The NHL says the New York Rangers kept it apprised of an independent investigation into sexual assault allegations by a team employee against player Artemi Panarin and considers the matter closed.

The race for the two wild-card playoff spots in the NHL’s Eastern Conference is full of surprises.

As the buzzer sounded Sunday night, Jonathan Quick’s New York Rangers teammates mobbed him enthusiastically in the crease.

More tributes are pouring in from around the hockey community after the deaths of NHL player Johnny Gaudreau and brother Matthew.

Blue Jackets officials and fans were ecstatic two years ago when Johnny Gaudreau was persuaded to pass up larger markets to sign with Columbus.

Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 23 shots, Sam Bennett and Vladimir Tarasenko scored, and the Florida Panthers are headed to the Stanley Cup Final for the second consecutive year after beating the New York Rangers 2-1 on Saturday night.

Sam Reinhart scored a power-play goal 1:12 into overtime, and the Florida Panthers topped the New York Rangers 3-2 to even the Eastern Conference Final at two games apiece.

The New York Rangers are in the Eastern Conference Final for the second time in three seasons after a big performance from Chris Kreider.

Artemi Panarin redirected a pass between his legs at the crease to beat Pyotr Kochetkov just 1:43 into overtime and the New York Rangers beat the Carolina Hurricanes 3-2 on Thursday night to take a 3-0 lead in the second-round playoff series.

The Carolina Hurricanes had the NHL’s second-best power play during the regular season.

Vincent Trocheck scored a power-play goal off a rebound at 7:24 of the second overtime to give the New York Rangers a 4-3 win over the Carolina Hurricanes.

The New York Rangers outmatched the Washington Capitals in nearly every possible way to move on to the second round of the NHL playoffs in dominant fashion.

The New York Rangers have advanced to the second round of the NHL playoffs after finishing off a sweep of the Washington Capitals with a 4-2 victory in Game 4.

Vincent Trocheck and Mika Zibanejad each had a goal and an assist and the Presidents’ Trophy-winning New York Rangers held on to beat the Washington Capitals 4-3 Tuesday night for a 2-0 lead in their first-round playoff series.

Artemi Panarin scored 10 seconds into overtime and the New York Rangers rallied from three goals down to beat the rival Islanders 6-5 in a Stadium Series game at MetLife Stadium.

The two Stadium Series games at MetLife Stadium this weekend increase the NHL’s total of outdoor games to 41.

Jimmy Vesey’s goal put the Rangers ahead late in the second period, Chris Kreider scored twice and Jonathan Quick made 27 saves as New York beat the Boston Bruins 7-4 in a matchup of the top teams in the Eastern Conference.

Chris Kreider had another power-play goal and two assists as the New York Rangers beat the New Jersey Devils 5-2 to force a deciding Game 7 in their first-round series.

Dougie Hamilton scored 11:36 into overtime and the New Jersey Devils beat the New York Rangers 2-1 to cut their series deficit to 2-1.

Igor Shesterkin stopped 27 shots, Chris Kreider scored two power-play goals and the New York Rangers stunned the New Jersey Devils 5-1 in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series.

The New York Rangers have acquired Patrick Kane in a trade with the Chicago Blackhawks.

Mikhail Sergachev scored his second goal of the game with 1:50 remaining to break a tie and lead the Tampa Bay Lightning to a 3-1 victory over the New York Rangers on Thursday night for a 3-2 lead in the Eastern Conference final.

Nikita Kucherov scored on a breakaway and Andrei Vasilevskiy had 33 saves , helping the Tampa Bay Lightning shut down the New York Rangers 4-1 and even the NHL’s Eastern Conference final at two games apiece.

Ondrej Palat scored with 42 seconds left and the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning beat the New York Rangers 3-2 on Sunday to cut their deficit in the Eastern Conference finals to 2-1.

Filip Chytil scored twice in the second period and the New York Rangers routed the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning 6-2 on Wednesday night in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals.

Igor Shesterkin stopped 37 shots and became the fifth goalie to have two assists in a playoff game, Filip Chytil scored twice in the second period and the New York Rangers beat the Carolina Hurricanes 5-2 to force a deciding Game 7 in their second-round series.

Mika Zibanejad had a goal and an assist, Igor Shesterkin stopped 43 shots, and the New York Rangers beat the Carolina Hurricanes 3-1 in Game 3 of their second-round playoff series.

Brendan Smith scored a short-handed goal late in the second period while Antti Raanta finished with 21 saves to help the Carolina Hurricanes beat the New York Rangers 2-0, taking a 2-0 lead in their second-round playoff series.

