Meet Barclay, the future assistance dog making a big impact in the NHL

How’s his stick work? Fantastic, obviously.

A puppy being trained as an assistance dog has captured the hearts of the St Louis Blues as well as rival teams in the National Hockey League.

Barclay was born in September earlier this year, and it hasn’t taken him long to become an internet sensation for his adorable actions on the ice.

Just check out the stick work – he’s a natural.

The Blues will help Barclay become an assistance dog for someone during an 18-month programme which includes learning socialisation skills.

The four-month-old pupper will spend time in the Blues’ front office as well as at home games, going home with a front office employee at other times.

The Labrador Retriever clearly has plenty of admirers, with other franchises even joking about drafting the talented mutt for themselves.

It looks as though that’s not an option however, and who can blame the Blues?

Sport can often lead to arguments about any number of incidents, but there’s one thing everyone agrees with: Barclay is a good boy.

WINNIPEG, Manitoba (AP) — NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman on Wednesday expressed concern about the construction delays regarding the hockey rink for the Milan Cortina Olympics.

The slow construction of the main rink is “disappointing,” he said at the Winnipeg Jets' facility.

“I’m not trying to pile on on this, in all of the prior Olympics, whether they built permanent or temporary facilities, it’s never been this late for a completion in the building of ice, and so that’s why we are cautious,” Bettman said.

The NHL has previously expressed concern about the quality of the ice surface. The league is sending its own experts to Italy to ensure the ice is safe.

NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly has said the completion date of the main rink is set for Feb. 2. The women’s tournament is scheduled to start Feb. 5 and the men’s hockey competition is scheduled Feb. 11-22.

The facility features rinks smaller than NHL standards but still within the International Ice Hockey Federation’s standards.

Daly previously said there’s nothing the NHL or organizers can do about the dimensions of the 16,000-seat Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena and secondary Rho facility.

The NHL was caught off guard when it became apparent the two rinks’ dimensions will be slightly wider and 3 feet shorter than what the league and International Ice Hockey Federation agreed upon. Daly said the league and NHL Players’ Association have reminded the IIHF that they expect the ice surface to be standard NHL size at the 2030 Olympics in France.

AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/winter-olympics

An overview of the Ice Skating Arena where some Ice Hockey matches of the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics will take place, in Rho, outskirt of Milan, Friday, Dec.5, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)