NHL

Washington Capitals star Logan Thompson had an excuse for giving up a bit of a soft goal on Tuesday night ... but, warning, it's pretty cheesy!!!

In the third period of the Caps' tilt with the Oilers in Edmonton, Corey Perry snuck one by Thompson's right shoulder to make the game 3-2 ... but immediately after the score, the goalie argued it shouldn't count.

Thompson pointed at a plate of nachos that had been chucked onto the ice just seconds before Perry unloaded a slap shot -- making it clear the queso bites distracted him.

1:01 PM PT -- Police say, at this time, there is no indication that the break-in at Evgeni Malkin's home is related to other burglaries involving sports stars ... though they added they are still investigating the matter.

Another sports superstar's home has been broken into ... this time, a residence belonging to NHLer Evgeni Malkin was hit -- and his Stanley Cup rings were stolen in the heist, TMZ has confirmed.

The burglary happened on Jan. 11 in the Sewickley Heights-area of Pennsylvania -- right around the time Malkin's Penguins were playing the Ottawa Senators at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh.

The L.A. wildfires have forced the postponement of an NHL game ... the Kings vs. Flames will not go down as planned on Wednesday night due to the effects of the blazes.

Los Angeles' pro hockey team made the decision just minutes ago ... writing in a statement, "Our hearts are with our entire Los Angeles community."

"We appreciate the hard-working First Responders who are diligently working to contain the fire and protect our community," it said. "We appreciate the Leagues' support in keeping our fans, staff, and players safe."

Seth Edeen is making a name for himself in Hollywood starring in cheesy, short-form soap operas ... and he says the pay-as-you-go model works because the stories are fun and the actors are hot!!!

We got Seth playing basketball at Venice Beach and our photog asked him about the success of his new movie "Breaking The Ice," which is one of the most popular picks on the ReelShort app.

Seth's romance flick is broken down into minute-long episodes, and viewers are able to watch 12 clips for free until ReelShort makes them pay or watch ads to finish the movie. He plays a hockey player who moves back home ... only to find out his high school sweetheart was hiding their secret love child from him.

The FBI is warning pro athletes to be vigilant ... confirming Monday groups of organized thieves are targeting stars' homes in search of high-priced valuables.

The feds issued the alert just a couple days after NBA superstar Luka Doncic became the latest A-lister to have his place broken into ... explaining criminals are hitting residences belonging to big-time players while they're on the road or at games.

"These homes are targeted for burglary due to the perception they may have high-end goods like designer handbags, jewelry, watches, and cash," FBI officials said, according to ABC News.

A fight with a little hockey sprinkled in ... is probably the best way to describe Tuesday's Bruins vs. Jets game in Winnipeg, 'cause there were brawls everywhere!

It's a game the Bruins would just as soon forget -- they lost 8-1 -- and when it became clear in the third period that Boston wasn't winning this one, the NHL game began to look more like UFC 311, with three consecutive fights.

The first fight involved Boston's Trent Frederic and Winnipeg's David Gustafsson ... where Gustafsson was sent to the ice after eating a right hand. The refs quickly jumped in and (temporarily) restored order.

Newly released body cam footage from New Jersey state police captures the moment the driver, accused of killing Johnny Gaudreau and his brother while driving drunk, struggles through a field sobriety test right before being taken into custody.

Check out the clip -- Sean Higgins, puffing on a cigarette, tells officers he was "freaked out" as they questioned him about the crash, claiming he’d had beers but the last one was two hours ago.

Cops ran some tests to see if he was intoxicated, and after eventually being slapped in handcuffs, Sean is heard asking, "Is everybody okay back there? I mean, what happened?" A trooper responds, "We’ll talk about that when we get to the station."

Diddy's facing a mountain of lawsuits from anonymous accusers, but one accuser's name has now been revealed in court docs ... and she's the ex-wife of a professional hockey player.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, one of the Jane Does suing Diddy for sexual assault was ordered to reveal her identity if she wanted to continue her lawsuit ... and now we've learned the woman suing is Anna Kane, who used to be married to NHL star Evander Kane.

FYI, Evander has not been accused of any wrongdoing.

