It has not been the busy summer that both sets of fans across Belfast’s great divide would have been hoping for. Indeed, Linfield and Glentoran have combined for just seven summer signings in the window so far.

The Glens finished third last year after occupying second for majority of the season and there was a sense of frustration at the end of the season when the campaign concluded with no silverware.

After taking their league challenge to the penultimate day, and losing the BetMcLean Cup final for the second year in succession, manager Declan Devine will know another season without a trophy will not go down well with the east Belfast faithful.

Pat Hoban hit the ground running during his first season in the Irish Premiership and was the league’s top goalscorer last time around, but adding to their attacking threat would still have been a priority this summer. That, however, has not come to fruition as yet.

As for Linfield, last season was a big contrast to the previous year when they won the league in such convincing fashion and, despite beating Glentoran to that trophy in March, it was a season which prompted more concern than excitement.

After losing talisman Cooper to Coleraine last summer, the Blues failed to fill the big gap that he left behind and scored at least 12 fewer goals than the rest of the top four.

This year, they will be hoping that Kieran Offord’s return from injury and new signing Kobei Moore can help David Healy’s side, who will be keenly aware of the money spent by clubs around them.

Welcome to part three of The Athletic’s NHL fan survey, which gathered feedback from 20,000 respondents. In part one, we covered the state of the NHL, Gary Bettman and the always-contentious no-state-taxes debate. Part two covered fan experience topics such as viewership habits, game attendance and more. In this final installment, we’re diving into the future of the NHL, with on-ice predictions, league expansion, and outdoor games.

Without further ado, let’s dig in.

Which NHL team improved most this offseason?

There were three clear favorites, each earning between 20 and 24 percent of votes.

The Panthers stunned the hockey world in June when they pulled off a blockbuster trade for Brady Tkachuk. Acquiring Tkachuk undoubtedly gives Florida the scariest forward core in the NHL. It’s an embarrassment of riches with Aleksander Barkov returning, Brady and Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Reinhart, Sam Bennett, Brad Marchand, Carter Verhaeghe, Anton Lundell and Eetu Luostarinen. A big unknown, though, is whether newcomer Jacob Markström can be the No. 1 goaltender the franchise needs. Florida’s goaltending was a letdown last year, and while Markström has a high pedigree, he’s coming off a tough season in New Jersey.

San Jose was extremely busy, even if one or two of the contracts it signed were questionable. Mason Marchment and Ivar Stenberg will bolster the wings, while Michael Kesselring, Jacob Trouba and Darnell Nurse will add much-needed talent to a blue line that was woeful last year.

The Capitals were very aggressive, adding Jordan Kyrou, Alex Tuch, Boone Jenner and Vincent Desharnais.

Which 2026 non-playoff team are you most certain will make the playoffs in 2027?

The same three teams from the last question were popular answers again. Florida ran away with this one, earning 45 percent of the votes. San Jose got plenty of love as well; the Sharks’ playoff case is legitimate not only because of their young, emerging talent, but because they play in the weakest division in the NHL.

After Washington, the Maple Leafs garnered some votes, too.

Which team will win the Stanley Cup in 2027?

It was fun to look back at a similar question we posed in 2023, when we asked fans to pick one team that they’re most confident will win a Cup before 2030. The Hurricanes led the way, and sure enough, they made good on that prediction this year (just ignore the fact that New Jersey was No. 2).

This question is slightly different because it’s only asking about next season, and 10 teams garnered at least 450 votes. The Avalanche were by far the most dominant team in the NHL last year until the Vegas Golden Knights stunningly swept them in the Western Conference final.

It’s also no surprise to see Florida back as the East’s favorite considering their splashy offseason, Barkov’s return and their historical success against the Hurricanes in the playoffs.

Carolina, Minnesota and Edmonton rounded out the top five.

Which team are you most confident will NOT win a Stanley Cup before 2036?

Three Canadian teams finished at the top, combining for 38 percent of all votes. Vancouver was the most popular answer, which makes sense. There’s some optimism locally with new management led by the Sedins and Ryan Johnson finally committing to a proper rebuild, but it’s almost certainly going to be a long, painful process with how little elite talent the Canucks have on the roster and in the prospect pipeline.

Columbus was the only American team that got more than 10 percent of the votes. The Blue Jackets have legitimate talent on their roster, but they’re in danger of being stuck in the mediocre middle.

I was surprised that the Kings weren’t a more popular answer, considering how entrenched they seem in that middle; L.A. received only 1.7 percent of the vote.

Are you in favor of NHL expansion to 34 teams?

This almost exactly mirrors our results from 2024, when 63.3 percent of fans voted against expansion. Some factors that may have contributed to this include concerns about talent dilution, skepticism that certain expansion markets can succeed, and the simple fact that only one team can win the Cup every year, so expanding the league further diminishes their favorite team’s chances of winning a championship.

However, it feels like expansion is inevitable; Vegas and Seattle have been very successful financially, and it’s extremely profitable for NHL owners, plus players will always support it because it creates more roster spots/jobs.

Which potential expansion cities would you most like to see get a new franchise?