The Pittsburgh Penguins are at a crossroads following a fourth straight quick playoff exit.

Artemi Panarin scored a power-play goal 4:46 into overtime and the New York Rangers beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-3 to advance to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Filip Chytil scored the tiebreaking goal early in the third period and the New York Rangers staved off elimination with a 5-3 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 5 of their first-round playoff series.

Danton Heinen’s first playoff goal in three years just past the midway point of the third period helped the Pittsburgh Penguins to a 7-4 victory over the New York Rangers.

Artemi Panarin and Frank Vatrano each had a goal and two assists and the New York Rangers beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-2 in Game 2 on Thursday night to even the best-of-seven first-round series.

The Colorado Avalanche, Florida Panthers and Carolina Hurricanes are among the contenders looking to get over the hump this year and win the Stanley Cup.

Most Russian players in the National Hockey League have remained silent about their country's invasion of Ukraine.

Mika Zibanejad had his eighth career hat trick, Igor Shesterkin stopped 38 shots for his second shutout of the season and the New York Rangers beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-0.

Artemi Panarin scored the first of New York’s three third-period goals with 8:25 left and the Rangers beat the Boston Bruins 5-2 to give coach Gerard Gallant the best start in his first 20 games as coach.

The New York Rangers and top center Mika Zibanejad have agreed to an eight-year contract worth $68 million.

Gerard Gallant expects the New York Rangers to take a big step in his first season as coach.

The New York Rangers have fired coach David Quinn and three assistant coaches.

Tom Wilson is good to go after leaving Washington's last game with an upper-body injury and eager to move on from a chaotic few days.

The New York Rangers have been fined $250,000 by the NHL for criticizing head of player safety George Parros.

The New York Rangers say president John Davidson and general manager Jeff Gorton are out.

Washington's Tom Wilson has been fined $5,000 by the NHL for roughing New York Rangers forward Pavel Buchnevich.

Anthony Beauvillier scored twice and Semyon Varlamov stopped 28 shots for his league-leading seventh shutout of the season as the New York Islanders beat the New York Rangers 3-0 to clinch a playoff spot for the third straight season.

Pavel Buchnevich celebrated his birthday with his first career hat trick and the New York Rangers beat the New Jersey Devils 6-3 on Saturday for their third win over their Hudson River rivals in five days.

(AP Photo/Nick Wass)WASHINGTON – Alex Ovechkin scored twice in the final seven minutes to continue his goal streak and rally the Washington Capitals to a 2-1 victory against the New York Rangers on Friday night for their seventh win in a row. Ovechkin tied it on a rebound with 6:42 left and put the Capitals ahead on a nearly identical play with 3:33 remaining. He has scored in five consecutive games and has seven goals in the past seven. I can’t be missing seven games. “There’s 20-something games left.

New York Rangers' Mika Zibanejad (93) scores against Philadelphia Flyers' Carter Hart (79) during the second period of an NHL hockey game Wednesday, March 17, 2021, in New York. (Bruce Bennett/Pool Photo via AP)NEW YORK – Mika Zibanejad had three goals and three assists in New York's seven-goal second period, and the Rangers beat the Philadelphia Flyers 9-0 Wednesday night. Both of Buchnevich’s goals came early in the second to extend the Rangers’ lead to 4-0 and key the big period. The Russian winger fired a shot from the slot after Zibanejad created a turnover behind the Flyers net at 1:38. OFFENSIVE EXPLOSIONThe Rangers scored nine goals through the first two periods of a game for the second time in franchise history.

New York Rangers' Chris Kreider celebrates his goal during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Boston Bruins, Saturday, March 13, 2021, in Boston. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)BOSTON – Chris Kreider scored his team-leading 14th goal, Artemi Panarin had an assist in his first game back since leaving the team, and the New York Rangers beat the Boston Bruins 4-0 Saturday to halt a three-game losing streak. “You put him in the lineup and then it looks like we have more swagger,” Rangers coach David Quinn said. “You see a game like that and it's: ‘Are we tired or are we out of shape?’” Boston coach Bruce Cassidy said. Ad“I think right away we couldn't sustain our game,” Boston forward Nick Ritchie said.

FILE - In this Feb. 18, 2021, file photo, New York Rangers' Artemi Panarin plays during an NHL hockey game against the Philadelphia Flyers in Philadelphia. Panarin has rejoined the Rangers after taking a two-week leave of absence. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum, File)Artemi Panarin rejoined the New York Rangers for practice in Boston on Wednesday after taking a two-week leave of absence. Coach David Quinn said Panarin won't play Thursday night against the Bruins and his timeline for getting back to game action is unclear. “He’s here and just getting ready to play,” Quinn.

