National Hockey League: Difference between revisions

The '''National Hockey League''' ('''NHL'''; {{lang-fr|Ligue nationale de hockey}} {{IPA|fr|liɡ nɑsjɔnal də ɔkɛ|}}, ''LNH'') is a men's professional [[ice hockey]] [[sports league|league]] in [[North America]] comprising 32 teams. In April 2024, the NHL announced that the [[Arizona Coyotes]] franchise would be deactivated with all players and hockey-related assets sold to an new franchise based in [[Salt Lake City]], [[Utah]]. The current owner of the Arizona name Alex Meruelo, could have the Coyotes return in the near future 100% contingent on a new arena being built. As of 2024, the NHL has 32 franchises apart of the playing schedule. If the Arizona coyotes return to the NHL in the future then the league will expand to 33 teams. </ref>{{snd}}25 in the United States (with the Arizona operation inactive) and 7<!--Per MOS:NUM, comparable quantities should all be in the same format, so the numeral 7 is correct here. Please do not change it to "seven".--> in Canada. The [[Stanley Cup]], the oldest professional sports trophy in North America,<ref>{{cite news|last=Roarke|first=Shawn P.|title=Stanley Cup has incredible history|url=https://www.nhl.com/news/stanley-cup-has-incredible-125-years-of-history/c-287633638|website=NHL.com|date=March 12, 2017|access-date=June 12, 2020}}</ref> is awarded annually to the [[Stanley Cup playoffs|league playoff champion]] at the end of each season. The NHL is one of the [[major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada]] and is the top ranked professional ice hockey league in the world,<ref name="premier">{{cite encyclopedia|title=National Hockey League |first=James |last=Marsh|url=http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/national-hockey-league/ <!--Bot repaired link--> |encyclopedia=The Canadian Encyclopedia |year=2006 |access-date=June 11, 2006}}</ref> with players from 17 countries {{As of|alt=as of the {{NHL Year|2023|app=season}}|2023|10}}.<ref name="2324playernationalities">{{cite web|title=Active NHL Players Totals by Nationality ‑ 2023‑2024 Stats |website=QuantHockey.com |url=https://www.quanthockey.com/nhl/nationality-totals/active-nhl-players-2022-23-stats.html |access-date=November 5, 2023}}</ref> The [[International Ice Hockey Federation]] (IIHF) also views the Stanley Cup as one of the "most important championships available to the sport".<ref>{{cite web|title=Triple Gold Goalies... not|url=http://www.iihf.com/home-of-hockey/news/news-singleview/?tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=850|website=International Ice Hockey Federation|author=Podnieks, Andrew|date=March 25, 2008|access-date=June 17, 2017}}</ref> The NHL is headquartered in [[Midtown Manhattan]].