While the coronavirus pandemic continues to cause health concerns for health officials, the start date for the upcoming NHL season remains unchanged, with January 1st, 2021 as the planned opening matchday.
Given this planned schedule, Deputy NHL Commissioner Bill Daly remains wary of the dangers posed by the coronavirus. In a video conference on Friday, he and NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman discussed the planning around the upcoming NHL season with a particular focus on scheduling.
“The goal is still to start as early as Jan. 1 and to play a full season,” Daly explained. He went on to discuss how, should the start date remain unchanged, other compromises might need to be made in order to enforce necessary health guidelines. Such compromises may include developing a different tournament structure for the upcoming season as well as playing fewer games.
In order to make a final decision, the NHL has committed to monitoring developments surrounding the coronavirus pandemic in both the United State and Canada as well as take into account any travel restriction that might be imposed to curb the spread of the virus.
Another item that was discussed during the video conference was the potential reformatting of the NHL Draft Lottery. The rule allowing each of the 15 teams that did not qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs a chance at a top-three pick was called into question. The NHL remains open to suggestions from GMs.