FILE - New York Rangers left wing Artemi Panarin (10) is shown in the second period of an NHL hockey game in Denver, in this Wednesday, March 11, 2020, file photo. New York Rangers star Artemi Panarin is taking a leave of absence after a Russian tabloid printed allegations from a former coach that he attacked an 18-year-old woman in Latvia in 2011. Ex-NHL enforcer Andrei Nazarov is the source for the report after coaching Panarin in the Kontinental Hockey League. Nazarov says he was motivated to speak about it because he disagreed with Panarins repeated criticism of the Russian government. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)New York Rangers star Artemi Panarin is taking a leave of absence from the team after a Russian tabloid printed allegations from a former coach that he attacked a woman in Latvia almost a decade ago, which he denies.

New York Rangers left wing Alexis Lafrenire (13) scores a goal past Washington Capitals goaltender Vitek Vanecek (41) during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Saturday, Feb. 20, 2021, in Washington. Also seen are Capitals defenseman John Carlson (74) and Rangers center Mika Zibanejad (93). (AP Photo/Nick Wass)WASHINGTON – Alexis Lafrenière scored his second NHL goal, Artemi Panarin had two assists and the New York Rangers made the best of a new-look lineup, beating the Washington Capitals 4-1 Saturday for their second consecutive victory. Panarin set up Lafrenière on the doorstep late in the second period, and his shot provided the rebound for Chris Kreider's power-play goal in the first. He's the second Rangers player in league protocol, along with injured forward Filip Chytil.

Alexis Lafreniere wanted to take the stage at Montreal’s Bell Centre near his home and hear his name announced at the NHL draft. From suburban Montreal, he was the first to earn both Canadian Hockey League and Quebec Major Junior Hockey League MVP honors in consecutive seasons since Pittsburgh captain Sidney Crosby in 2004 and ’05. The Los Angeles Kings then selected Ontario Hockey League center Quinton Byfield with the second pick. It was an NHL draft like no other, the first one held in October, with teams selecting remotely from their home cities. “It’s pretty crazy and surreal,” said Sanderson, the son of former NHL forward Geoff Sanderson, and the first American and defenseman selected.

1 pick in the NHL draft while also coming off an appearance in the expanded 24-team playoffs. The Rangers only made the playoffs because the NHL expanded the format to 24, rather than 16 teams. 1 pick is going to be a very good hockey player, there’s no question, maybe even a great player, hopefully. “To be maybe having the chance to play with him, it would be an honor,” Lafreniere said. General managers are bracing for a hectic weekend with numerous teams having to shed payroll this offseason with the NHL salary cap staying at $81.5 million.

Draisaitl has won the Hart Trophy as MVP after leading the NHL in scoring. (AP Photo/John Locher, File)EDMONTON, AB – The Stanley Cup Final is in Edmonton, and Oilers star Leon Draisaitl made history Monday night. Draisaitl became the first German player to win the Hart Trophy as MVP after leading the league in scoring with 110 points in 71 games. Draisaitl is the second Oilers player to win the Hart in the past four years following Connor McDavid, who is widely considered the best hockey player in the world. Like Draisaitl, Makar was (virtually) presented the award by Wayne Gretkzy on an awards show with an Oilers flare.

The NHL Hart Trophy voters agreed with NHL players in selecting Edmontons Leon Draisaitl, Colorados Nathan MacKinnon and Artemi Panarin of the New York Rangers as MVP award finalists. The finalists were announced by the NHL on Tuesday, and determined by members of the Professional Hockey Writers Association. The 24-year-old Draisaitl is seeking to become the first German-born player to win the Hart after leading the NHL with 110 points (43 goals, 67 assists). The 28-year-old Russian was the NHL rookie of the year with Chicago in 2016, and a first-time Hart finalist. Panarin has an opportunity to become the fifth Rangers player to win the honor, and first since Mark Messier in 1992.

NEW YORK NHL MVP candidate Artemi Panarin said Thursday he has concerns about the health and safety of players if the season resumes and about finances beyond that. The New York Rangers winger posted a statement on Twitter saying he's worried about the long-term prosperity of the NHL. His major concern is escrow payments made by players in recent years. Players have protected the owners income with escrow, including throughout this pandemic crisis, even as owners' equity continues to grow exponentially, Panarin said. The league and NHL Players Association are negotiating an extension of the collective bargaining agreement along with a potential return to play amid the coronavirus pandemic. Panarin, a 28-year-old from Russia, is in his fifth NHL season.