NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly is leaving the door wide open on how things may look if the league's suspended regular season ultimately resumes.
"I'm really not positioned a week into this to rule out anything," Daly said, according to The Canadian Press. "The possibilities on how this plays out and what we're able to come up with as an end to the 2019-20 season is almost endless."
The NHL, NHLPA, and Board of Governors have explored numerous scheduling options since everything came to a halt March 13 due to the global coronavirus pandemic. However, Daly recently said one of the league's top priorities is ensuring the 2020-21 schedule isn't compromised.
Daly has worked for the NHL since 1996, a tenure that's featured two labor-related work stoppages, but he admitted the league's current circumstances are unprecedented.
"I've never seen anything quite like it," Daly said. "There was serious concern about the situation. But I certainly didn't see it unfolding and unraveling as quickly as it did from the point that we ended that meeting to having to pause the season roughly one week later.
"It was quick."
The NHL doesn't have a clear timeline on when things may resume but announced earlier this week that all players must self-quarantine through at least March 27.
On Tuesday, an unidentified Ottawa Senator was the first NHL player to test positive for COVID-19.
The New York Rangers signed forward Austin Rueschhoff to a two-year entry-level contract, theScore has learned. The deal starts in 2020-21.
Rueschhoff, a 22-year-old right winger out of Western Michigan University, scored 12 goals and added 14 assists in 36 games this past season. The 6-foot-7, 230-pound junior had a plus-9 rating and 24 penalty minutes.
An undrafted free agent, Rueschhoff attended an NHL development camp each of the past three summers - the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2017, St. Louis Blues in 2018, and Columbus Blue Jackets in 2019.
Rueschhoff, a native of Wentzville, Missouri, scored a goal in his final college game, an 8-4 win over the University of Miami (Ohio) on March 7.
Five days later, on March 12, the NCAA canceled all remaining winter and spring competition in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
WMU had been scheduled to face off against St. Cloud State University in Kalamazoo, Michigan, during the NCHC quarterfinal round last weekend.
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On Thursday, we looked at the teams that could benefit from the NHL season being suspended by getting their injured players back into the lineup should the season resume this summer.
While that could act as a silver lining for some teams, there are a number of others that would find this break detrimental to their Stanley Cup chances.
Top teams
Steve Babineau / National Hockey League / Getty
There are a few avenues the league is exploring for a potential revamped playoff format, each of which presents issues that would negatively impact the top teams.
An expanded playoff format would increase the likelihood that a lower seed catches fire at the right time and goes on a run. Teams with a second chance can be very dangerous and they wouldn't be playing with the same sort of pressure on them that the top seeds - think the Tampa Bay Lightning (6-1) - would be burdened with.
Moving to a best-of-five playoff could create more volatility and leave a lot more room for variance. The better team will usually win out over the course of seven games, but shortening a series by two increases the possibility of a hot goalie stealing a series or a team being snakebit by bad puck luck.
Healthy teams
While the suspended season could benefit certain teams by allowing them to get their injured players back, as we mentioned Thursday, those clubs' already healthy opponents would, as a result, be negatively impacted, especially two teams in particular.
The Dallas Stars (18-1) would draw the short straw in the Western Conference. In an already loaded Central Division, they'd have to face the St. Louis Blues with Vladimir Tarasenko, and the Colorado Avalanche with a fully healthy roster for the first time since October.
Streaking teams
Zak Krill / National Hockey League / Getty
The suspension would offer a blank slate to teams if the season does resume. While the first 70 games would potentially determine playoff seeding, a three-month layoff could be a crippling blow to clubs that were really starting to find their game.
The Flyers (9-1) and Vegas Golden Knights (8-1) are two teams that could find this break detrimental. Philadelphia had won nine of 10 games before the season was suspended and looked like a lock to take over the Metropolitan Division's top spot, peaking at the right time.
Vegas had won 11 of 13 and were perched comfortably atop the Pacific Division, with the teams below them stumbling. The Knights were finally living up to their billing as clear favorites to come out of the division, but a fresh start negates all the momentum they had built up.
Fringe teams
Should the season resume at some point, one of the more prevalent suggestions is for the league to implement a standard 16-team playoff based on current standings, using points percentage as the tiebreaker, given not all teams have played the same amount of games.
If the NHL were to employ this logic, any futures ticket on the Columbus Blue Jackets (100-1) or Winnipeg Jets (50-1) would be a losing one. Despite currently sitting in wild-card spots, both teams would find themselves on the outside of the playoff picture based on points percentage. The Blue Jackets would miss out by .009%, and the Jets by .001%. Bless their souls if that winds up being the case.
Alex Moretto is a sports betting writer for theScore. A journalism graduate from Guelph-Humber University, he has worked in sports media for over a decade. He will bet on anything from the Super Bowl to amateur soccer, is too impatient for futures, and will never trust a kicker. Find him on Twitter @alexjmoretto.
The Washington Wizards and Capitals will entertain fans with video game simulations while finishing the rest of their regular seasons virtually.
Monumental Sports and Entertainment, the company that owns the NBA and NHL franchises, will broadcast video game simulations of both team's previously scheduled matchups that have been postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak. The games will air during every suspended contest's original time slot.
