 	
2011 Heritage Classic 	Calgary, Alberta 	McMahon Stadium 	February 20, 2011	
2012 Winter Classic 	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 	Citizens Bank Park 	January 1, 2012 	
2014 Winter Classic 	Ann Arbor, Michigan 	Michigan Stadium 	January 1, 2014 	
2014 NHL Stadium Series	Los Angeles, California 	Dodger Stadium 	January 25, 2014 	
2014 NHL Stadium Series	New York, New York 	Yankee Stadium 	January 26, 2014 	
2014 NHL Stadium Series	New York, New York 	Yankee Stadium 	January 29, 2014 	
2014 NHL Stadium Series	Chicago, Illinois 	Soldier Field 	March 1, 2014 	
2014 Heritage Classic 	Vancouver, British Columbia	BC Place 	March 2, 2014 	
2015 Winter Classic 	Washington, DC 	Nationals Park 	January 1, 2015 	
2015 Stadium Series 	Santa Clara, California 	Levi's Stadium 	February 21, 2015	
2016 Winter Classic 	Foxborough, Massachusetts 	Gillette Stadium 	January 1, 2016 	
2016 Stadium Series 	Minneapolis, Minnesota 	TCF Bank Stadium 	February 21, 2016	
2016 Stadium Series 	Denver, Colorado 	Coors Field 	February 27, 2016	
2016 Heritage Classic 	Winnipeg, Manitoba 	Investors Group Field(known as IG Field 2019–present) 	October 23, 2016 	
Centennial Classic 	Toronto, Ontario 	BMO Field 	 	
2017 Winter Classic 	St. Louis, Missouri 	Busch Stadium 	January 1, 2017 	
2017 Stadium Series 	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 	Heinz Field 	February 25, 2017	
100 Classic 	Ottawa, Ontario 	TD Place Stadium 	January 1, 2018 	
2018 Winter Classic 	New York, New York 	Citi Field 	January 2, 2018 	
2018 Stadium Series 	Annapolis, Maryland 	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium 	March 3, 2018 	
2019 Winter Classic 	South Bend, Indiana 	Notre Dame Stadium 	January 1, 2019 	
2019 Stadium Series 	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 	Lincoln Financial Field 	February 23, 2019	
2019 Heritage Classic 	Regina, Saskatchewan 	Mosaic Stadium 	October 26, 2019 	
2020 Winter Classic 	Dallas, Texas 	Cotton Bowl 	January 1, 2020 	
2020 Stadium Series 	Colorado Springs, Colorado 	Falcon Stadium 	February 15, 2020	
===Global Neutral Venues===
(Regular Season only)
The NHL has had teams open seasons with games in Europe and Asia in events known as NHL Premiere or NHL Global Series. Many of these events include exhibition games against local professional clubs.
===Indoor Neutral Site Venues (North America)===
During the 1992-93 and 1993-94 season each NHL team played two games each at a neutral site. This was done with an eye on expansion and/or possible relocation of troubled franchises. Several of the cities ended up with NHL teams in the not to distant future from these games being played. The 1994-95 NHL lockout and its' settlement put an end to neutral site games.
===Back-up/Emergency Venues===
(Regular Season and Stanley Cup Playoffs)
Sometimes due to venue conflicts, building problems, attendance issues, or even to try out a city to see the potential for a new team teams have used venues for regular season and playoff games.
==Season structure==
The National Hockey League season is divided into a regular season from the first Wednesday in October through the beginning of April, when teams play each other in a predefined schedule, and a playoffs from April to the beginning of June, which is an elimination tournament where two teams play against each other to win a best-of-seven series in order to advance to the next round. The final remaining team is crowned the Stanley Cup champion.
