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2 hours ago
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This Canadian city is planning its sixth Stanley Cup parade since 2007. It has no NHL team
No Canadian NHL team has won a Stanley Cup in 32 years, meaning no Canadian NHL city has hosted a Stanley Cup parade for its hometown team in more than three decades. But one Canadian city, too small to host an NHL team, is in early discussions for what could be its remarkable sixth Stanley Cup parade since 2007. Halifax has produced some of the most exciting — and successful — hockey players of our time. And with them has come a tradition of bringing the Cup to their NHL-less hometown for parades that can draw tens of thousands of people. Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby brought the coveted National Hockey League trophy back to his hometown of Cole Harbour, a suburb of Halifax, and toured it around the city, in 2009. He then repeated it in 2016, and again in 2017. 'All three of his parades were unbelievable,' Phil Pritchard, the 'Keeper of the Cup' and legendary Hockey Hall of Fame curator, said in a recent interview. 'Most guys don't really have parades and things like that. They have little town celebrations or community things. But Halifax went all-in.' An estimated 25,000 people attended Crosby's first hometown parade in 2009, with fans reportedly lining up 10 deep in some places to cheer on their hockey hero. A similar parade route for Crosby in 2016 drew about 30,000 people. And when Sid the Kid was the marshal for the city's 2017 Natal Day parade, that number reportedly doubled. 'What I found amazing about it was the people who came out in support, not just to watch the parade, but volunteered, that helped with security, that just helped out,' Pritchard said. Thousands of people also showed up for Nathan MacKinnon's 2022 parade in Halifax when he won the Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche, which Pritchard dubbed 'equally as amazing' as the Crosby celebrations. 'Not to take anything away from Sidney or Nathan, but maybe it's the people of Halifax – they're hockey crazy,' Pritchard said. 'And they've got two of the best players in the world playing, so maybe it all falls in together.' Pritchard's quick to point out that Joe DiPenta was the first hockey player to bring the Stanley Cup back to his hometown of Cole Harbour in 2007, as a member of the Anaheim Ducks. But his celebrations and parade were 'a lot smaller,' Pritchard said. Official Stanley Cup parades have been going on for more than a century. The first one the Hockey Hall of Fame could confirm marched down Winnipeg's Main Street after the Winnipeg Victorias won the Cup in 1896, three years after it was first awarded. For the past 30 years, players on Cup-winning teams each get at least a day with the storied trophy, to do with it as they please. This year's Cup champion, the Florida Panthers, has 100 days with the Stanley Cup, from the night they won it, June 17, until the NHL's opening night in early October. One of the breakout stars of this year's Panthers is Halifax's Brad Marchand. He won the Cup in 2011 with the Boston Bruins, but chose to celebrate with smaller events at Halifax City Hall and a visit to the local children's hospital. 'He didn't have a parade,' Pritchard said. 'Not a lot of them do actual parades. The community has to get that going and Halifax has been great at it.' The 37-year-old right winger, who hails from the Halifax suburb of Hammonds Plains, deserves a parade, according to Jason Wilson, who teaches a course about hockey in Canadian history at the University of Guelph. 'Marchand has proven himself to hockey fans everywhere. He has even convinced long-suffering Leafs fans like myself that he's the real deal,' said Wilson, co-author of Lord Stanley: The Man Behind the Cup. 'His commitment to focusing on the game and shredding — though perhaps not altogether — his sometimes-bizarre non-hockey play on the ice, is a declaration of maturity. When you consider the Four Nations Cup and this past Stanley Cup playoffs, I think there's an argument to be made that he has to be included among the top five most impactful players of 2025. An impact that surely has the good people of Hammonds Plains, N.S., planning a parade route for their ice warrior.' Marchand scored six goals in five games for the Panthers during the 2025 Stanley Cup Final, including game-winning goals in both of their road wins, to help Florida take their second straight championship against the Edmonton Oilers. 'Brad doesn't have a date picked yet' for his personal day with the Stanley Cup, Pritchard said. That begs the question: should Halifax throw Marchand a parade? 'It takes more than one guy to have the parade,' Pritchard said, 'the community's got to get behind it.' Halifax Mayor Andy Fillmore sounds keen on hosting a Marchand parade. 'Brad Marchand is a hometown legend and now a two-time Stanley Cup champion and Halifax couldn't be prouder,' Fillmore said in an email. 'As mayor of Halifax, I'd love to welcome Brad home to celebrate this incredible win, with the Cup, of course. We're in early discussions at the city about how to help make that happen. It's entirely up to him, but if he's game, we'd be thrilled to host him here in Halifax this summer.' Free donairs for 1,500 Haligonians thanks to Brad Marchand's goal for the Florida Panthers Ageless Marchand continues Stanley Cup sizzle Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here.
