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DALLAS — The Rangers have been aggressive throughout this rebuilding process, and that didn’t stop at the beginning of the draft Friday night. Instead, the Blueshirts went a bit outside conventional thinking when they took 18-year-old Russian winger Vitali Kravtsov with the No. 9-overall pick. With a handful of higher-rated prospects still available — the […]

DALLAS — There already has been a bit of terrific timing for the Islanders, starting with their hiring of Lou Lamoriello as president, then going on to the hiring of Barry Trotz as the new coach. That type of good luck continued in the first round of the draft Friday night, when an unpredictable first […]

DALLAS — The NHL’s inaugural draft was held in 1963 in Montreal, where six players were chosen in a private affair. It has since evolved into a sprawling extravaganza, the latest of which opened here Friday night with the 31-team first round. Over the previous 55 sweepstakes, the Rangers had selected 514 players. Not once […]

DALLAS — There were a couple teams in the first round of the draft that seemingly benefited from what was an unpredictable first couple picks, and one of them was the Devils. With the No. 17 overall selection, they took defenseman Ty Smith on Friday night. Smith, 18, is a bit undersized, but he was […]

Russian forward Ilya Kovalchuk has agreed to a three-year, $18.75 million deal to return to the NHL with the Los Angeles Kings. The club announced the deal Saturday with Kovalchuk, who is back in North America after a five-year absence. Kovalchuk was the No. 1 pick in the 2001 NHL draft by the Thrashers. He […]

DALLAS — This always seemed inevitable, but now that it’s clear John Tavares is going to meet with five teams during the free-agent courting period, which starts Sunday, the ground on which the Islanders stand is starting to shake just a little. Tavares made his declaration about the meetings Saturday during the second round of […]

DALLAS — Surely, albeit too slowly to protect athletes currently at risk, change is coming to the way the NHL addresses hits to the head. That is the most significant takeaway from the general managers’ meeting that was held Thursday in advance of the draft. According to several sources in attendance, a notable number of GMs […]

DALLAS — Just like everyone else at this relatively sleepy NHL draft weekend, Rangers general manager Jeff Gorton had a lot fewer trade conversations than he anticipated. And so Gorton went about his business, making all three first-round picks he had on Friday and finished having made 10 picks overall, leaving with his roster players […]

DALLAS — Somehow, the Islanders got another bit of good luck. Following a week of nothing but things breaking right for them, the Islanders had first-round talent Bode Wilde fall to them in the second round, and they took the right-handed defenseman with the 41st pick on Saturday afternoon. “Yeah, a little surprised, but it […]

DALLAS — The dealing lies ahead for the Rangers, who left the entry draft Saturday night with the same NHL personnel they had stored in the carry-on bin on their flight to Texas on Tuesday. So while Kevin Hayes — relieved enough not to be dealt Friday that he posted a link to a “Not […]