In the regular season, each team plays 82 games: 41 games each of home and road. Eastern teams play 30 games in its own geographic division— four or five against each one of their seven other divisional opponents—and 24 games against the eight remaining non-divisional intra-conference opponents—three games against every team in the other division of its conference. Western teams play 28 or 29 games in its own geographic division-four or five against each one of their six other divisional opponents-and 21 or 22 games against the seven remaining non-divisional intra-conference opponents-three games against every team in the other division of its conference, with one cross-division intra-conference match-up occurring in four games (one team from each division plays only 28 intra-division games in a given season, and rotates every season). All teams play every team in the other conference twice-home and road. For three seasons between 2005 and 2008, teams played 32 games within their division—eight games against each team in the division—and 10 inter-conference games—one game against each team in two of the three divisions in the opposite conference. The two divisions faced from the opposite conference were rotated every year, much like inter-league play in Major League Baseball. As with the former system, each team played four games against each one of the other ten teams in its conference outside of its division.
The league's regular season standings are based on a point system instead of winning percentages. Points are awarded for each game, where two points are awarded for a win, one point for losing in overtime or a shootout, and zero points for a loss in regulation. At the end of the regular season, the team that finishes with the most points in each division is crowned the division champion. The league's overall leader is awarded the Presidents' Trophy.
Since 2014 the top three teams in each division plus the two wild-card teams in the conference with the next highest number of points, for a total of eight teams in each conference, qualify for the playoffs. The division winner with the best record in the conference plays the lowest-seeded wild-card team and the other division winner plays the highest-seeded wild-card (wild-card teams may cross over to another division within the conference), and the next two teams with the next best records in each division are seeded 2nd and 3rd. The Stanley Cup playoffs is an elimination tournament, where the teams are grouped in pairs to play best-of-seven series, the winners moving on to the next round. The first round of the playoffs, or conference quarterfinals, consists of the first seed playing the fourth seed, and the second playing the third, division-wise. In the second round, or conference semifinals, the four remaining teams in the conference play each other. In the third round, the conference finals, the two remaining teams play each other, with the conference champions proceeding to the Stanley Cup Final.
In all rounds the higher-ranked team is awarded home-ice advantage. Four of the seven games are played at this team's home venue—the first and second, and, when necessary, the fifth and seventh games—with the other games played at the lower-ranked team's home venue. In the Stanley Cup Final, the team with the most points (or in case of a tie, most wins) during the regular season is given home-ice advantage, regardless of where each team ranks in their own conference.
==Notable players==
The top five point scoring forwards in the 2019–20 season were Leon Draisaitl, Connor McDavid, Artemi Panarin, David Pastrňák, and Nathan MacKinnon. Pastrňák and Alexander Ovechkin tied for the most goals scored, followed by Auston Matthews and Draisaitl. The top three scoring defencemen were John Carlson, Roman Josi, and Victor Hedman, and the top goaltenders (by wins) were Andrei Vasilevskiy (35), Connor Hellebuyck (31), Jordan Binnington (30), Frederik Andersen (29), and Marc-André Fleury and Carey Price (27 each).
In addition to Canadian and American players, who have historically composed a large majority of NHL players, the NHL draws players from all over the world. Since the collapse of the Soviet Bloc, restrictions on the movement of hockey players from this region have lessened and there has been a large influx of European players into the NHL such as Alexander Ovechkin. European players were drafted and signed by NHL teams in an effort to bring in more skilled offensive players. The addition of European players has changed the style of play in the NHL considerably and European style hockey has been accepted, if not embraced, in the NHL. In Winter Olympic years, the league voluntarily suspends its season so that NHL players can play in the Winter Olympics, representing their native countries. Currently the NHL has players from 18 different countries, with the majority still coming from Canada.
For more information about the origins of NHL players, see the List of NHL statistical leaders by country.
==Hockey rink==
National Hockey League games are played on a hockey rink which is rectangular ice rink with rounded corners and surrounded by a wall. It measures 25.91 by 60.92 metres (85 by 200 ft) in the NHL, while international standards call for a rink measuring 29–30 metres by 60–61 metres (by 95.14–98.43 ft by 196.85–200.13 ft). The center line divides the ice in half, and is used to judge icing violations. There are two blue lines that divide the rink roughly into thirds, which divide the ice into two attacking and one neutral zone. Near the end of both ends of the rink, there is a thin red goal line spanning the width of the ice, which is used to judge goals and icing calls.
