NHL Season Start Date: January 13, 2021

[nfreeman]

So, the most recent word from the NHL is that they are targeting a Jan. 1 start date, but there has been no formal announcement.  Lots of possibilities have been floated, including hub cities, divisional realignments, etc., starting the season with no fans in the buildings, delaying the season until fans can attend, etc.  It seems like the matter is far from settled. 

If Jan. 1 is indeed going to be the start date, presumably training camp would need to start around Dec. 10, i.e. less than 1 month from today.

I think the decision will ultimately be driven by whether there is money to be made by starting Jan. 1, and how much the spread is between a Jan 1 start and, say, a Feb. 15 start.  For the NBA, there is a huge amount of money to be made by starting earlier, which is why they are starting before Xmas without fans in attendance.  The NHL makes much less from its TV contracts than the NBA does, though, so the financial calculations will be different.

Since the Sabres haven't played a game in 8 months and counting, and since every off-season I convince myself that the Sabres are going to be good again, I'm raring to go and am hoping that we'll have a GDT on Jan. 1 in which every Eichel-Hall shift is broken down to a microscopic level.

Discuss.

 

 

[freester]

20 minutes ago, nfreeman said:

So, the most recent word from the NHL is that they are targeting a Jan. 1 start date, but there has been no formal announcement.  Lots of possibilities have been floated, including hub cities, divisional realignments, etc., starting the season with no fans in the buildings, delaying the season until fans can attend, etc.  It seems like the matter is far from settled. 

If Jan. 1 is indeed going to be the start date, presumably training camp would need to start around Dec. 10, i.e. less than 1 month from today.

I think the decision will ultimately be driven by whether there is money to be made by starting Jan. 1, and how much the spread is between a Jan 1 start and, say, a Feb. 15 start.  For the NBA, there is a huge amount of money to be made by starting earlier, which is why they are starting before Xmas without fans in attendance.  The NHL makes much less from its TV contracts than the NBA does, though, so the financial calculations will be different.

Since the Sabres haven't played a game in 8 months and counting, and since every off-season I convince myself that the Sabres are going to be good again, I'm raring to go and am hoping that we'll have a GDT on Jan. 1 in which every Eichel-Hall shift is broken down to a microscopic level.

Discuss.

 

 

I cant see owners agreeing to play under current salary cap conditions with such small player withholding.  It will be much more profitable to not have a season than to have huge financial losses.  The economics of the game have changed and the players contracts have to reflect that.  It should still be based on a 50/50 split of revenues

[dudacek]

I'm ready.

And I think there will be hockey in January on a model designed to allow for flexibility depending on COVID levels.

[I-90 W]

https://nypost.com/2020/11/11/nhl-season-will-be-shortened-against-players-wishes/

[I-90 W]

Obviously I am hoping for a 1/1 start date, but really wish the Winter Classic was still on for that day. 

Would have been a spectacular way to kick off the season, fans or not.

Still, I'll take whatever I can get at this point.

[Cal Naughton Jr]

I heard on WGR the other day that it’s looking more like February 1st for a start date

[LGR4GM]

18 hours ago, dudacek said:

I'm ready.

And I think there will be hockey in January on a model designed to allow for flexibility depending on COVID levels.

I think we will see 4 bubbles and you only play in your bubble. Then 2 playoff bubbles. 

Canadian Bubble (Toronto)

NE Bubble (Buffalo)

SE Bubble (Nashville? Carolina, St Louis Other?)

Western Bubble (LA, or Vegas)

 

 

Edited November 12, 2020 by LGR4GM

[nfreeman]

4 hours ago, I-90 W said:

https://nypost.com/2020/11/11/nhl-season-will-be-shortened-against-players-wishes/

That was a pretty informative article -- thanks.

Some snippets:
 

Quote

 

The NHL remains firm in its desire to start the 2020-21 season on or around Jan. 1, according to multiple sources

...

Realignment into geographically designed divisions that would feature the league’s first all-Canadian division since the 1923-24 four-team NHL featured Montreal, Toronto, Hamilton and Ottawa, is all but a certainty.

The league has no interest at all in playing through the summer, so that will mean a truncated schedule of anywhere between 50 and 70 games, depending upon the league structure. The NHLPA has indicated its desire to play the full 82-game schedule, but that would take the league into late August. That is not a possibility.

