Ice hockey player Adam Johnson has died after a “freak accident” during Nottingham Panthers’ Challenge Cup match with Sheffield Steelers on Saturday night.

The 29-year-old American reportedly suffered a slashed neck during the second period of the game at Sheffield’s Utilita Arena.

Nottingham Panthers said on Sunday morning: “The Nottingham Panthers are truly devastated to announce that Adam Johnson has tragically passed away following a freak accident at the game in Sheffield last night.

“The Panthers would like to send our thoughts and condolences to Adam’s family, his partner, and all his friends at this extremely difficult time.

“Everyone at the club including players, staff, management and ownership are heartbroken at the news of Adam’s passing.

“Our thoughts are also with the fans and staff of both clubs, especially those who attended or were following the game, who will be devastated following today’s news.

“The Panthers would like to thank everyone who rushed to support Adam last night in the most testing of circumstances.

“Adam, our number 47, was not only an outstanding ice hockey player, but also a great teammate and an incredible person with his whole life ahead of him. The club will dearly miss him and will never ever forget him.

“We ask that the privacy of Adam’s family and friends, and everyone at the club is respected at this difficult time as we all seek to come to terms with our grief.”

Minnesota-born Johnson played for Pittsburg Penguins in the National Hockey League before spending the 2020-21 season in Sweden with the Malmo Redhawks.

Johnson went on to play in Canada for the Ontario Reign and in Germany for the Augsburger Panther before agreeing to join Nottingham for the 2023-24 campaign.

Sunday’s three Elite League games in Belfast, Fife and Guildford have been postponed following Johnson’s death.

“The Elite Ice Hockey League is heartbroken to confirm that Nottingham Panthers forward Adam Johnson sadly passed away following a freak accident in Saturday’s game between Sheffield Steelers and Nottingham Panthers,” read a league statement.

“In light of this deeply upsetting news, the Elite League has postponed all games scheduled to take place on Sunday October 29, 2023.

“The thoughts and condolences of everyone connected with the EIHL are with Adam’s family, friends and teammates at this incredibly sad and difficult time.”

Sheffield said in their own statement: “Everyone at the Steelers send their condolences to Adam Johnson’s partner, family & teammates.”

Reilly Smith scored twice in the first period and Tristan Jarry made 31 saves as the Pittsburgh Penguins ended the Colorado Avalanche’s NHL-record 15-game road winning streak, 4-0 on Thursday.

Colorado, which opened this season with six straight wins, hadn’t lost away from Denver during the regular season since a 7-3 defeat to Dallas on March 4.

Lars Eller and Sidney Crosby also scored to help the Penguins snap a three-game losing streak.

Colorado goalie Alexander Georgiev had his personal road winning streak stopped at 12, leaving him in a tie for the longest road win streak by a goalie in NHL history, set by Eddie Johnston with Boston in 1971.

Ducks rally to beat Bruins in OT

Mason MacTavish scored with 2:52 left in overtime and the Anaheim Ducks rallied for a 4-3 victory, sending the Boston Bruins to their first loss of the season.

Anaheim forced overtime with two late goals, the first by rookie Leo Carlsson with 1:55 left in regulation and Troy Terry’s tally with 14.7 seconds remaining in the third period.

David Pastrnak scored one goal and set up another, while Charlie McAvoy had three assists for the Bruins, who opened the season with six consecutive wins for the second time in franchise history.

Tampa Bay's Johansson blanks winless Sharks

Jonas Johansson turned away 23 saves for his second straight shutout and the Tampa Bay Lightning rolled to a 6-0 rout of the winless San Jose Sharks.

Johansson stopped 32 shots in Tuesday’s 3-0 win over Carolina and is 3-0-1 with a 1.72 goals-against average in his last four starts.

Steven Stamkos had a goal with an assist for the Lightning, who have points in four straight (3-0-1) following a three-game skid.

San Jose is winless in 13 consecutive games (0-11-2) since a 7-2 win at Arizona last April 1.

