The NHL yesterday formally announced plans for the Yankee Stadium leg of the '14 Coors Light NHL Stadium Series, which will mark the first time hockey will be played at the ballpark since its '09 opening. The series will feature an early afternoon Rangers-Devils game on Jan. 26 and a Rangers-Islanders night contest on Jan. 29. The games will mark the first instance of pro hockey being played outdoors in the city of N.Y. (NHL). In N.Y., Klein & Belson note the games will be showcased just before Super Bowl XLVIII is played at MetLife Stadium on Feb. 2. NHL COO John Collins said that the "presence of the Super Bowl in the New York area was a factor in scheduling the games." But he added that the league "did not confer with the NFL in scheduling the games." Collins: "It's our regular-season schedule, so no. We respect what the NFL is doing. We think the New York Super Bowl is going to be phenomenal. We'll be off the stage after Wednesday night. Then the NFL has New York to itself" (N.Y. TIMES, 5/16).
WRONGFUL DEATH SUIT: In DC, Nathan Fenno wrote under the header, "Derek Boogaard Lawsuit Puts NHL On Notice." This is the league's "NFL moment," and that is "not a positive thing." The "go-to move for the NHL, like the NFL, will be to seek to remove the case to federal court, then argue, again, like the NFL, that the collective bargaining agreement pre-empts the lawsuit." That is a "powerful play." But the "potential for change in the NHL is written on every page of the lawsuit." Fenno: "Could this lead to an end to fighting?" (WASHINGTON TIMES, 5/13).