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2 hours ago
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Canucks Dealt Reality Check on Sabres' Bowen Byram Speculation
Canucks Dealt Reality Check on Sabres' Bowen Byram Speculation originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Trade speculation connecting Buffalo Sabres defenseman Bowen Byram to the Vancouver Canucks emerged before the player was sent to arbitration as a restricted free agent. Advertisement According to NHL insider David Pagnotta, however, the rumors about a possible trade to the Canadian franchise has been overstated. Pagnotta acknowledged Vancouver's interest in the player early last season, but dismissed the notion of a potential trade this offseason during an appearance on the "Sekeres & Price" podcast on Tuesday. 'So, with the Canucks, I think it was real more so in the season than it was this past June,' Pagnotta said. 'But honestly, for me, it would probably be something coming out of left field once all is said and done if something does happen with the Canucks.' Advertisement By taking Byram to arbitration, the Sabres blocked possible offer sheets for their player but handed him control over the length of his next contract, whether that's for one or two seasons. If Byram chooses the one-year deal, he will be a restricted free agent once again next season. If he chooses the two-year contract, however, he will enter unrestricted free agency in July 2026. '(The arbitration) eliminates the offer sheet threat,' Pagnotta said. 'But it doesn't eliminate the fact that they may still end up moving him at some point once they figure out the contract and all that stuff. So he's still available.' Buffalo Sabres defenseman Bowen Byram (4) looks to make a pass during an NHL T. Ludwig-Imagn Images The Sabres aren't openly shopping Byram, but general manager Kevyn Adams acknowledged a trade could materialize under the right conditions, which for Buffalo means landing impact players instead of future assets. Advertisement 'If there's a deal out there that makes sense for us … we're open to it,' Adams said. Pagnotta said that the Sabres "want to upgrade themselves up front," adding that Byram "would prefer a change of scenery," but emphasized a Canucks deal remains highly unlikely. Related: Sabres Facing Pressure Following Bowen Byram Decision Related: Elliotte Friedman Explains Implications of Sabres' Move on Bowen Byram This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 13, 2025, where it first appeared.
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3 hours ago
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Flames' Nazem Kadri Responds to Maple Leafs Trade Talk
Flames' Nazem Kadri Responds to Maple Leafs Trade Talk originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Calgary Flames center Nazem Kadri has broken his silence on the trade rumors linking him to the Toronto Maple Leafs in a possible offseason move that would see him return to his first NHL team. Advertisement Kadri, however, killed the buzz quickly, calling the speculation 'a little bit bizarre' while acknowledging he's seen his name surface repeatedly in recent weeks. 'It's happened quite often over the last couple months,' Kadri said on the "Knight Shift" podcast. 'It's a little bit bizarre scrolling around and seeing your face pop up and your name pop up. 'Obviously, the rumour mill is pretty strong, especially around these parts.' Kadri spent the first 561 games of his NHL career in Toronto, scoring 357 points, including 161 goals. The center still holds a full no-movement clause, and as far as it's publicly known, he's not requested a trade out of Calgary. Advertisement The forward, however, added a bit of fuel to the fire by saying that while he's aware the speculation and rumors are fan-driven, it's a fun thing to discuss. 'There's not a whole lot in terms of sports right now,' Kadri said. 'I think it's definitely a topic to talk about. Why not talk about it?' Calgary Flames center Nazem Kadri (91) has been linked to the Maple Leafs in a potential return to Belski-Imagn Images As far as how real the whispers about a potential move from Calgary are, NHL insider Elliotte Friedman recently shut it down by denying the veracity of a few fabricated quotes related to Kadri and attributed to his name. 'They're not in a hurry to trade Nazem Kadri right now,' Friedman said. 'Not after he had such a fantastic season for them.' Advertisement Kadri is coming off scoring 35 goals and 67 points in 82 regular-season games, and has four years remaining on his current seven-year, $49 million contract, set at a $7 million annual cap hit. Related: Elliotte Friedman Debunks 'Fake' Nazem Kadri-Maple Leafs Trade Quotes This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 13, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
5 hours ago
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This Canadian city is planning its sixth Stanley Cup parade since 2007. It has no NHL team