Jake Allen made 36 saves and the Montreal Canadiens scored twice in the third period to earn a 3-1 win over the Buffalo Sabres on Monday.

Brendan Gallagher recorded the tie-breaking goal and Tanner Pearson scored on the power play in the third period to help the Canadiens to a second straight win and third in four games. Both also had an assist.

Gallagher gave Montreal a 2-1 lead by poking a loose puck past Buffalo goaltender Eric Comrie 3:31 into the third period, and Pearson made it a two-goal advantage with 3:07 remaining with his third tally in four games.

Justin Barron put the Canadiens ahead 2:56 into the contest, but the Sabres drew even on Jeff Skinner's power-play goal with 7:13 elapsed in the first period.

Allen was impenetrable from there, however, making 17 saves in the second period and 13 more in the third.

Comrie finished with 24 saves for Buffalo, which finished 2-2-0 on a four-game home-stand. 

Alex DeBrincat recorded his fifth career hat trick to lead the surging Detroit Red Wings to a 6-2 rout of the Calgary Flames on Sunday for their fifth consecutive win.

DeBrincat scored in all three periods to continue a hot start to his Red Wings tenure. Acquired from the Ottawa Senators in the offseason, the 2020-21 All-Star now has a league-leading eight goals - all of which have come in Detroit's three home games this season.

Dylan Larkin added a goal and an assist for Detroit, which also received goals from Joe Veleno and Jake Walman. Lucas Raymond assisted on all three DeBrincat goals, while Justin Holl also finished with three helpers to support 29 saves from James Reimer.

Andrew Mangiapane and Yegor Sharangovich had goals for Calgary, which finished 1-3-1 on a five-game road trip. Dan Vladar stopped just 24 of 30 shots in defeat.

Poitras' first two NHL goals help Bruins move to 5-0-0

Matthew Poitras scored the first two goals of his NHL career in the third period as the Boston Bruins rallied for a 3-1 victory over the Anaheim Ducks to remain undefeated for the young season.

Brad Marchand added an empty-net goal and Linus Ullmark made 30 saves to help the Bruins move to 5-0-0.

After a scoreless first two periods, Mason McTavish got Anaheim on the board first when he knocked in a rebound 5:05 into the third.

Poitras, playing in his fifth NHL game, tied it just 1:24 later before putting Boston in front midway through the period by beating John Gibson after collecting a rebound of teammate Jake DeBrusk's shot.

Gibson finished with 23 saves in the Ducks' third straight loss.

Auston Matthews notched his second straight hat trick to open the season and the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Minnesota Wild 7-4 on Saturday.

Matthews became the fifth player in NHL history to start a season with consecutive hat tricks, joining Alex Ovechkin (2017-18), Cy Denneny (1917-18), Joe Malone (1917-18) and Reg Noble (1917-18).

William Nylander added two goals and an assist for Toronto, which has scored 12 goals in winning its first two games of the season.

Jenner’s 3 goals help Vincent earn first win

Boone Jenner registered his second career hat trick to give Pascal Vincent his first coaching victory with a 5-3 win over the New York Rangers.

Jenner’s first goal of the game forged a 1-1 tie, and his second with 2:15 left in the opening period put the Blue Jackets on top for good.

He completed his natural hat trick with 7 ½ minutes remaining in the second period for a 3-1 lead.

Elvis Merzlikins made 24 saves before leaving with flu-like symptoms after the second period. He was replaced by Spencer Martin, who stopped 15 of 17 shots in the third in his Columbus debut.

Golden Knights beat Ducks to stay perfect

Chandler Stephenson, Shea Theodore and Jack Eichel each had a goal and an assist as the Vegas Golden Knights continued their unbeaten start with another 4-1 victory, this one over the Anaheim Ducks.

Jonas Rondjberg had the other goal and Adin Hill stopped 22 shots to help defending champion Vegas begin a season with three straight wins for the second straight year.