Starting in the 2005–2006 season, after testing in the American Hockey League, a trapezoidal area behind each goal net has been introduced. The goaltender can only play the puck within that area or in front of the goal line; if the goaltender plays the puck behind the goal line and not in the trapezoidal area, a 2 minute minor penalty for delay of game is assessed by the referees.
Staring with the 2014-15 season the following changes were made:
*The trapezoidal areas behind each net in which goaltenders are allowed to play the puck are to be made 4 ft (1.2m) wider than their current width.
*The width of the hashmarks outside the faceoff circles will be extended from their current 3.5 feet to five feet, seven inches apart (international markings).
==Rules==
:Main articles: National Hockey League rules
While the National Hockey League follows the general rules of ice hockey, it differs slightly from those used in international games organized by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) such as the Olympics. Infractions of the rules can lead to either the stoppage of play in the case of offside and icing calls, or a penalty call for more serious infractions.
During the 2004-05 lockout, the league changed some of the rules regarding being offside. First, the league removed the "offside pass" or "two-line pass" rule, which required a stoppage in play if a pass originating from inside a team's defending zone was completed on the offensive side of the center line, unless the puck crossed the line before the player. Furthermore, the league reinstated the "tag-up offside" which allows an attacking player a chance to get back onside by returning to the neutral zone. The changes to the offside rule were one of several rule changes intended to increase overall scoring, which had been in decline since the expansion years of the mid-nineties.
Another rule difference between the NHL and the IIHF rules concerns how icings are called. In the NHL, a linesman stops play due to icing if a defending player (other than the goaltender) touches the puck before an attacking player is able to, in contrast to the IIHF rules where play is stopped the moment the puck crosses the goal line. As a result of the rule changes following the 2004-05 lockout, when a team is guilty of icing the puck they are not allowed to make a line change before the following faceoff.  The rules for icing were  changed prior to the 2013-14 season to what is called "hybrid icing".  Hybrid icing is different from the previous version where that if the defending player (again other than the goaltender) reaches the line created by the two face off spots in the defensive zone before a player from the offending team.  This was done after pre-season trials in the NHL and regular season play in the AHL.  The impetus for the changes was the number of serious injuries that occured when players were trying to reach the puck next to the boards after skating in full stride and trying to stop "on a dime" before hitting the boards.
In regards to penalties, the NHL, in addition to the minor and double minor penalties called in IIHF games, calls major penalties which are more dangerous infractions of the rules, such as fighting, and have a duration of five minutes. This is in contrast to the IIHF rule, in which players who fight are ejected from the game. Usually a penalized team cannot replace a player that is penalized on the ice and is thus shorthanded for the duration of the penalty, but if the penalties are coincidental, such as with fighting, both teams remain at full strength. Also, unlike minor penalties, major penalties must be served to their full completion, regardless of number of goals scored during the power play.
The NHL and the NHLPA created a stringent anti-doping policy in the new CBA of September 2005. The policy provides for a 20-game penalty for a first positive test, 60 games for a second positive test, and a third offence resulting in a permanent ban.
==Trophies and awards==
The National Hockey League presents several trophies each year. The most prestigious team award is the Stanley Cup, which is awarded to the league champion at the end of the Stanley Cup playoffs. The team that has the most points in the regular season is awarded the Presidents' Trophy. There are also numerous trophies that are awarded to players based on their statistics during the regular season; they include, among others, the Art Ross Trophy for the league scoring champion (goals and assists), the Maurice 'Rocket' Richard Trophy for the goal-scoring leader, and the William M. Jennings Trophy for the goalkeeper(s) for the team with the fewest goals against them. For the 2006–07 season these statistics-based trophies were awarded to Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins, Vincent Lecavalier of the Tampa Bay Lightning, and, dually, Niklas Bäckström and Manny Fernandez of the Minnesota Wild respectively.
