Do you want the NHL to resume play this season

[vancityluongo]

To me, the priority from the hockey perspective should be awarding the Cup. I'm not a purist in any way about the 82 game schedule. I'd rather see the 2019-20 Stanley Cup final happen late rather than to scrap it for the purposes of keeping the following season whole.

Based on what I've read, it currently feels feasible (with 8 months left in the year) to award a Cup winner in the 2020 calendar year. Public health and player safety should definitely dictate where that is between August 2020 or December 2020, with the soft deadlines that camp would have to start by mid-September at the latest and games would definitely have to start by October in order to conclude the playoffs by the end of December.

If that means the 2020-21 season is 35 or 41 games or whatever starting at the end of January, that sounds great to me. Hopefully both public health and player safety will then also allow for a Stanley Cup Final in July 2021 or whenever. And then hopefully by then the world is at the state where we can look to go back to the typical October-June season.

That's the preferable option to me. Only if that is not feasible, should they IMO "cancel" the 2019-20 Finals and schedule around the goal of the next Finals being in June 2021 with a potentially condensed, but as whole as possible season.

 

[ChilliBilly]

play 3 - 4 games to finish the season (get them headed towards game shape, and everyone plays the same amount of games for the season), then play rounds of best of 5. I don't care when it is, but I would like to finish the season in some form. Then put together a schedule for 2021 that has them end no later than the end of June. 5 game playoffs again.

 

[Mr. Canucklehead]

In a perfect world where the COVID situation is resolved, yes. Whether it’s reduced season, shortened series, whatever, I’d be for it.

But there’s large chunks of the USA where there is no end in sight. I don’t think it’ll be possible.

 

[MikeK]

I'm just going to come right out and say it. NO. The entire season and playoffs should be cancelled for all NA sports. If we as a planet are not careful and get this thing under control we really will need to be isolating until a vaccine is publicly available.

We're not even through this first wave and people are acting like everything is under control. This is much bigger than sports. It is way too early to be trying to force normal life upon us all.

 

[jd22]

Good look pitching the NHLPA on having their members completely isolated from their families (many with young children) in the middle of a crisis so that they can play games in empty stadiums in like northern Saskatechewan or one of the Dakotas for months at a time.

Cancel the season, start planning scenarios for 20/21 season.

South Dakota is about two weeks away from an unmitigated disaster on its own. Maybe less than two weeks.

 

[oyvey]

I'd probably watch it out of boredom, but I don't care. Any hockey that resumes without fans present and a basic concept of a home and away team has way too much of an asterisk for me. The amount of effort and resources required to make something like a biodome concept during the summer work seems way too expensive for whatever the league would make back merely by being on TV.

 

[Ainec]

Yes please

 

[F A N]

Health and personal safety permitting, I think I would like to see the usual 7 game playoff series happen. In terms of the asterisk I think over time few argue which teams should have been in the playoffs. But it has to be the usual 7 game playoff series.

I actually don't have an issue with teams playing in empty stadiums. Musicians are holding free virtual concerts. Just like musicians, it won't be the same for players but they still go through the playoff grind and the winner will still be deserving of the Cup.

 

[PG Canuck]

I'm just going to come right out and say it. NO. The entire season and playoffs should be cancelled for all NA sports. If we as a planet are not careful and get this thing under control we really will need to be isolating until a vaccine is publicly available.

We're not even through this first wave and people are acting like everything is under control. This is much bigger than sports. It is way too early to be trying to force normal life upon us all.

No thinks anything is under control and no one is “forcing” normal life at all.

Neither of these things are even remotely happening.

 

[ChilliBilly]

Health and personal safety permitting, I think I would like to see the usual 7 game playoff series happen. In terms of the asterisk I think over time few argue which teams should have been in the playoffs. But it has to be the usual 7 game playoff series.

I actually don't have an issue with teams playing in empty stadiums. Musicians are holding free virtual concerts. Just like musicians, it won't be the same for players but they still go through the playoff grind and the winner will still be deserving of the Cup.

Actually, would like to change to best of 5, still fair. And allow 1000 fans per game, no one sits with in 2 meters of another person, no more than 2 people per row. Charge $500 / ticket, ticket holders get to apply their outstanding balance against tickets if they want to.

 

[MikeK]

No thinks anything is under control and no one is “forcing” normal life at all.

Neither of these things are even remotely happening.

Which is why we won't be seeing the NHL any time soon.

 

[PG Canuck]

Which is why we won't be seeing the NHL any time soon.

That’s your opinion sure, but they aren’t forcing anything. They’re simply planning which is why I find it hilarious when people freak out over it.

If the NHL wasn’t planning and they were able to play games down the line, people would bitch that they weren’t prepared and are a terribly run league. They’re simply planning for a best case scenario. There is nothing forceful happening.