The Golden Knights’ three wins have all come by 4-1 scores.

Mason McTavish had the lone goal as Anaheim lost in Greg Cronin’s coaching debut.

Sidney Crosby scored twice on the power play in the second period and Tristan Jarry stopped 20 shots as the Pittsburgh Penguins earned their first win of the season with a 4-0 victory over the Washington Capitals on Friday.

Evgeni Malkin had a goal and three assists and Reilly Smith also scored to help the Penguins rebound from Tuesday’s season-opening loss to Chicago.

Washington lost its debut under new coach Spencer Carbery and was shut out for the first time in 49 season openers.

Backup Charlie Lindgren made 31 saves in place of Darcy Kuemper, who was away while his wife gave birth to the couple’s first child.

Coyotes edge Devils in shootout

Karel Vejmelka was perfect in the shootout and the Arizona Coyotes recovered after giving up a two-goal lead in a 4-3 win over the New Jersey Devils.

Nick Bjugstad and Nick Schmaltz scored in the shootout and Vejmelka turned away attempts by Timo Meier and Jesper Bratt to give Arizona a win in its season opener.

Bratt had two goals and an assist in regulation, and Dougie Hamilton scored one goal and set up another for New Jersey, which was coming off a 4-3 win over Detroit in its season opener.

Chris Kreider scored two goals and the New York Rangers rolled to a 5-1 win over the Buffalo Sabres in Peter Laviolette’s debut as coach.

Artemi Panarin had a goal and an assist and Igor Shesterkin stopped 23 shots for his 100th career victory, becoming the first Rangers goalie to reach 100 wins in fewer than 187 appearances.

JJ Peterka had the lone goal for the Sabres, who came out flat in what they hope will be the season where they end an NHL-worst 12-season playoff drought.

Kreider’s power-play goal in the first period extended New York’s lead to 2-0 and he tallied short-handed midway through the third to make it 4-1.

Wild’s Gustavsson turns aside 41 in shutout

Filip Gustavsson stopped 41 shots and Brock Faber scored his first NHL goal to lead the Minnesota Wild to a 2-0 victory over the Florida Panthers.

Joel Eriksson Ek assisted on Faber’s goal and scored on the power play in the second period.

Minnesota improved to 9-1-1 in season openers at Xcel Energy Center and 11-2-3 at home against the Panthers.

Golden Knights beat Sharks for 2-0 start

Nicolas Hague and Nicolas Roy scored late in the second period and Logan Thompson made 22 as the Vegas Golden Knights defeated the San Jose Sharks, 4-1.

After Michael Amadio and San Jose’s Filip Zadina traded first-period goals, defending Stanley Cup champion Vegas took control late in the second.

Hague snapped the tie with 1:29 left in the period and Roy extended the lead 53 seconds later.

Brayden Pachal tallied his first NHL goal early in the third for the Knights, who haven’t trailed in winning their first two games.

Brock Boeser became the first Vancouver Canuck to score four goals in nearly two decades as part of an 8-1 season-opening rout of the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday.

J.T. Miller had a goal and four assists, Elias Pettersson added a goal and three assists and Quinn Hughes set up three scores for Vancouver.

Boeser’s first goal of the game midway through the opening period gave the Canucks a 2-0 lead. He scored twice 3 ½ minutes apart in the second period and tallied his fourth of the night at 5:43 of the third.

The last Canucks player to score four goals was Daniel Sedin against Detroit on Feb. 24, 2004.

Bedard scores first NHL goal but Bruins win

Connor Bedard scored his first NHL goal, but David Pastrnak snapped a second-period tie to lift the Boston Bruins to a 3-1 win over the Chicago Blackhawks.

Trent Frederic also scored and Pastrnak added an empty-net goal to give the Bruins a win in their season opener a year after setting NHL records for wins and points.

Reigning Vezina Trophy-winner Linus Ullmark stopped 20 shots and counterpart Arvid Soderblom made 32 saves for Chicago, which opened its season with a win over Pittsburgh on Tuesday.