The schedule would likely be modeled on the 2020 MLB season in which travel was limited through geographical play. It is possible that teams could play baseball-like series, with, for example, the Rangers going to Boston for three games in a five-day period.

...

It is possible the league could send clubs by divisions to four hub cities for rotating stretches to start the season, but the NHL may also have teams play in their home arenas either without fans or with a limited number in attendance per local regulations. Playing in hub cities would necessitate the scheduling of a number of midweek afternoon games. That is a problem for the league’s and its teams’ television partners.

...

The NHL and NHLPA agreed on a six-year extension to the collective bargaining agreement in July after the league had modeled various potential models for an afflicted 2020-21 season. The agreement appears to rule out prorating of contracts if the season is fewer than 82 games. Indeed, the players agreed to take 72 percent of their salaries this year with escrow capped at 20 percent.

But there is widespread expectation that the league will propose prorating. It is unknown whether that would be coupled with a threat not to play unless the union accedes to the request/demand. It is also unknown how the players association would respond to such a scenario, but the union has been aware of this possibility for some time. Hence, the desire to play a full schedule.

 

 

[WildCard]

18 minutes ago, Cal Naughton Jr said:

I heard on WGR the other day that it’s looking more like February 1st for a start date

And play what, 40 games? That would suck. If the NFL can get a full season done, the NHL can

[LGR4GM]

4 minutes ago, WildCard said:

And play what, 40 games? That would suck. If the NFL can get a full season done, the NHL can

No they can't. The NFL needs 16 weeks to play a full season. The NHL needs what? 30 weeks? I think we will see a 60 game schedule that takes them into the end of april and then normal playoffs (16 teams). That gives them roughly 18 weeks which means 4 games a week. That's a tough schedule in itself. Maybe they go to the end of May to spread that out more but by June 1 they have to start playoffs. 

Edited November 12, 2020 by LGR4GM

[WildCard]

Just now, LGR4GM said:

No they can't. The NFL needs 16 weeks to play a full season. The NHL needs what? 30 weeks? I think we will see a 60 game schedule that takes them into the end of april and then normal playoffs (16 teams)

The NHL can cram more games in a tighter window 60 games at least. This isn't about if the NHL can do it or not, just like it wasn't if the MLB can do it or not. It's about prorating salaries so the owners take a lighter hit.

[nfreeman]

2 minutes ago, WildCard said:

The NHL can cram more games in a tighter window 60 games at least. This isn't about if the NHL can do it or not, just like it wasn't if the MLB can do it or not. It's about prorating salaries so the owners take a lighter hit.

But revenues are split 50/50, so it's about reducing the hit to everyone.

[LGR4GM]

Jan 1 - May 31 is 21 weeks. That would be 3 games a week. You might even be able to have a break in there so guys could see their families. It is a really tough thing. 

Edited November 12, 2020 by LGR4GM

[WildCard]

2 minutes ago, nfreeman said:

But revenues are split 50/50, so it's about reducing the hit to everyone.

How does that reduce the hit to the players? The players lose money on not having fans because of the revenue split, but the owners lose money on not having fans because of the revenue split, and on the more games they have to pay the players; the players make more money the more games they play.

[nfreeman]

20 minutes ago, WildCard said:

How does that reduce the hit to the players? The players lose money on not having fans because of the revenue split, but the owners lose money on not having fans because of the revenue split, and on the more games they have to pay the players; the players make more money the more games they play.

Both sides -- not just the players -- make more money the more games they play.  Since the owners and the players split total revenue 50/50, if more games means more revenue (which is almost certainly the case), then the pie that is split 50/50 is bigger if more games are played, so each side gets more.

I may be misinterpreting your post, but you seem to assume that the players' salaries will be prorated if they play fewer games.  The NY Post article quoted upthread indicates that this is not the case, although it also says the owners might push for proration.

[WildCard]

23 minutes ago, nfreeman said:

Both sides -- not just the players -- make more money the more games they play.  Since the owners and the players split total revenue 50/50, if more games means more revenue (which is almost certainly the case), then the pie that is split 50/50 is bigger if more games are played, so each side gets more.

I may be misinterpreting your post, but you seem to assume that the players' salaries will be prorated if they play fewer games.  The NY Post article quoted upthread indicates that this is not the case, although it also says the owners might push for proration.

