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Calgary signed forward James Neal to a five-year Jimmy Howard Jersey , $28.75 million contract on Monday, giving Johnny Gaudreau and the rest of the Flames a much-needed scoring boost.Neal has topped 20 goals in each of his 10 NHL seasons, and was considered the top player left on the free-agent market a day after the NHL’s signing period opened.The signing also comes a day after general manager Brad Treliving talked of a need to upgrade his forward positions to take the pressure off of Gaudreau, Sean Monahan and Matthew Tkachuk.”One of the things we looked to address this offseason was adding depth and versatility to our forward unit,” Treliving said. ”At the end of the year, I talked a little bit about us as a team relying on too few guys to do too many things.”Calgary becomes Neal’s third team in as many seasons. He was selected by Vegas in the NHL expansion draft a year ago, and scored 25 goals and 44 points in 71 games for the Golden Knights.The 30-year-old Neal also played for Pittsburgh and Nashville, and has 263 goals and 495 points in 703 career games.The Flames also signed forward Derek Ryan to a three-year Jonathan Ericsson Jersey , $9.375 million contract. Ryan scored 15 goals and 38 points in his second full season with Carolina last year. Calgary also added center Austin Czarnik, who spent the previous two seasons with Boston.The additions come on the heels of the Flames acquiring center Elias Lindholm and defenseman Noah Hanifin in a trade that sent defenseman Dougie Hamilton, winger Micheal Ferland and college prospect Adam Fox to Carolina.The Flames missed the playoffs for the seventh time in nine years, falling out of contention by going 5-13-1 over the final month of the season. It was a stretch during which Calgary scored three or more goals just five times and was shut out four times.— SEATTLE (AP) — John Barr understood it was likely a foregone conclusion and yet as NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman spoke nearly 3,000 miles away, he found himself getting emotional watching the televisions in the packed bar.Barr was among fans watching Tuesday morning as Seattle was awarded an NHL expansion franchise following a unanimous vote by the Board of Governors in Sea Island, Georgia, ending a lengthy dance between the league and the city that will finally see professional hockey return to the city. Seattle was the first U.S. city to win the Stanley Cup back in 1917. More than 100 years later Womens Justin Abdelkader Jersey , they’ll have that chance again.“I was always optimistic but I didn’t think it was ever a guarantee. Might have got a little watery eyed there,” said Barr, who has headed up the NHLtoSeattle.com website and been a voice for hockey fans in Seattle. “It’s been a long haul and there’s been some ups and downs but I think the wait is worth it.”The Seattle ownership group organized the watch party as a central gathering spot to celebrate the announcement and hand out swag a short distance from the Seattle Center, where the yet-to-be named team will begin play in a reconstructed Seattle Center Arena in 2021.“Is there a better hockey morning than this morning in Seattle?” said Mayor Jenny Durkan, who took a little of the suspense out of Bettman’s announcement by revealing the outcome of the vote about 10 minutes early. “This is just a great thing for Seattle and I’m so honored to be part of it.”Dave Tippett, an adviser for the ownership group who had a front row seat for all the behind the scenes work that went into the pitch to the NHL, joined the fans in Seattle while his bosses were in Georgia.“It’s been coming a long time. The turning point for me, and this was before I was involved Luke Glendening Jersey , was watching the season tickets go on sale and in 10 minutes sold 12,000 tickets,” Tippett said. “We knew there was an unbelievable following here so it’s been fun to get to know people here and get to experience some of the excitement of bringing a team here.”For now, the NHL will serve to satisfy Seattle’s winter sports itch that’s existed since the SuperSonics left for Oklahoma City in 2008. There’s also hope that the rebuilt arena and the foundation being laid by the NHL’s 32nd franchise will help bring the NBA back.If there was a tinge of disappointment, it came with the decision that the team won’t start until the 2021-22 season.The initial was hope for a 2020 start, but arena renovations may not be done in time. As it stands, team President Tod Leiweke said the hope is the building will open in the first quarter of 2021. The first team to call the facility home will likely be the WNBA’s Seattle Storm, before the NHL team begins in the fall.“I’ve been at this eight years so it’s going to be another two years for 2020 Martin Frk Jersey , another one for 2021, I can do it,” Barr said. “They have all the information. I think it’s the right call. We want to launch this right.”