Anna amended her lawsuit to include her government name. As we already told you, she claims she was just 17 years old and still in high school when Diddy, and others, gang-raped her.

Johnny Gaudreau's family made the return to Calgary for the first time since the tragic deaths of the former Flames forward and his younger brother ... and as part of the emotional comeback, Johnny Hockey's wife got a sweet tribute tattoo.

Meredith Gaudreau unveiled the new ink just before the Flames vs. Blue Jackets tilt at Scotiabank Saddledome, showing she got Johnny's signature permanently etched onto her right wrist.

She told Sportsnet she had the work done just down the street from the stadium ... and revealed it was her first-ever tat. She also noted that covering it up in bracelets Johnny had previously bought her made it extra special.

12:13 PM PT -- Court documents, obtained by TMZ Sports, show authorities hit Sean Daley with a felony count of possession of a forged instrument after they say he admitted he had a fraudulent military ID on his person at the time of his arrest.

We've also obtained video from his meeting with a Maricopa County judge on Monday -- and you can see, he was released on the condition that he promises to return for his next hearing in December.

TMZ Sports has obtained the mug shots of the six men accused of scrapping with ex-NHLer Paul Bissonnette over the weekend ... and you can see, some of the dudes appeared to have bruises on their faces.

9:03 AM PT -- A Maricopa County jail official tells us ... Sean Daley was taken into custody on Monday at 12:15 PM and released several hours later. He was officially booked on three separate charges, including two felonies and one misdemeanor.

8:55 AM PT -- Law enforcement sources tell TMZ Sports ... 29-year-old Sean Daley was booked for felony assault in connection with the Sunday night fight.

Former Arizona Coyotes player Paul Bissonnette was assaulted at a Scottsdale-area bar Saturday night ... after BizNasty stepped in and stopped a group of drunk golfers who were causing issues!

The NHL vet and current TNT hockey analyst and podcaster went to social media after FOX 10 Phoenix broke the story ... where he explained what led to the melee.

"There was a bit of a ruckus going on in the bar," Bissonette said. "It was a bunch of drunk golfers. Things obviously continue to escalate. They ask one guy to leave, and one guy kept getting in the manager's face and put his hands on him."

An NHL referee was stretchered off the ice and taken to the hospital on Monday night ... but, thankfully, it appears he's going to be OK.

The scary scene all unfolded in the middle of the Avalanche vs. Flyers game in Philadelphia ... after Colorado defenseman Josh Manson accidentally crashed into Mitch Dunning near the blue line.

Manson hit Dunning in the back with such force that it caused the official to lose his balance and tumble to the ice. For several moments, Dunning then lay motionless as trainers raced to his aid.

10:32 AM PT -- Great news ... Dylan Holloway is back at the St. Louis Blues' facility following his scary incident Tuesday night -- and it seems he could return to the ice as early as this week.

Holloway addressed media members Wednesday morning -- roughly 12 or so hours after he was rushed to the hospital -- and he looked to be in good spirits.

He told reporters the puck hit a major nerve in his neck, which caused him to lose consciousness -- but tests have all come back OK since.

It was an emotional home opener for the Columbus Blue Jackets ... as the team honored the life of Johnny Gaudreau with a touching tribute before the action kicked off -- and there wasn't a dry eye in the arena.

During pregame warmups, the entire team wore #13 jerseys as they took the ice ... which will be put up for auction with proceeds going to the John and Matthew Gaudreau Foundation.

The tribute to Johnny didn't stop there. The team welcomed Johnny's wife Meredith -- and their two kids -- to the ice as they raised a banner to the rafters "In his memory and the legacy of number 13."

NHL writer Frank Seravalli is facing a ton of backlash over an insensitive comment he made regarding Johnny Gaudreau's death ... and it's gotten to the point where he was forced to apologize over it all.

Seravalli wrote up an article that included 32 bold predictions for the upcoming season on Monday -- and predicted the Columbus Blue Jackets would win the lottery "with a little help from Gaudreau."

Fans online were quick to call him out  -- and even though he revised the piece multiple times, people were still calling it "disgusting."