The NHL Research, Development and Orientation Camp is an annual two-day event held by the National Hockey League for the purpose of testing potential changes to the rules of the game of ice hockey, ranging from the subtle variety to the more drastic kind.
The event allows the NHL to experiment with potential changes to the game, while using top prospects for the NHL Entry Draft as guinea pigs in the on-ice experiments. [1]
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman describes the event as “an opportunity to try new things, look at things, even if we never implement them”. [2]
Ice hockey is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hockey sticks to control, advance and shoot a closed, vulcanized, rubber disc called a "puck" into the other team's goal. Each goal is worth one point. The team which scores the most goals is declared the winner. In a formal game, each team has six skaters on the ice at a time, barring any penalties, one of whom is the goaltender. Ice hockey is a full contact sport.
The National Hockey League is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ice hockey league in the world, and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada. The Stanley Cup, the oldest professional sports trophy in North America, is awarded annually to the league playoff champion at the end of each season. The NHL is the fifth-wealthiest professional sport league in the world by revenue, after the National Football League (NFL), Major League Baseball (MLB), the National Basketball Association (NBA), and the English Premier League (EPL).
In ice hockey, the captain is the player designated by a team as the only person authorized to speak with the game officials regarding rule interpretations when the captain is on the ice. At most levels of play each team must designate one captain and a number of alternate captains who speak to the officials when the captain is on the bench. Captains wear a "C" on their sweaters, while alternate captains wear an "A".
A penalty in ice hockey is a punishment for an infringement of the rules. Most penalties are enforced by sending the offending player to a penalty box for a set number of minutes. During the penalty the player may not participate in play. Penalties are called and enforced by the referee, or in some cases, the linesman. The offending team may not replace the player on the ice, leaving them short-handed as opposed to full strength. When the opposing team is said to be on a power play, they will have one more player on the ice than the short-handed team. The short-handed team is said to be "on the penalty kill" until the penalty expires and the penalized player returns to play. While standards vary somewhat between leagues, most leagues recognize several common varieties of penalties, as well as common infractions.
A hockey helmet is worn by players of ice hockey, inline hockey, and bandy to help protect the head from potential injury when hit by the puck, sticks, skates, boards, other players, or the ice. The shell of a hockey helmet is generally made of a substance called vinyl nitrile that disperses force from the point of contact, while the liner may be made of either vinyl nitrile foam, expanded polypropylene foam, or other material to absorb the energy, to reduce the chances of concussion. Hockey helmets grip the head from inside by cupping the back of head, or the occipital protuberance. Helmet manufacturers will have a chart that relates their helmet sizes to head measurements. Mt on older models, the helmet size is adjusted by loosening the screws on the side to slide the front portion forward or back.
In ice hockey, an official is a person who has some responsibility for enforcing the rules and maintaining the order of the game. There are two categories of officials, on-ice officials, who are the referees and linesmen that enforce the rules during gameplay, and off-ice officials, who have an administrative role rather than an enforcement role.
The 2007–08 NHL season was the 91st season of operation of the National Hockey League (NHL). It began on September 29, 2007, and the regular season ended April 6, 2008. The Stanley Cup playoffs ended on June 4, with the Detroit Red Wings taking the championship. The 56th NHL All-Star Game was held in Atlanta, Georgia, as the Atlanta Thrashers hosted the event at Philips Arena on January 27, 2008. The hosting by Atlanta was rescheduled from 2005, when a lockout cancelled the entire 2004–05 season.
The National Hockey League rules are the rules governing the play of the National Hockey League (NHL), a professional ice hockey organization. Infractions of the rules, such as offside and icing, lead to a stoppage of play and subsequent to the offending teams. The league also determines the specifications for playing equipment used in its games.
The Kontinental Hockey League is an international professional ice hockey league founded in 2008. It comprises member clubs based in Russia (19), Belarus (1), Kazakhstan (1) and China (1) for a total of 22 clubs.
Kirill Sergeyevich Kabanov is a Russian professional ice hockey forward, who is currently playing for the Aalborg Pirates in the Metal Ligaen (DEN). He played ten games with HC Spartak Moscow of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) before moving to North America. Kabanov also played for the Russian junior team at the 2009 IIHF World U18 Championships where he won a silver medal. Kabanov was selected 65th overall by the New York Islanders in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft.
Tyler Paul Seguin is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre and alternate captain for the Dallas Stars of the National Hockey League (NHL). Seguin was selected second overall in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft by the Boston Bruins and went on to win the venerable 2011 Stanley Cup in his rookie season. He finished the 2011–12 season in Boston with a plus-minus of +34, the second highest in the NHL.
Ryan Johansen is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre and alternate captain for the Nashville Predators of the National Hockey League (NHL). Growing up, he played minor hockey in the Greater Vancouver area until joining the junior ranks with the Penticton Vees of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) for one season. In 2009–10, he moved to the major junior level with the Portland Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League (WHL). After his first WHL season, he was selected fourth overall by the Blue Jackets in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft. Internationally, he has competed for the Canadian national junior team at the 2011 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, where he earned a silver medal and was named to the Tournament All-Star Team. In 2015, he participated in the 2015 NHL Skills Competition and was named the 2015 NHL All-Star Game MVP.
The 2017–18 NHL season was the 101st season of operation of the National Hockey League. With the addition of a new expansion team, the Vegas Golden Knights, 31 teams competed in an 82-game regular season. The regular season began on October 4, 2017, and ended on April 8, 2018. The 2018 Stanley Cup playoffs began on April 11, 2018, and concluded on June 7, with the Washington Capitals winning their first Stanley Cup in the Finals over the Vegas Golden Knights in five games.
The CHL Import Draft is an annual event in which every team in the Canadian Hockey League may select the rights to eligible import players. An import is classified as a player who does not have residency status in either Canada or the United States. The draft is conducted online, during the last week of June, or first week of July, following the NHL Entry Draft. Teams from the Western Hockey League, Ontario Hockey League, and Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, systematically take turns making selections in reverse order of the team's standings in the CHL from the previous season. Teams can have a maximum of two imports which may only be obtained through the draft, and teams must have an open roster space for an import player before a draft selection is made, otherwise they must pass on the opportunity. The draft is open to all position players, but the Canadian Hockey League banned the drafting of European goalkeepers from 2014 to 2017. Since the first Import Draft in 1992, over 1,700 players have been selected, with many later going onto the National Hockey League. The majority of imported players come from the Czech Republic, Russia, and Slovakia.
Nicolas Roy is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre currently playing for the Vegas Golden Knights of the National Hockey League (NHL). Roy was drafted by the Carolina Hurricanes, 96th overall, in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft.
ThomasChabot is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman and alternate captain of the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL). Chabot was drafted in the first round by the Senators in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft.
Vince Dunn is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman currently playing for the Seattle Kraken of the National Hockey League (NHL).
Kirby Dach is a Canadian professional ice hockey player who currently plays centre for the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League (NHL). Dach was selected by the Chicago Blackhawks with the third overall pick in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft.
Owen Power is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman for the Buffalo Sabres of the National Hockey League (NHL). He played college ice hockey for the University of Michigan. Power was drafted first overall by the Sabres in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft.
Dakota Joshua is an American professional ice hockey forward who is currently playing for the Springfield Thunderbirds in the American Hockey League (AHL) as a prospect to the St. Louis Blues of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected 128th overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft.