A tentative agreement between the NHL and the NHLPA will allow the New York Rangers to hit the ice in the near future. According to multiple sources, the plan would be to start the season on Jan. 13, though the date is not finalized. This hope aligns with the NHL’s prior plan, which included the mid-January start date. Under the new agreement, training camps will start on Dec. 31 for non-playoff teams and Jan. 3 for playoff teams. The NHL plans on having a 56 game schedule. Sportsnet of Canada was the first to report on the agreement.
The NHLPA executive board gave the agreement a green light to proceed on Friday night, but players and owners must hold formal votes and Canadian health officials give their approval before it becomes reality.
ICYMI
The NHL and NHL Players' Association have reached a tentative agreement to play a 56-game regular season starting Jan. 13, 2021.https://t.co/ZSodrZpQHv
— NHL.com (@NHLdotcom) December 19, 2020
It’s unclear whether teams would play in their home arenas or in “hub†cities, though an all-divisional schedule is expected.
The tentative agreement calls for no exhibition games to be played, meaning the NHL will go directly from the off-season and training camps into regular-season games.
The biggest stumbling block at the current time is how the league’s division will look for this season.
The NHL is hoping to go with a proposed division realignment that includes a seven-team Canadian division which will require approval from local health officials. If those approvals are given in Canada, the NHL’s realignment would look like this:
Boston-Buffalo-New Jersey-NY Islanders-NY Rangers-Philadelphia-Pittsburgh-Washington
Carolina-Chicago-Columbus-Detroit-Florida-Dallas-Nashville-Tampa Bay
Anaheim-Arizona-Colorado-Minnesota-Los Angeles-Las Vegas-San Jose-St. Louis
Ottawa-Montreal-Toronto-Winnipeg-Edmonton-Calgary-Vancouver
If games cannot be played in Canada, the NHL has considered a plan that would see Canada’s teams play their seasons in the United States.
NHL’s focus is now on the Canadian Division. Hope and expectation is the league will play in each of the 7 cities. Deputy commissioner, Bill Daly is directly involved in discussions with the provinces. Ongoing talks this weekend.
— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) December 19, 2020
The agreement, confirmed by NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly, is pending a vote by the NHL Board of Governors and the NHLPA.
#NHL/#NHLPA Agreement: Players have the option to opt-out for the upcoming season, if player or immediate family member is considered high-risk. (Believe it is without pay.)
Team would have option of tolling contract for the year.
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) December 19, 2020
The league’s Board of Governors could vote on the plan as soon as this weekend. Approval from health officials in the five Canadian provinces that have teams is still needed before the NHL can go ahead with the season.