New post: Should NHL teams be able to loan players instead of trading them? Should we make a radical change to how suspensions work? Do we need a "rule of cool"? Find out, in the return of Rules Court. www.nytimes.com/athletic/678...

TGIF! Adam Scully filling in today on #GamePlay as he'll be joined by Simoni Lawrence, Wesley Cheng and @downgoesbrown.bsky.social! Listen from 2-4pm on your home speakers, @tsnofficial.bsky.social App, iHeart Radio App or player.toronto.tsn.ca!

tough session here. tough.

New post: Should NHL teams be able to loan players instead of trading them? Should we make a radical change to how suspensions work? Do we need a "rule of cool"? Find out, in the return of Rules Court. www.nytimes.com/athletic/678...

How do the expansion team names/logos stack up against the league’s original six?  @haileysalvian.bsky.social, @downgoesbrown.bsky.social and @seangentille.bsky.social teamed up to figure it out:

New post: It's Hall of Fame induction week, which makes it a good time to re-evaluate the borderline cases for six active players. - John Tavares - Kris Letang - Jamie Benn ... and more. www.nytimes.com/athletic/677...

We’re all thinking it but I’m the only one brave enough to say it.

New post: It's Hall of Fame induction week, which makes it a good time to re-evaluate the borderline cases for six active players. - John Tavares - Kris Letang - Jamie Benn ... and more. www.nytimes.com/athletic/677...

If you missed it, I dropped a huge scoop in today's rankings: It's possible that Leafs aren't very good. www.nytimes.com/athletic/677...

Weekend rankings: In which the Leafs are meh, the Blues are terrible, and the parity in the East is out of control. Plus power rankings and more... www.nytimes.com/athletic/677...

Weekend rankings: In which the Leafs are meh, the Blues are terrible, and the parity in the East is out of control. Plus power rankings and more... www.nytimes.com/athletic/677...

About every half hour today, one of my brain cells says “Hey, should we think about that Blue Jays game at all?” and then all the other ones go “NOPE” and beat the first one to death.

Wonderful.

Been a Toronto sports fan for four decades and I think that’s the single most heart-breaking loss I’ve ever witnessed.

Really feels like we’re at the “hoping we can get to the end credits before the horror movie villain hunts down the hero” mode.

As of this moment, literally every team in the Eastern Conference is .500 or better. Six of those teams have lost more games than they've won, but yep, absolutely everyone gets to be .500. Very cool points system we're still somehow using.

New post: It's the return of the NHL Grab Bag, this time with way more MLB content than it should probably be allowed to have: - Subtle differences between the Leafs and Jays - Obscure player(s) - A YouTube breakdown of Alan Thicke opening the SkyDome www.nytimes.com/athletic/676...

New post: Get ready to yell “boo” because it’s time for the annual All-Scary Start Team. www.nytimes.com/athletic/675...

New post: Get ready to yell “boo” because it’s time for the annual All-Scary Start Team. www.nytimes.com/athletic/675...

True story, my wife was finishing up something in a video game when I came in to watch the World Series but then the Jays immediately hit those two home runs so now I apparently have to watch the game on my phone.

- How to fix Frozen Frenzy - How to scam Wal-Mart And other questions answered with McIndoe and Frankie It’s a good show. pod.fo/e/346a74

I haven't watched a ton of baseball in recent years so apologies if this is a dumb question, but do we really need the home plate ump's mic to be louder than either of the announcers?

That's the difference in the superstars right there: Vladdy is good enough to hit a HR off Shohei, but Shohei could never manage to hit a HR off Vladdy.

All you need to know about how rough a year it's been for the Calgary Flames is that this goal just happened, and these three players have combined for 29 games this year.

In today's Red Light newsletter: - Four of us drafted tonight's 16-game lineup, from best matchups to worst - The results of the Marchand HHOF vote are in - What's the deal with "intentional" offside? - Lots of cool links and more... www.nytimes.com/athletic/675...

Last night was the "Alfredo Griffin was on deck for Joe Carter's home run" trivia question except with seven Alfredo Griffins.

Screw it, put in the zamboni driver.

This is completely ridiculous.

Cool, cool, a crucial postseason game in L.A. and the Toronto team is getting screwed by the officials not being able to tell what’s high. Well played, sports gods.

Weekend rankings: - The Wild are a mess - The Penguins are... good? - Five early surprises I'm starting to buy into - And lots more... www.nytimes.com/athletic/675...

Weekend rankings: - The Wild are a mess - The Penguins are... good? - Five early surprises I'm starting to buy into - And lots more... www.nytimes.com/athletic/675...

From earlier: How well do you know these NHL player nicknames? Probably not very well because they all sound fake, but hockey-reference insists that they're real. t.co/rAYgy5ymlx

Highlight of the game so far is my wife calling Snell “Spoons” because she says he needs to put cold spoons under his eyes.

From earlier: How well do you know these NHL player nicknames? Probably not very well because they all sound fake, but hockey-reference insists that they're real. t.co/rAYgy5ymlx

New post: It's time for another round of the "nicknames you've never heard of but hockey-reference insists are real" quiz! - Sugar Boo - Fishy - The Springfield Rifle - Tommy Dangles - Two guys named Gary for some reason - and more... www.nytimes.com/athletic/674...

New post: There are 24 NHL rivalries that have earned the honor of having their own Wikipedia page. I ranked them all, based on their single wildest passage. - Brawls - Flare guns - Whoopi Goldberg for some reason - Santa fight! - and lots more… www.nytimes.com/athletic/673...

When the show goes up on YouTube, you will be able to pinpoint the exact moment my soul leaves my body.

New post: There are 24 NHL rivalries that have earned the honor of having their own Wikipedia page. I ranked them all, based on their single wildest passage. - Brawls - Flare guns - Whoopi Goldberg for some reason - Santa fight! - and lots more… www.nytimes.com/athletic/673...

Not surprised the Leafs' challenge didn't work, but don't think it was a terrible decision. Lack of contact isn't the issue -- you can interfere just by screening the goalie -- but I'm assuming the question of whether he was pushed into the crease was the problem.

Red Light newsletter: - As he returns to Boston, is Brad Marchand a Hall-of-Fame lock? - Using the NFL to remind NHL fans that it's still early - Can a team put its opponents offside? - Plus trivia and more... www.nytimes.com/athletic/673...

Ohtani on a plane to Toronto for real this time

🍁🍁🍁

GAH!

Every Canadian quote-tweeting this Vlad photo like it’s the @stefanheck.bsky.social tarot card tweet

Dude I love the Leafs more than anybody but we need to tear that jersey off of him, kick him outside and make him re-enter the building right now.

New Weekend Rankings: - The Red Wings are the league's best team - The Lightning are cooked - The Kraken are good ... and other early stories I'm not buying (yet) www.nytimes.com/athletic/673...

New Weekend Rankings: - The Red Wings are the league's best team - The Lightning are cooked - The Kraken are good ... and other early stories I'm not buying (yet) www.nytimes.com/athletic/673...

First Blue Jays game seven in 40 years. Can’t wait! (Vomits.) This will be fun!

Mailbag time: - A major TV show serves up the most on-the-nose metaphor for being a Leafs fan ever seen - How do Leaf fans feel about the Habs rebuild? - Would McKenna to the Pens make people madder than McDavid to the Oilers? - And more… www.nytimes.com/athletic/672...