The NHL's free agent season began on Sunday, and three Jewish players signed new deals. Two of the players are former teammates, and now, two are future teammates. The common link between the pairings is Dylan Reese, most recently of the New York Islanders. Reese signed a one-year, two-way contract on Sunday with the Pittsburgh Penguins, worth $600,000 per year at the NHL level, and a smaller, undisclosed amount at the AHL level. The 27 year old played a career-high 28 games in the NHL last season, scoring a goal …More

The NHL's summer free agent season begins on Sunday, July 1, and among those hitting the open market will be four Jewish players who competed in the NHL this year. Here's who could be moving this summer: Jeff Halpern: The Washington, DC native and Princeton University alum scored four goals and handed out 12 assists in 69 games for his hometown Washington Capitals in 2011-12, and played two games during the Caps' 14-game Stanley Cup playoff run, which ended in the second round at the hands of the New York …More

After Trevor Smith and the Norfolk Admirals claimed the Calder Cup, it seems that the natural thing to do was drink. Reports surfaced last week that the Admirals rang up a $10,000 bar tab at Toronto's Madison Avenue Pub on June 4, after they defeated the Toronto Marlies to complete a four-game sweep of the Calder Cup Finals. With the team going for a sweep on the road, management reserved the bar as a place where the team could celebrate undisturbed should they capture the American Hockey League championship. By …More

He may be on the verge of breaking through as an NHL player, but for now, Trevor Smith is a champion in the minor leagues. The 27-year old Smith had an assist on Saturday afternoon as his Norfolk Admirals defeated the Toronto Marlies, 6-1, to capture the 2012 Calder Cup as the champions of the American Hockey League. Smith set up a goal by Pierre-Cedric Labrie in the third period, his 11th assist of the playoffs. Smith also scored 15 goals for 16 points, tying with teammate Alexandre Picard for the playoff …More

Trevor Smith and the Norfolk Admirals are two games away from American Hockey League history. In truth, the Admirals—top minor league affiliate of the NHL's Tampa Bay Lightning—made history when they advanced to the Calder Cup finals, since the team has never played for minor-league hockey's top prize in the 12-year history of the franchise. Neither had any of its predecessors in the market, whose previous AHL entries included the Tidewater Wings, the Virginia Wings and the Hampton Gulls. But the …More

Trevor Smith will not be resting this Friday night. The native of Ottawa, Ontario will be on the ice at the Scope in Norfolk, VA, playing for the Norfolk Admirals in the first game of the 2012 Calder Cup Finals. The Admirals, the top minor league affiliate of the NHL's Tampa Bay Lightning, cruised through the first three rounds of the Calder Cup Playoffs, defeating the Manchester Monarchs, the Connecticut Whale and the St. John's IceCaps to win the AHL's Eastern Conference title. That sets up a matchup against …More

Trevor Smith is one game away from a trip to the Calder Cup Finals. With a win on Monday night, Smith and the Norfolk Admirals took a 3-0 series lead against the St. John's IceCaps in the American Hockey League's Eastern Conference Finals. With one more win, Norfolk—the top minor league affiliate of the NHL's Tampa Bay Lightning—will advance to the Calder Cup finals against the winner of the Western Conference finals, currently being played between the Oklahoma City Barons (Edmonton Oilers) and the …More

Washington Capitals center Jeff Halpern played in his second game of the 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs on Saturday night as the Capitals battled the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden. Unfortunately for the DC native, it would also be his last. The Capitals dropped a 2-1 decision to the Rangers on Saturday night, and were eliminated from the playoffs. The loss brings an end to Washington's season, as the Rangers move on to face the New Jersey Devils in the Eastern Conference finals. The lone Jewish player who …More

The best year of Trevor Smith's professional hockey career keeps getting better. Smith, who posted a career high 69 points (26 goals, 43 assists) in 64 AHL games for the Norfolk Admirals during the regular season—and scored two goals and assisted on three more for the Tampa Bay Lightning in 16 NHL games—scored his third goal of the AHL's Calder Cup playoffs on Sunday, helping Norfolk to a 4-3 win over the Connecticut Whale. The Admirals now lead the best-of-seven series, two games to one, with Game 4 …More

The International Ice Hockey Federation begins its World Championship tournament this weekend in Helsinki and Stockholm, and the best known Jewish player in the tournament won't be suiting up for the United States or Canada. He'll be playing for Germany. Evan Kaufmann, a former star at the University of Minnesota who now plays for the DEG Metro Stars of the DEL (Germany's top pro hockey league), is a member of the German national team, which opens play on Friday against Italy. Kaufmann, who was born in …More

The National Hockey League wrapped up its regular season on Saturday afternoon. With the Stanley Cup Playoffs set to begin on Wednesday, only one Jewish player will be chasing his sport's most cherished prize: Jeff Halpern of the Washington Capitals. Thirty-five year old Halpern is in his 12th season in the NHL, and his first with the Capitals since the 2005-06 campaign. Originally a free agent signee with his hometown Capitals following his college career at Princeton University, Halpern has also played for the …More