For my entire life, I assumed that every one on the ice was painted. I have had no basis for this assumption, I just... assumed it. Then, I saw this tweet.

The crease is a lie?

The lines are painted onto the ice, and the ice itself is painted white. As for the rest of the stuff? The Langley Events Centre, home of the WHL’s Vancouver Giants, shows us how it works:

And that, is how an NHL rink is born. When it comes to board ads, those are big stickers too which can trap giant air bubbles in them and crack easily or catch a skate or stick. They’re very frustrating to install.

Now, the news.

The Stanley Cup Playoffs previews are coming in hard and fast:

Aggressive vs. Passive Forecheck: What will work best against the Leafs?
The Optimist’s Take: Bring on Tampa!
A Bandwagon Fans Guide to the Winnipeg Jets
Why The Stars Match Up Well Against The Predators
The 2019 Nucks Misconduct Bandwagon Outreach Program. Finding homes for displaced fans....in Toronto?
Predators vs. Stars Preview: Stars Forwards

Many teams are looking for new coaches:

Will Joel Quenneville be the next coach of the Florida Panthers? Yes!!!
Report: Todd McLellan has emerged as top candidate for the Sabres
Why all the pressure is now on Blackhawks GM Stan Bowman

And then there’s the other stuff:

Nikita Kucherov will win the Hart Trophy but he probably shouldn’t
Rangers’ Next Team President Will Have Challenges To Face Early On
Carter Hart to play for Team Canada at IIHF World Championship
2019 NHL Draft prospect profile: Kaapo Kakko may be the best player available

We have two more days until the playoffs begin. lets not tie ourselves into knots.

From The Branches