The NHL and NHL Players’ Association reached an agreement on Sunday on the dates of the upcoming season. The new season, scheduled to begin on January 13, 2021, will consist of 56 games and conclude on May 8.
Formal training camps are planned to begin on January 3rd, while no preseason games will take place. Those teams that did not participate in the 2019-20 Return to Play will be allowed to begin their training camp a few days early, on December 31, 2020.
At the time of the announcement, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman made the following remarks: “The National Hockey League looks forward to the opening of our 2020-21 season, especially since the Return to Play in 2019-20 was so successful in crowning a Stanley Cup champion.”
This season will include a shortened version of the Stanley Cup playoffs, with the best-of-7, four-round tournament scheduled to conclude around mid-July. In the 2021-22 season, the postseason tournament will resume in its regular format.
These changes have been made with the objective of continuing the NHL under the strenuous circumstances of the coronavirus pandemic.
“While we are well aware of the challenges ahead, as was the case last spring and summer, we are continuing to prioritize the health and safety of our participants and the communities in which we live and play,” Bettman remarked.
