The NHL is crucial in planning for next season

Be prepared for a serious two weeks.

With the NBA and its players Determining the December 22 target date For the 2020-21 season tipoff, the NHL and NHLPA are away at the upcoming hockey schedule. The players are ready; It is strange that they are inactive at this time of year. As First reported Ottawa sunBruce Garrioch, Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly sent a note to a total of 31 teams on Tuesday, stating that “final progress is being made in making recommendations to the Board of Governors”.

There is a board meeting on Thursday, but the recommendation may not be ready by then.

Here is what we hear:

Point At this point, the NHL hopes to award the Stanley Cup by July 15.

Sources Different sources have heard different potential lengths for the 2020-21 season. Some listened to 56 games, others 72 games. (If we start later, those numbers will drop.) The league will reduce the number of games to keep at the end of some “open weeks”. The cancellation creates the need to balance the regular season schedule. If they prove to be unnecessary, the playoffs will move up.

The discussion around hubs is interesting. On Tuesday, during the virtual panel discussion during the Paley International Council Summit, Commissioner Gary Betman suggested Teams are teams that play in their own fields, hubs or in a hybrid system. According to multiple sources, there is growing pressure for teams to play in their own buildings with or without fans. For example, naming rights in these fields is one reason. With fewer events, those sponsorship agreements will be affected.

I As far as I can tell, the biggest issue that remains is player salaries. For them, this problem is solved. They signed on to the CBA extension last summer, agreeing to 72 per cent of their gross pay for next summer. They think this number is set whether they are playing a game or 70-something games. However, employers expect those salaries to be proven, especially if there is no clear way to attend – creating more losses than anything that a 20 percent escrow can tolerate.

At some point, this will need to be addressed to find out if a common ground can be found. This is not a minor issue.

January 1st is really possible, we need to know soon, so players can reach their NHL cities. Seven teams that have not made the 2020 Stanley Cup playoffs hope to get an extra few days of training camp. The next two weeks are going to be busy.