The other player trophies are voted on by the Professional Hockey Writers Association or the team general managers. The most prestigious individual award is the Hart Memorial Trophy which is awarded annually to the Most Valuable Player; the voting is conducted by members of the Professional Hockey Writers Association to judge the player who is the most valuable to his team during the regular season. The Vezina Trophy is awarded annually to the person deemed the best goalkeeper as voted on by the general managers of the teams in the NHL. The James Norris Memorial Trophy is awarded annually to the National Hockey League's top defenceman, the Calder Memorial Trophy is awarded annually to the top rookie, and the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy is awarded to the player deemed to combine the highest degree of skill and sportsmanship; all three of these awards are voted on by members of the Professional Hockey Writers Association.
right|thumb|240px|right|The Hockey Hall of Fame in downtown Toronto.
In addition to the regular season awards, the Conn Smythe Trophy is awarded annually to the most valuable player during the NHL's Stanley Cup playoffs. Furthermore, the top coach in the league wins the Jack Adams Award as selected by a poll of the National Hockey League Broadcasters Association. The National Hockey League publishes the names of the top three vote getters for all awards, and then names the award winner during the NHL Awards Ceremony.
Players, coaches, officials, and team builders who have had notable careers are eligible to be voted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. Players cannot enter until three years have passed since their last professional game, the shortest such time period of any major sport. One unique consequence has been Hall of Fame members (specifically, Gordie Howe, Guy Lafleur, and Mario Lemieux) coming out of retirement to play once more. In the past, however, if a player was deemed significant enough, the pending period would be waived; only ten individuals have been honoured in this manner. In 1999, Wayne Gretzky became the last player to have the three-year restriction waived, and after Gretzky's induction, the NHL declared that he would be the last to have the waiting period omitted.
==Labour issues==
There have been three league-wide work stoppages in NHL history, all happening between 1992 and 2005.
The first was a strike by the National Hockey League Players Association in April 1992 which lasted for 10 days, but the strike was settled quickly and all affected games were rescheduled. A lockout at the start of the 1994–95 season forced the league to reduce the schedule from 84 games to just 48, with the teams playing only intra-conference games during the reduced season. The resulting collective bargaining agreement was set for renegotiation in 1998 and extended to September 15, 2004.
With no new agreement in hand when the existing contract expired on September 15, 2004, league commissioner Gary Bettman announced a lockout of the players union and cessation of operations by the NHL head office. The lockout shut down the league for 310 days, the longest in sports history; the NHL was the first professional sports league to lose an entire season. The league vowed to install what it dubbed "cost certainty" for its teams, but the NHL Players Association countered that the move was little more than a euphemism for a salary cap, which the union initially said it would not accept. A new collective bargaining agreement was ratified in July 2005 with a term of six years with an option of extending the collective bargaining agreement for an additional year at the end of the term, allowing the NHL to resume as of the 2005–06 season.
On October 5, 2005, the first post-lockout NHL season took to the ice with 15 games, and consequently all 30 teams. Of those 15 games, 11 were in front of sell-out crowds. The NHL received record attendance in the 2005–06 season. 20,854,169 fans, an average of 16,955 per game, was a 1.2% increase over the previous mark held in the 2001–02 season. Also, the Montreal Canadiens, Colorado Avalanche, and the Vancouver Canucks sold out all of their home games; all six Canadian teams played to 98% capacity or better at every home game. 24 of the 30 clubs finished even or ahead of their 2003–04 mark. The Pittsburgh Penguins had the highest increase at 33%, mainly because of 18-year-old first overall draft pick Sidney Crosby. 
==Popularity==
The NHL is considered one of the four major professional sports leagues in the USA, along with Major League Baseball, the National Football League, and the National Basketball Association. Hockey has the smallest total fan base of the four leagues, the smallest revenue from television, and the least sponsorship. In contrast, hockey is the most popular of these four major sports in Canada. The NHL fan base is also the most affluent and well educated of the four. NHL season ticket prices have traditionally been higher (given the number of games per season) than the other sports.