No Canadian NHL team has won a Stanley Cup in 32 years, meaning no Canadian NHL city has hosted a Stanley Cup parade for its hometown team in more than three decades. But one Canadian city, too small to host an NHL team, is in early discussions for what could be its remarkable sixth Stanley Cup parade since 2007. Halifax has produced some of the most exciting — and successful — hockey players of our time. And with them has come a tradition of bringing the Cup to their NHL-less hometown for parades that can draw tens of thousands of people. Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby brought the coveted National Hockey League trophy back to his hometown of Cole Harbour, a suburb of Halifax, and toured it around the city, in 2009. He then repeated it in 2016, and again in 2017. 'All three of his parades were unbelievable,' Phil Pritchard, the 'Keeper of the Cup' and legendary Hockey Hall of Fame curator, said in a recent interview. 'Most guys don't really have parades and things like that. They have little town celebrations or community things. But Halifax went all-in.' An estimated 25,000 people attended Crosby's first hometown parade in 2009, with fans reportedly lining up 10 deep in some places to cheer on their hockey hero. A similar parade route for Crosby in 2016 drew about 30,000 people. And when Sid the Kid was the marshal for the city's 2017 Natal Day parade, that number reportedly doubled. 'What I found amazing about it was the people who came out in support, not just to watch the parade, but volunteered, that helped with security, that just helped out,' Pritchard said. Thousands of people also showed up for Nathan MacKinnon's 2022 parade in Halifax when he won the Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche, which Pritchard dubbed 'equally as amazing' as the Crosby celebrations. 'Not to take anything away from Sidney or Nathan, but maybe it's the people of Halifax – they're hockey crazy,' Pritchard said. 'And they've got two of the best players in the world playing, so maybe it all falls in together.' Pritchard's quick to point out that Joe DiPenta was the first hockey player to bring the Stanley Cup back to his hometown of Cole Harbour in 2007, as a member of the Anaheim Ducks. But his celebrations and parade were 'a lot smaller,' Pritchard said. Official Stanley Cup parades have been going on for more than a century. The first one the Hockey Hall of Fame could confirm marched down Winnipeg's Main Street after the Winnipeg Victorias won the Cup in 1896, three years after it was first awarded. For the past 30 years, players on Cup-winning teams each get at least a day with the storied trophy, to do with it as they please. This year's Cup champion, the Florida Panthers, has 100 days with the Stanley Cup, from the night they won it, June 17, until the NHL's opening night in early October. One of the breakout stars of this year's Panthers is Halifax's Brad Marchand. He won the Cup in 2011 with the Boston Bruins, but chose to celebrate with smaller events at Halifax City Hall and a visit to the local children's hospital. 'He didn't have a parade,' Pritchard said. 'Not a lot of them do actual parades. The community has to get that going and Halifax has been great at it.' The 37-year-old right winger, who hails from the Halifax suburb of Hammonds Plains, deserves a parade, according to Jason Wilson, who teaches a course about hockey in Canadian history at the University of Guelph. 'Marchand has proven himself to hockey fans everywhere. He has even convinced long-suffering Leafs fans like myself that he's the real deal,' said Wilson, co-author of Lord Stanley: The Man Behind the Cup. 'His commitment to focusing on the game and shredding — though perhaps not altogether — his sometimes-bizarre non-hockey play on the ice, is a declaration of maturity. When you consider the Four Nations Cup and this past Stanley Cup playoffs, I think there's an argument to be made that he has to be included among the top five most impactful players of 2025. An impact that surely has the good people of Hammonds Plains, N.S., planning a parade route for their ice warrior.' Marchand scored six goals in five games for the Panthers during the 2025 Stanley Cup Final, including game-winning goals in both of their road wins, to help Florida take their second straight championship against the Edmonton Oilers. 'Brad doesn't have a date picked yet' for his personal day with the Stanley Cup, Pritchard said. That begs the question: should Halifax throw Marchand a parade? 'It takes more than one guy to have the parade,' Pritchard said, 'the community's got to get behind it.' Halifax Mayor Andy Fillmore sounds keen on hosting a Marchand parade. 'Brad Marchand is a hometown legend and now a two-time Stanley Cup champion and Halifax couldn't be prouder,' Fillmore said in an email. 'As mayor of Halifax, I'd love to welcome Brad home to celebrate this incredible win, with the Cup, of course. We're in early discussions at the city about how to help make that happen. It's entirely up to him, but if he's game, we'd be thrilled to host him here in Halifax this summer.' Free donairs for 1,500 Haligonians thanks to Brad Marchand's goal for the Florida Panthers Ageless Marchand continues Stanley Cup sizzle Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here.
Yahoo
6 hours ago
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Nantes win first pre-season friendly against Stade Laval
A Rangers Offensive Lineup That Could Be A Big Winner Summertime is fantasy time and one of the Fischler Family's pastimes is guessing an offensive line up that Rangers coach Mike Sullivan will present on opening night. 1:57 Now Playing Paused Ad Playing