Respondents could select two cities, so the percent of answered totals will be greater than 100 percent

Quebec City dominated this one. NHL players sung a different tune, though, as Houston was the clear favorite in our anonymous player poll. The difference is understandable from players’ perspective — the taxes, weather and media pressure would all be more favorable in Houston.

It makes sense why a lot of fans are so fond of Quebec City because it’s a passionate market and would reignite such a cool rivalry with the Canadiens, but it’s doubtful that the NHL will consider it anytime soon. It’s a smaller market, the lack of corporate sponsors is a worry, and the league is probably searching to expand into U.S. markets where they can create new fans rather than go to traditional hockey markets that are already tuned into the NHL and contributing to league revenue in some capacity.

Should the NHL adopt an in-season tournament?

This one was extremely lopsided. Only about one in every six fans supported the idea of an NBA-like midseason tournament, likely because most view the idea as a gimmick.

There have been 45 outdoor NHL games since the 2003-04 season. What’s one outside-the-box location you’d like to see a game played?

There were a lot of fun, creative responses to this one. Over 1,500 responses mentioned Alaska in some form, which made it the most popular answer.

“Somewhere in Alaska, make it a postcard even if there would be no fans. COVID outdoor game (at Lake Tahoe) was (an) awesome setting, but the ice was an issue.”

“Redo ‘Mystery, Alaska’,” said one of many responses that referenced the 1999 hockey movie.

There, of course, would be logistical challenges because Alaska is far from the closest NHL city and it’s unknown how many fans they’d draw, which matters to a league that’s always going to care about revenue from gate receipts for a marquee outdoor game.

Lake Louise, Alta., an iconic tourist site, was very popular. There was also lots of interest in an outdoor stadium game in either Sweden or Finland.

Central Park in New York City, along with Hawaii, Quebec City, Beaver Stadium at Penn State, Mexico City, and the White House lawn all got some interest, as well.

BOSTON — Interim manager Chad Tracy paused and shook his head as a small smile crept across his face.

He hasn’t allowed himself to think too far ahead, but his Boston Red Sox have already done historic things this season, and they keep adding to their resume.

On Wednesday, it was another one of those nights in an easy 4-0 victory over the Chicago White Sox.

The Red Sox have won 30 of their last 35 games, the best 35-game stretch in franchise history. They’ve won nine consecutive series, their longest stretch since 1912, and are going for another sweep Thursday.

Tracy was almost out of words in describing how good his team has been.

“I’ll answer it the same way, just really, really good baseball,” said Tracy, whose team has won seven straight games. “Everybody doing their job. … When you get that formula and everybody’s doing their part, it’s led to this.”

Wilyer Abreu scored three of the Red Sox’s four runs. (Eric Canha / Imagn Images via Reuters Connect)

Sonny Gray did his part with six innings, allowing three hits and two walks while striking out eight. It marked a return to form for the veteran right-hander, who’d hit a speed bump after the All-Star break, allowing nine runs over his last two starts.

“He hasn’t been bad,” Tracy said. “But by his standard, probably locked in today, ready to put up what he did with six shutout innings and looked like vintage Sonny.”

Gray (14-2) has pitched at least six innings in 11 of his 12 starts dating to May 30. He’s allowed three or fewer runs in 17 of his 21 starts. His ERA is 2.78. It’s becoming one of the best seasons of his 14-year career.

“I just felt a little closer to just being myself, and that’s a good feeling,” he said.

He said the difference Wednesday came down to his focus, attention to detail and ability to spin the ball better.

“A lot of little things that add up. I don’t think it’s one thing,” he said. “When you pay attention to the little details on a daily basis, I think that puts you in position to be the best version of yourself on the mound.”

While Gray blanked the White Sox, the Red Sox followed a familiar formula by jumping to an early lead. Wilyer Abreu singled with two outs in the first, moved up on a wild pitch and scored on Willson Contreras’ single.

Abreu added to the lead, crushing a solo home run in the third, his 20th long ball of the season. The preseason projections said the Red Sox wouldn’t have a 20-homer hitter on the roster, and with Contreras (23) and Abreu, they have two.

With 49 games remaining, 30 homers could be within reach

“I’m not looking to hit 30 homers or anything like that,” Abreu said. “Whatever God brings me for this season, I’m going to be happy with it. Try to stay healthy, be on the field every day, and whatever happens, happens.”

Third baseman Caleb Durbin and Contreras combined for a key defensive play in the top of the third when the score was 1-0. Durbin made a diving stop on a Miguel Vargas shot down the line. Durbin got up and fired to first, but the throw was late. Contreras alertly threw home and got Sam Antonacci trying to score from second base for the final out of the inning.

Contreras later exited the game with illness, and Tracy said afterward he had a fever and was getting dizzy. He’ll be reevaluated today.

But the Red Sox continued to cruise with Gray on the mound and kept the pressure on with runs in the seventh and eighth. Jarren Duran singled, stole second, advanced to third on a wild throw and scored on a sacrifice fly. Durbin hit an RBI single to make it 4-0. The bullpen locked it down over the final three innings after Gray exited.

That relentless style of play is what’s gotten them this far and doesn’t seem to be letting up anytime soon.

“It brings you energy to play here,” Abreu said. “I think our energy and our passion for baseball is because of this stadium. This is an amazing feeling, an amazing time.”