==Television and radio==
In Canada, National Hockey League games are aired nationally by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) and The Sports Network (TSN). Regional games are broadcast by a number of networks including Rogers Sportsnet (RSN). French language games are broadcast by the Réseau des sports (RDS), but no longer is on Radio-Canada (the French-language counterpart of the CBC), which created a controversy in French-speaking Canada. The program Hockey Night in Canada, usually aired on Saturday nights on CBC, is a long-standing Canadian tradition since first airing on television in 1952, and even prior to that on radio since the 1920s. During the playoffs, the CBC airs all games that involve Canadian teams and the Stanley Cup finals; TSN airs certain other games during the first three rounds.
In the United States NHL games are aired nationally by Versus (previously the "Outdoor Life Network" and "OLN"), and by NBC. NBC replaced the previous over-the-air network, ABC, and has a revenue-sharing agreement with the NHL. Versus replaced ESPN as the cable network; Comcast, which owns Versus, offered a two-year $120 million agreement, while ESPN offered a revenue sharing agreement. In addition, select games are broadcast in high definition on the HDNet cable channel.
Versus has about 20 million fewer subscribers than ESPN, but Comcast switched Versus from a digital tier to basic cable to make NHL games available to more cable subscribers. For Versus the NHL coverage was a good addition as Versus' ratings grew by about 275% when it showed an NHL game,, but television ratings in the United States have seen record lows. Versus posted a 0.4 rating for the 2006 playoffs while ESPN posted a 0.7 rating two years ago; NBC posted a rating of 1.1, compared to ABC's 1.5 rating two years ago.
In Canada, for the first four games of the Stanley Cup finals, the CBC averaged 2.63 million viewers, and RDS averaged 346,000 viewers. In the United States ratings fared worse due to the inclusion of two small-market teams, including one Canadian team; the first two games on Versus posted a 0.9 rating (621,000 households), and game 3 and game 4 on NBC had ratings of 1.6 and 2.0 respectively (1.7 million and 2.2 million households). In 1994, when the New York Rangers were involved, game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals posted a rating of 5.2. Game 7 of the 2006 Stanley Cup finals gained the highest Stanley Cup rating in the series with a rating of 3.5 (3.8 million households), but it was down from the previous season's game 7 final.
XM Satellite Radio is the official satellite radio broadcaster of the NHL, as of July 1, 2007. Between September 2005 and June 2007, the NHL's broadcasting rights were shared with both XM and Sirius Satellite Radio and were broadcast on just Sirius before the NHL lockout. XM used to broadcast more than 80% of NHL games, including all the play-offs and finals. Starting with the 2007-08 season, XM will broadcast every game.
Outside of North America, NHL games are broadcast across Europe on NASN (North American Sports Network) which takes feeds from Versus, FSN, TSN and CBC, including Hockey Night in Canada. Games can also be seen in the UK on Five.
===Executives===
The chief executive of the league is Commissioner Gary Bettman. Some of the principal decision-makers who serve under the authority of the commissioner include:
* Deputy Commissioner & Chief Legal Officer: Bill Daly
* Executive VP & CFO: Craig Harnett
* Chief Operating Officer: Steve McArdle; previously held by John Collins
* Executive VP & Director of Hockey Operations: Colin Campbell
* NHL Enterprises: Ed Horne
* Senior Vice-President of Player Safety: George Parros
==See also==
* List of all-time NHL leaders
* List of all-time NHL standings
* List of NHL Owners
* List of countries with their first National Hockey League player
* NHL records
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==References==
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==Notes==
==External links==
* Official NHL Webpage
* NHL Player's Association (NHLPA)
* National Hockey League Fan's Association
* The Internet Hockey Database
* The NHL Officials Association Website
Category:Ice hockey leagues
 
Category:Established in 1917
Category:Ice hockey in Canada
Category:Ice hockey in the United States