Panthers president shares details of possible NHL restart. Neutral sites, limited or no fans
The National Hockey League appears to have an idea of how it could finish its season that has been on hold for the past six weeks because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Florida Panthers president Matt Caldwell said on a re-open Florida task force conference call Wednesday that the NHL is looking at restarting the season in July.
“The goal,” Caldwell said, “is to finish this season in some way, shape or form.”
Caldwell said the plan, which isn’t finalized yet, calls for games that would be played at four or five neutral sites with limited or no fans. He also said the NHL and NBA have been working together to formulate plans to restart their respective seasons because their schedules follow similar timelines.
The NHL first put its season on pause on March 12 and initially targeted a mid-May return. NHL players are currently quarantined until the end of April, although Caldwell said he anticipates that being extended into May.
Caldwell said a mini training camp would likely take place once the quarantine is lifted.
“Once we feel it’s a safe time to start bringing them back to practice facilities and bring them back to the ice, we’re going to constantly monitor them and work on getting them back,” Caldwell said. “When we start playing, if we resume the season this summer, I think there will be an empty or limited arena format.”
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said earlier this month that the league is “viewing all our options.”
“We want to be ready to go as soon as we get a green light,” Bettman said on NBC Sports Network, “and the green light may not be crystal clear because there may still be some places in the country you can’t play and other places where you can.
“We’re looking at all options. Nothing has been ruled in, nothing has been ruled out. It’s largely going to be determined what we do by how much time there is, because we have next season to focus on as well, and the health of the country, and by the country, I mean both Canada and the U.S., obviously.”
What remains uncertain, even if this plan goes into effect, is whether the NHL will continue the season where it stopped or jump straight into the postseason.
The Panthers went into the unexpected break on a two-game winning streak and three points behind the Toronto Maple Leafs for third place in the Atlantic Division and in fifth place in the Eastern Conference’s battle for two wild-card spots. They had 13 regular-season games remaining when the season stopped.
“It sounds like it’s a little more optimistic in the last couple of days than it’s been at any point in the process here,” Panthers coach Joel Quenneville said on a video conference call last week. “Now we’re in a situation where, hey, we would love to play and I think that the enthusiasm we’ve seen in the last little while — hopefully that’s going to happen and in the meantime I think there’s a little bit more excitement right now where I think we’re talking hockey. I’m thinking, Hey, it could happen and hopefully soon.”
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