Prime Video is widening its NHL footprint in the United States, with six teams set to make the jump to the service as local streaming rights shift away from Victory+. Beginning with the 2026-27 season, Prime Video will be the exclusive local streaming home for the defending Stanley Cup champion Hurricanes, along with the Ducks, Blue Jackets, Stars, Wild and one more team named in the announcement.
The move is a U.S.-only development. Prime in the United States is not the same service as Prime in Canada, or anywhere else, and that distinction matters here.
Canadian Prime subscribers will not get these games, and American Prime subscribers will not see the Canadian teams that Prime carries north of the border. It works the same way regional NHL coverage often does, with one country’s broadcasts living on one set of platforms and the other country’s on another.
There’s also an important wrinkle on the Canadian side: Prime games there are exclusive to Prime, while the U.S. local streaming rights mean the same game could still appear on television elsewhere.
The WHL has already found its own answer to the Victory+ situation. Its regular-season games will move to YouTube at the start of the 2026-27 season. All other junior hockey in Canada remains on FloHockey, as does the AHL.
Back in Toronto, the Leafs’ website has been quietly churning through daily updates, and the Marlies are part of the shuffle. Denver Manderson is listed as an assistant coach for the Marlies while also holding his role as Director of Minor League Development, giving Steve Sullivan three assistants. That may have already been announced, but it’s now reflected on the site.
Another notable change: Chris Bourque has been promoted from scout to Assistant General Manger of the Marlies. Bourque, a former AHL standout with Hershey, joined the organization in 2022 and was one of those hires that drew strong approval from people around the minors.
Colin McBride is also no longer listed as head of media relations. He may still have a role at MLSE in the same capacity for its MLSE Partnerships venture.
This round of changes looks different from the management upheaval the Leafs went through under Brendan Shanahan or after Kyle Dubas left. There have been plenty of moving parts, but not the kind of all-at-once staff purge Shanahan once carried out, and not the same bitter split that came with the Dubas departure.
Former Leafs scouting executive Dave Morrison, meanwhile, is working for a new NHL club for the first time in 23 years.
And then there’s the NBA’s hammer coming down on the Clippers. The league has punished the team for circumventing the salary cap with Kawhi Leonard, stripping away five first-round picks - 2029, 2030, 2031, 2032 and 2033 - while also handing down a $30 million fine. The owner and president of business ops were each suspended for one year, and Leonard was fined $700,000.
There’s also one final item in the day’s mix: something that is sad, but still carries hope. From The Branches.
In Other News...
Maple Leafs May Regret Passing On A Low-Cost Scoring Fix
The Maple Leafs are heading toward training camp with the kind of salary cap squeeze that makes every inexpensive roster move look more important in hindsight. That is why the decision to pass on Eeli Tolvanen, who landed a one-year deal with the New York Rangers, stands out as more than a minor footnote. Toronto has been looking for ways to shore up its depth without spending heavily, and the market still includes a few veterans who could fit that bill.
Gustav Nyquist and Jonathan Drouin are among the other names that sit in that low-cost, high-upside lane the Leafs may want to keep circling. Players on show-me deals do not solve everything, but for a team trying to protect itself against thin scoring depth, they can be useful bets. The challenge for Toronto is whether it keeps waiting for the perfect fit or starts acting on the kind of bargain opportunities that tend to disappear quickly. [Read more 🡒]
Leafs Fans Will Hate This New Twist In The Laughton Pick Deal
The Flyers have added a familiar name to their amateur scouting department, bringing in Dave Morrison after his 23-year run with the Maple Leafs. Morrison spent more than two decades helping Toronto identify talent, and now he is moving into a role where he will help Philadelphia do the same as it builds out its next wave of prospects.
For Leafs fans, the timing gives the Scott Laughton trade an extra layer of sting. Philadelphia still has not used the conditional first-round pick it acquired from Toronto in that deal, and Morrison will be part of the group evaluating the player selected with it. It is the kind of front-office twist that can make an old trade feel a little more personal, especially when the person helping make the next call spent so long in Toronto's own scouting room. [Read more 🡒]
Maple Leafs Face A Toronto Problem That Can Hurt Team Chemistry
The Maple Leafs are dealing with a familiar Toronto reality that goes well beyond the standings. In a market this big and this intense, the scrutiny from fans and media is constant, and the day-to-day grind of living in the city can make even simple off-ice routines harder than they are elsewhere in the league. Jake Carlo pointed to the challenge of traffic and Torontos size, two things that can quietly cut into the kind of casual time teammates often use to build trust.
For a team trying to turn talent into something more connected, those small obstacles can matter. If players are spending less time together away from the rink, the chemistry that shows up on the ice may have to be built more deliberately, and that is where more organized team-building during the season could help. It is not a headline-grabbing fix, but for a group under this much pressure, the little things can end up carrying real weight. [Read more 🡒]