Yeah I get the revenue split; the less games they play the less money they each make. But it's not costing them any money, only potential gains.

I'm referring to the owners' push for proration, which they definitely will do.

[SwampD]

20 minutes ago, LGR4GM said:

Why is scientists in quotes? 

The bigger question is why is there an apostrophe s?

[bob_sauve28]

21 hours ago, nfreeman said:

So, the most recent word from the NHL is that they are targeting a Jan. 1 start date, but there has been no formal announcement.  Lots of possibilities have been floated, including hub cities, divisional realignments, etc., starting the season with no fans in the buildings, delaying the season until fans can attend, etc.  It seems like the matter is far from settled. 

If Jan. 1 is indeed going to be the start date, presumably training camp would need to start around Dec. 10, i.e. less than 1 month from today.

I think the decision will ultimately be driven by whether there is money to be made by starting Jan. 1, and how much the spread is between a Jan 1 start and, say, a Feb. 15 start.  For the NBA, there is a huge amount of money to be made by starting earlier, which is why they are starting before Xmas without fans in attendance.  The NHL makes much less from its TV contracts than the NBA does, though, so the financial calculations will be different.

Since the Sabres haven't played a game in 8 months and counting, and since every off-season I convince myself that the Sabres are going to be good again, I'm raring to go and am hoping that we'll have a GDT on Jan. 1 in which every Eichel-Hall shift is broken down to a microscopic level.

Discuss.

 

 

I'm just sort of upset they have said so little. Must be some serious issues that have gotten personal and people just not talking. 

[nfreeman]

It should go without saying, but political opinions go in the politics club, please.

[nfreeman]

43 minutes ago, WildCard said:

Yeah I get the revenue split; the less games they play the less money they each make. But it's not costing them any money, only potential gains.

I'm referring to the owners' push for proration, which they definitely will do.

But it does cost the players money if revenues fall, because lower revenues result in the players receiving lower payments from the escrow account (which gets 20% of their salaries this year) after the end of the season.

[nfreeman]

From the Athletic today:  https://theathletic.com/2196438/2020/11/13/planning-nhls-to-return-continues-as-sense-of-urgency-builds-on-both-sides/
 

Quote

 

Multiple senior NHL executives have said taking a season off is not an option.

...

“I think we’re going to play,” one NHL governor said after Thursday’s call. “This whole, ‘We’re not going to play’ is off the table.”

...

If owners ask players to take a pro-rated salary given a shorter schedule, that ask would likely have to come with some sort of return for the players. Regardless one source indicated that this critical element of the return to play equation will have to be dealt with soon, perhaps within the next week.

...

The message on the NHL call Thursday was that January 1 remains the preferred start date. However, commissioner Gary Bettman — for the first time — left the door open for a later start date.

...

“We’re going to start in January unless something (COVID-19 related) happens,” one governor said. “The next couple of weeks are big.”

...

Training camps will need to run at least two weeks, so if you’re targeting Jan. 1 as a start date training camps would open mid-December. And we know the NHL is hoping to give the seven teams that didn’t make the playoffs an extra week or so of on-ice time to shake off the eight months of rust. So, now those teams are hitting the ice by the end of the first week of December.

 

 

[spndnchz]

I wonder if, if, we made the playoffs that they’d let those immunized in the building.

[Andrew Amerk]

Am I supposed to believe the season is going to start 6 weeks from now, and they haven’t even announced any solid plan?

If the 7 “non-playoff” teams are supposed to get 4 weeks of training camp, and players need to quarantine for 14 days prior to that - Sabres players would need to be arriving NOW. 

[I-90 W]

1 minute ago, Andrew Amerk said:

Am I supposed to believe the season is going to start 6 weeks from now, and they haven’t even announced any solid plan?

If the 7 “non-playoff” teams are supposed to get 4 weeks of training camp, and players need to quarantine for 14 days prior to that - Sabres players would need to be arriving NOW. 

Good point. Bummer, but good point. 

[Ducky]

My guess would be January 16th at the earliest. About 54 games or a bit less. There is talk that they might do 2 and/or 3 games in a row (similar to baseball) to cut down on travel and such. It looks like there will definitely be a Canadian division.

Manitoba just went Code Red and they won't be able hold a TC in Winnipeg for at least 4 weeks and that might be extended depending.