Bedard, who had an assist in his NHL debut, scored at 5:37 of the first period on a wraparound.

Matthews has trick in Maple Leafs’ shootout win

Auston Matthews completed a hat trick with two late goals and Mitch Marner had the lone tally in the shootout as the Toronto Maple Leafs rallied for a season-opening 6-5 win over the Montreal Canadiens.

Toronto fell behind 2-0 and 5-3 but Matthews scored the 300th, 301st and 302nd goals of his career for his eighth hat trick.

John Tavares had three assists, setting up power-play goals by Matthews and William Nylander in the second period before drawing another on Matthews’ second tally with 4:32 left in regulation.

Matthews netted the equaliser with 67 seconds left in the third period.

Alex Newhook scored twice in his Canadiens debut.

Connor Bedard notched a point in his NHL debut and the Chicago Blackhawks scored three times in the third period to rally for a 4-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday night.

The 18-year-old Bedard – the top pick in the 2023 draft - assisted on Ryan Donato’s goal late in the second period to cut Chicago’s deficit to 2-1.

Bedard registered five of the Blackhawks’ 35 shots and dazzled occasionally with his skating.

His arrival in the NHL has been anticipated for years, much like Sidney Crosby’s when the Penguins made him the first overall selection in 2005, all of 13 days after Bedard was born.

Cole Guttman netted the tying goal midway through the third period and Jason Dickinson snapped the tie with 4:33 remaining.

Petr Mrazek gave up goals to Bryan Rust and Crosby but finished with 38 saves against the Penguins, the league’s oldest team.

Golden Knights raise banner, beat Kraken

Chandler Stephenson and Jonathan Marchessault scored in the first period and Adin Hill made 27 saves as the Vegas Golden Knights began defense of their Stanley Cup title with a 4-1 win over the Seattle Kraken.

Ivan Barbashev and Jack Eichel also tallied for Vegas, which raised its championship banner in a lavish pregame ceremony.

Jared McCann provided Seattle’s lone goal in the second period.

Paul leads Lightning past Predators

Nicholas Paul scored a pair of third-period power-play goals and Jonas Johansson stopped 28 shots to win his Lightning debut as Tampa Bay opened the season with a 5-3 win over the Nashville Predators.

Brandon Hagel scored on a penalty shot, Nikita Kucherov added a pair of goals and Brayden Point had three assists for the Lightning.

With five-time All-Star Andrei Vasilevskiy expected to miss another six weeks after back surgery, Johansson has been thrust into a starting role.

He gave up Tommy Novak’s tying goal 8:48 into the third period, but Paul scored just over two minutes later and Kucherov’s empty-net goal closed the scoring.

Ryan O’Reilly and Juuso Parssinen also scored as Nashville lost in Andrew Brunette’s debut as coach.

The Toronto Maple Leafs and superstar center Auston Matthews agreed on a four-year, $53 million contract extension on Wednesday, making him the NHL’s highest-paid player.

Matthews has one year remaining on the five-year, $58.2 million pact he signed in February 2019, and he could have become an unrestricted free agent next summer.

With an average annual value of $13.25 million, Matthews will become the NHL’s highest-paid player beginning in 2024-25, surpassing Colorado star Nathan MacKinnon’s $12.6 million annual average value.

The 25-year-old Matthews has been one of the game’s elite players since he was selected with the first overall pick in the 2016 draft.

He led the league in goals twice (2020-21 and 2021-22) and has totaled 299 goals and 542 points in 481 regular season games.

Matthews’ best season came in 2021-22, when he set career highs with 60 goals and 106 points in 73 games, earning him the Hart Trophy as the NHL’s MVP.

He dipped to 40 goals last season but still tallied 85 points in 74 games.

The native of Scottsdale, Arizona leads all players in goals since the start of the 2016-17 season and ranks 11th in points during that span.

