Former hockey player’s ‘NHL Masters’ remains one of the great traditions in all of sports

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Having your name on the first page of the Masters leader board is one of the great honors in golf. Doesn’t matter if it’s Thursday morning and there are two groups on the course, or if it’s late Sunday afternoon and you’re in contention. Hell, if any of us were -1 THRU 1 and T-1 in Round 1, we’d all frame the image.

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However, there is one Masters leader board that absolutely nobody wants to be at the top of – the NHL Masters leader board.

What the hell is the NHL Masters leader board, you ask? It was created by former NHL defenseman Mike Commodore, and it has become a tradition unlike any other. He tweeted out his “third round update” on Wednesday evening, as we’re now headed into the final portion of the NHL season, AKA the final round:

For those wondering what the hell this means, or why you do NOT want to be on it, then allow us to explain what Plus/Minus (+/-) means in hockey. Pretty simple – you are given minus-one when you are on the ice for an even-strength or shorthanded goal against, and plus-one when you are on the ice for an even-strength or shorthanded goal for.

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So, -37, while a beautiful sight for a golfer, is about as ugly as it gets in hockey. It should come as no surprise that Philipp Kurashev and budding superstar Connor Bedard both play on the first line for the Chicago Blackhawks, who currently have 42 losses, the most in the NHL. When you play big-time minutes on a very bad team, chances are you are going to be deep in red figures on the NHL Masters leader board. William Eklund, currently in solo third, plays for the San Jose Sharks, the second-worst team in the league.

Good news for Bedard and co. is that the NHL Masters doesn’t start until the back nine on Sunday the Trade Deadline at 3 p.m. on Friday March 8. So much can still happen.

This article was originally published on golfdigest.com