 

[MikeK]

That’s your opinion sure, but they aren’t forcing anything. They’re simply planning which is why I find it hilarious when people freak out over it

If you think Governments and Billionaires aren't trying to force the reopening of normal life I don't know what to tell you. The evidence is pretty clear that things are indeed being forced all while medical experts are warning against it.

If you think people are freaking out now just wait until the entire world is on lock down for the next 12 months until a vaccine is available because things were rushed... and if reports about people who have tested positive and recovered now testing positive again are accurate this could be a much more serious situation than originally thought and we could see this way of life well into next year.

So again, My wish is that we don't see any pro sports at all this season because I don't want to have to continue this way of life for the next 12+ months. Lets get it right the first time instead of rushing and regretting.

 

[VanJack]

Interesting that so far the voters seem split between scrubbing the season altogether, versus reducing the playoffs to a best-of-give if necessary just to get a Cup winner.

I put myself in the latter category. They should finish this season even if means playing games in neutral sites and empty arenas. As I understand it, the NHL would still reap about $400m in television revenues, even without any spectators at the playoff games. So there is some financial incentive for the league to complete the season, even if it stretches into August.

But the reality is, if social distancing and travel restrictions extends in to July, then the debate is a moot point anyway. The players would be in no shape to resume intense playoff hockey; and it might be better just to wait for training camp in September and the onset of another season.

 

[Killer Orcas]

Scrap the season people have bigger worries then the Cup. I'm fortunate hasn't affected myself or wife financially however it has a lot of people. I love hockey and sports but it's icing let's get the cake back to normal first.

 

[bandwagonesque]

Even though we're all hockey fans, this is probably one of the last things any of us thinks about. When I'm here I pretty much just check the ot threads and make sure Rathbone hasn't signed. Actual hockey seems like something that used to happen a very long time ago.

 

[CambieKev]

I think the end of the current season is more valuable than the start of next season. Whenever the league resumes action, I would prefer that they conclude their current campaign and shorten, or outright cancel the following season if the only option is to start in 2021. We've seen a 48-game schedule in our recent past, as well as a lockout-induced cancellation of an entire season. The NHL appears to be potentially headed in that direction again at the conclusion of its current CBA.

Due to these unique circumstances, I would be more inclined to consider 2020-21 a write-off. The NHL has withstood prolonged periods without any activity before.

If the league wishes to return, then a truncated playoff format is the only reasonable scenario. The NHL has witnessed its fair share of three-game series before, such as during the 1970s. I think the playoffs should take place over the course of no longer than a month, and should occur immediately upon the league's return, whenever that may be. In the traditional seven-game format, the playoffs take place over an approximate two-month period. That can be nearly halved if the first two rounds are shortened. Based on current reports, the league is considering a variety of unorthodox options.

Even a truncated format, however, will likely have to wait until next year, or whenever a vaccine becomes available. To do so any sooner would require the isolation of the NHL's players throughout the entirety of the playoffs to ensure their safety. This process might be very unappealing to the players, and I'm not sure the league wants that sort of risk anyway. The rink would be a cesspool for virus transmission if even one player became infected, and hockey is a close-contact sport. The league did not even entertain continuing to operate once one of major North American arenas became the site of infection in March. An indefinite shutdown seems like the safer and more appropriate solution. Nobody would fault them for it. There is no rush to return.

The teams already spent 68 games jostling for their current position in the standings. It is less reasonable to begin a new 82-game slough than to spend a month to cross the current finish line.

I think a full 2020-21 season is unfeasible considering we don't know what the world will look like in January. The rest of the world is no further ahead of this than we are. Some countries have been dealing with this since 2019. Sports in Fall 2020 seems unlikely. Sports in Spring 2021 might not happen.

Let's assume, for the sake of our sports scheduling discussion, that a vaccine is discovered by Spring 2021.

It would be too late for even a 48-game season after January, and there will be no room for playoff hockey in July and August because of the logjam of sports and backlogged concert events, including the Olympics, that would take place in the months that follow. The National Hockey League would not be the only entity looking to catch up on lost time. If the NHL does not want there to be any ripple effect on the 2021-22 season, it may just wish to cancel 2020-21 altogether. If possible, finish this season next year or just organize the playoffs, and then look to 2021-22 for the start of a full campaign.

The NHL does not want its 2021-22 season to be affected. The Seattle franchise is expected to debut that October.

 

[604]

At this point, I'm hoping the NHL rents a small town or two and plays games with every team isolated in the town. 2 or 3 games a night televised, no live viewers. Maybe move everyone to Nunavut. Families invited but 2 week quarantine before anyone can come in.

Shouldn't be that hard.

Baseball will likely do it and the TV money alone should be worth it to the players who can add half the recovered TV revenue to battle their escrow.