The Maple Leafs have reached the playoffs in every full season since Matthews entered the league but have advanced past the first round only once – defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning in a six-game series last spring.

Chicago Blackhawks center and longtime captain Jonathan Toews will take next season off for health reasons but is not ready to retire from the NHL.

The three-time Stanley Cup champion announced his future plans on social media Thursday.

Toews, a free agent after spending 16 years with the Blackhawks, missed the entire 2020-21 season with long COVID symptoms and chronic immune response syndrome.

“I’d like to announce that I am not fully retiring, but I am taking time away from the game again this season,” Toews posted on Instagram. “I cannot deny my love for the game of hockey and still feel the passion for competing at my highest level.

“However, these last few seasons have been very difficult considering my health challenges. My focus is to give myself the time and space to fully heal and enjoy life to the fullest once again.”

Toews played 53 games last season, totaling 15 goals and 16 assists, but has largely kept his medical struggles out of the public eye.

“Along the way I have met several people who have struggled with health issues pertaining to long COVID, chronic immune response syndrome, and other similar cases that are quite complex,” Toews’ post read. “I now recognize the importance of one day sharing the details of my health journey with you all.

“Thank you to all of you who have supported me and respected my privacy in the process.”

Toews captained Stanley Cup-winning Blackhawks teams in 2010, 2013 and 2015, winning the Conn Smyth trophy as the playoffs MVP in 2010.

In 1,067 career games, all with Chicago, Toews has tallied 372 goals and 511 assists, in addition to 119 points (45 goals, 74 assists) in 137 career playoff games.

Toews won the Selke Trophy in 2013 as league’s best defensive forward and was twice given the Messier Leadership Award.

Toews is a free agent after completing an eight-year, $84million contract but has previously expressed a desire to play his entire career with the Blackhawks.

“The thought of playing for another team right now is so far in the back of my mind right now, especially after that moment,” Toews said after receiving an emotional ovation from the team’s fans after the season finale. “I always thought I’d retire a Blackhawk and part of me still believes in that, so we’ll see.”

Longtime Boston Bruins center David Krejci announced his retirement on Monday in a statement released by the team.

“After 15 full NHL seasons I have decided to retire from the best league in the world,” the 37-year-old Czech Republic native said.

“When I was drafted in 2004, I had no idea that I would be working with such incredible and driven people who would lead us to 3 Stanley Cup Finals, and winning the ultimate goal in 2011.”

Krejci made his NHL debut in January 2007 and spent his entire NHL career with the Bruins.

He returned to Boston last season after playing for Czech club HC Olomouc in 2021-22.

In the history of the Bruins franchise, Krejci ranks fifth in games played (1,032), 13th in goals (231), fifth in assists (555) and ninth in points (786).

“David, for 16 seasons you displayed an unmatched combination of creativity, poise, and wit – with an uncanny knack for coming up clutch – while remaining humble and determined through all your success,” the Bruins said in a statement.

“You are a special player, person, and teammate who has made a lasting impact on our organization and our city.

“For all you’ve done for the Boston Bruins, THANK YOU.”

Boston will head into the 2023-24 campaign without its top two centers from a season ago after captain Patrice Bergeron also retired last month.

The Pittsburgh Penguins bolstered their blue line on Sunday by acquiring three-time Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson from the San Jose Sharks in a trade that also involved the Montreal Canadiens.

The 33-year-old Karlsson heads to Pittsburgh along with forward Rem Pitlick, forward Dillon Hamaliuk and San Jose's 2026 third-round draft pick.

The Sharks acquired forward Mikael Granlund, defenseman Jan Rutta, forward Mike Hoffman and Pittsburgh's 2024 first-round draft pick (top-10 protected).

Montreal landed defenseman Jeff Petry, goaltender Casey DeSmith, forward Nathan Legare and Pittsburgh's 2025 second-round draft pick.

Karlsson was the 15th overall pick in 2008 by Ottawa and spent his first nine seasons with the Senators after making his NHL debut in 2009-10.

He won the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s best defenseman in 2011-12 and 2014-15.

The Senators traded Karlsson to San Jose prior to the 2018-19 campaign, and the seven-time All-Star had a career season in 2022-23.

Karlsson set personal bests with 25 goals and 76 assists to become the first NHL defenseman to record 100 points since Brian Leetch accomplished the feat for the New York Rangers in 1991-92.

In 920 career games, Karlsson has recorded 178 goals and 583 assists. His 761 points rank 21st in the history of the NHL among defensemen.

Pittsburgh Penguins forward Jake Guentzel will miss the start of the 2023-24 NHL season after undergoing right ankle surgery earlier this week.

The Penguins announced Friday that Guentzel underwent a successful procedure at Twin Cities Orthopedics in Minnesota on Wednesday. The two-time All-Star is scheduled to be re-evaluated in 12 weeks, which would leave him sidelined into at least late October.

Pittsburgh opens its season Oct. 10 against the Chicago Blackhawks. 

Guentzel hurt his ankle at some point this offseason and the injury progressively worsened during recent training sessions, according to Penguins president of hockey operations and general manager Kyle Dubas.

"As Jake continued to increase the intensity of his preparation for the upcoming season, it was apparent that his ankle injury was not resolving in a way that was satisfactory to he or the Penguins," Dubas said in a team statement. "In collaboration with Jake - his representative Ben Hankinson of Octagon Sports, the Penguins medical team led by Dr. Dharmesh Vyas of UPMC Sports Medicine, and Dr. (Chris) Coetzee - it was decided that surgery would be the best way to ensure Jake would be at his best in 2023-2024."

Guentzel has led the Penguins in goals in each of the last two seasons and tied a career high with 40 in 2021-22, a campaign in which he finished with a personal-best 84 points.

The 28-year-old enjoyed another productive season in 2022-23 with 36 goals and 37 assists in 78 games. His 11 power-play goals last season were a career high and tied for the team lead.

Guentzel has spent his entire seven-year career with the Penguins and has compiled 197 goals and 217 assists in 453 regular-season games. The Minnesota native led Pittsburgh with 13 postseason goals as a rookie in 2016-17 to help the team to its most recent Stanley Cup championship.

Guentzel is also one of seven players in franchise history with six consecutive seasons of 20 or more goals, a list that includes franchise legends Mario Lemieux, Jaromir Jagr, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. 

Sebastian Aho has received quite the gift on his 26th birthday.

The Carolina Hurricanes announced Wednesday they have signed their standout center to an eight-year, $78 million extension that will keep him under contract through the 2031-32 season.

Aho was entering the final season of a five-year, $42.3 million contract signed in 2019, when the Hurricanes matched an offer sheet the Montreal Canadiens gave the then-restricted free agent.

That has proven to be a shrewd move for Carolina, as Aho's 135 goals over the last four seasons rank eighth among NHL players and he's one of only nine players to score 30 or more goals in four of the last five seasons.

Aho has been a core member of a Hurricanes team that reached the Eastern Conference finals in 2022-23 and has won at least one playoff series in five consecutive seasons.

"Sebastian has developed into one of the best two-way centers in hockey," Hurricanes president and general manager Don Waddell said in a statement. "He's a tremendous leader on and off the ice who sets a great example for our younger players. We're grateful that he's decided to stay in Carolina for the foreseeable future."

Aho has spent his entire seven-year NHL career with Carolina after being taken by the Hurricanes in the second round of the 2015 draft. The two-time All-Star's 218 goals and 468 points both rank fifth in franchise history.

The native Finn owns club postseason records for career goals (23), assists (35) and points (58), while his 16 career shorthanded goals are tied for the most in franchise history.

Aho is coming off another outstanding campaign in which he compiled 36 goals and 31 assists in 75 regular-season games before contributing five goals and seven assists in 15 games during Carolina's playoff run.