 

[Johnny Canucker]

Meh. Disappointing season. Likely miss the playoffs.... again. Salary cap crunched. No high draft picks.

not much to look forward too.

 

[F A N]

Actually, would like to change to best of 5, still fair. And allow 1000 fans per game, no one sits with in 2 meters of another person, no more than 2 people per row. Charge $500 / ticket, ticket holders get to apply their outstanding balance against tickets if they want to.

There are plenty of teams who have gone up 3-1 and lose the series. Unless it's a permanent change going forward (which is unlikely) I think the team that wins a Cup winning a best of 5 series will forever have an asterisk compared to say the Canes who won the Cup in a shortened season.

Especially now where teams have played about 70 games. If a team doesn't make the playoffs because they cancelled the regular season and they went with winning percentage you wouldn't have too many complaints. Few 8th seeds are considered to be legitimate Cup contenders.

 

[RobertKron]

At this point, I'm hoping the NHL rents a small town or two and plays games with every team isolated in the town. 2 or 3 games a night televised, no live viewers. Maybe move everyone to Nunavut. Families invited but 2 week quarantine before anyone can come in.

Shouldn't be that hard.

Baseball will likely do it and the TV money alone should be worth it to the players who can add half the recovered TV revenue to battle their escrow.

How many NHL-sized rinks are there in Nunavut?

How many small towns have the infrastructure to support 1000+ people (probably more like 2-3000 if you're including families), major broadcasters, all of the secondary support, etc. arriving at once and remaining isolated? Are the players going to sleep in tents? Will the TV money even outpace the enormous logistical cost of this undertaking?

Where are teams going to practice in this small town? When are the AHL players going to skate and practice to keep game ready when they don't have their whole teams or a schedule of games to be playing? Is this town going to have medical facilities to deal with this many added people, much less the requirements of multiple NHL teams playing and practicing every day - especially when these players have been off for however long? Are these people just going to descend on the town and buy up everything, or will they be transporting in all of their own food, necessities, etc?

Yeah, shouldn't be that hard.

 

[ChilliBilly]

How many NHL-sized rinks are there in Nunavut?

How many small towns have the infrastructure to support 1000+ people (probably more like 2-3000 if you're including families), major broadcasters, all of the secondary support, etc. arriving at once and remaining isolated? Are the players going to sleep in tents? Will the TV money even outpace the enormous logistical cost of this undertaking?

Where are teams going to practice in this small town? When are the AHL players going to skate and practice to keep game ready when they don't have their whole teams or a schedule of games to be playing? Is this town going to have medical facilities to deal with this many added people, much less the requirements of multiple NHL teams playing and practicing every day - especially when these players have been off for however long? Are these people just going to descend on the town and buy up everything, or will they be transporting in all of their own food, necessities, etc?

Yeah, shouldn't be that hard.

why go to small towns? Play in Vancouver, to a very small distanced crowd. Lots of facilities available. Reduce travel. team with the better record gets to choose, 2 games at home and 3 on the road to reduce travel. Or the reverse. They should not go on %age. every team needs to play the same number of games, and a few games to help get them in game shape would be wise. And as far as * beside the season, its going to have that either way. They used to play best of 3 1st round. do those seasons have an asterisk? And this shit isn't close to being "over". We probably have till 2022 before this is resolved. Hopefully they come up with a cure or a vaccine, but not much in sight right now.

 

[RobertKron]

why go to small towns? Play in Vancouver, to a very small distanced crowd. Lots of facilities available. Reduce travel. team with the better record gets to choose, 2 games at home and 3 on the road to reduce travel. Or the reverse. They should not go on %age. every team needs to play the same number of games, and a few games to help get them in game shape would be wise. And as far as * beside the season, its going to have that either way. They used to play best of 3 1st round. do those seasons have an asterisk? And this shit isn't close to being "over". We probably have till 2022 before this is resolved. Hopefully they come up with a cure or a vaccine, but not much in sight right now.

Putting aside a host of issues (like that any incoming team would have to sit in isolation for two weeks), what you're describing would currently be illegal in BC.

 

[MikeK]

It's actually shocking to read some of the ideas some people have for resuming any type of hockey game. People sure can be quite selfish when given the chance.

Players are not pawns on a chess board and are in fact actual people with families and have lives they value. To suggest some of the things that have been suggested, not just here but on the main board as well, just blows my mind. But the idea of shuttling players to Nunavut and put in complete isolation for the duration all for the sake of a game is a top contender for head shaker of the month.

 

[ChilliBilly]

Putting aside a host of issues (like that any incoming team would have to sit in isolation for two weeks), what you're describing would currently be illegal in BC.

I am not in anyway suggesting that they do this now. July, maybe august. If at all. I was merely asking why they would play in some remote place rather than the cities that have the infrastructure.