Wizards games will be simulated on NBA 2K20, with the first one scheduled for Saturday at 7 p.m. ET against the Milwaukee Bucks. The Capitals' first simulation will be broadcast at 7 p.m. ET on Tuesday, when they'll face the St. Louis Blues on NHL 20.
Both the basketball and hockey broadcasts will span an hour and be shown on NBC Sports Washington and the Monumental Sports Network. The NHL games will also feature live commentary from Capitals TV announcers on NBC Sports Washington.
"We know that fans are as disappointed as we are not to be able to watch our favorite teams on a nightly basis," Zach Leonsis, the company's senior vice president of strategic initiatives, said in a statement.
"We hope that these fun and engaging video game simulations will entertain our fans and help provide a greater sense of normalcy during these challenging times," he continued. "We hope that when people tune in and watch these simulated games, they will be able to enjoy some friendly competitive play from the comforts of their own home."
The Phoenix Suns have also been using NBA 2K20 to play out their postponed contests. However, they aren't doing a full simulation, and real players are controlling the team and its opponents.
Vegas Golden Knights enforcer Ryan Reaves was worried when the team hired Pete DeBoer after his creative efforts to get under the head coach's skin during their earlier rivalry.
DeBoer, who replaced Gerard Gallant behind the Golden Knights' bench in January, coached the San Jose Sharks throughout the two teams' bitter battle last season. Reaves recalled a tactic he used during one game to irritate DeBoer.
"Every shift that I went out there and there was a faceoff in the neutral zone near their bench, I would just stare at him and laugh," Reaves told TSN 1050's "OverDrive" on Thursday. "I could see it start driving him crazy."
Upon hearing that DeBoer had been hired in Vegas, Reaves admitted he was worried that his behavior could come back to haunt him.
"That's all I thought about when they said, 'Pete DeBoer is coming,'" Reaves said. "That whole game was just, like, flashing through my head. I was like, 'Oh man, I'm going to go down to the coast (East Coast Hockey League) after this.'"
Despite their history, DeBoer fit right into his new job with the Golden Knights, according to Reaves.
"It was seamless," Reaves said. "He's a great coach, he's a great guy, and it was a pretty easy transition."
The Golden Knights compiled a record of 15-5-2 after DeBoer took over and sit atop the Pacific Division with the season suspended.
However, the 42-year-old's decision to seek greener pastures toward the end of his Hall of Fame career is far from unprecedented. Over the years, many superstars across North American sports have left the places they became synonymous with to join unexpected teams.
Results varied among these players, but in most cases, the late-career switch provided a weird image of a former star in an unbefitting uniform during a forgettable final chapter of an otherwise celebrated legacy.
The outcome of Brady's trip to Tampa remains to be seen, and if anyone can buck the trend, it's probably Tom Terrific. However, in light of the GOAT's southern sojourn, let's remind ourselves of some previous instances when a player's last stop was more strange than successful.
NFL
Joe Montana - Kansas City Chiefs
JEFF HAYNES / AFP / Getty
Who better to begin this list than Brady's childhood idol? After four Super Bowl titles and two MVPs as the face of the San Francisco 49ers' dynasty, a 37-year-old Montana joined the Chiefs in 1993. Because he's Joe Montana, he still made the playoffs both seasons and even reached the AFC Championship Game in his first year, but that No. 19 just didn't carry the same sort of magic.
Jerry Rice - Seattle Seahawks
Steve Grayson / Getty Images Sport / Getty
Speaking of 49ers legends, who could forget those 11 games when Rice donned Seahawks colors to close out the all-time greatest career for a wide receiver? The answer: everyone. The 42-year-old Rice was dealt to Seattle six games into the 2004 season after three productive but forgettable years with the Oakland Raiders. His stint in the Pacific Northwest resulted in just 25 receptions for 362 yards and three scores. Perhaps mercifully, Rice never suited up in a real game for the Broncos the following season after signing a one-year deal with Denver.
Emmitt Smith - Arizona Cardinals
Mike Moore / Getty Images Sport / Getty
After setting the all-time rushing record in his final season with the Dallas Cowboys, Smith, then 34, signed a two-year deal with Arizona. He started just five games amid an injury-riddled first campaign with the Cardinals then nearly hit the 1,000-yard mark for the 12th time in his second year before calling time on a Hall of Fame career that certainly could have lived on without his trip to the desert.
Ed Reed - Houston Texans/New York Jets
Evan Habeeb / Reuters
Reed refused to retire after winning Super Bowl XLVII with the Ravens as a 34-year-old and signed a three-year contract with the Texans. After quickly losing his starting role, Reed was released and subsequently signed by the Jets to close out his playing days, which could have ended on a better note had he walked away after hoisting the Lombardi Trophy.
NBA
Michael Jordan - Washington Wizards
Garrett Ellwood / National Basketball Association / Getty
On top of their shared membership in the Six Ring Club, respective GOATs Brady and MJ now share something else in common: late-career destination changes. The sports world was used to Jordan retiring by the turn of the century, but the thought of him returning to basketball in anything other than Chicago Bulls colors was lunacy until he joined the Wizards in 2001. His Airness still got buckets until the bitter end and had a grand farewell tour in his second year with Washington. Still, that dark blue and brown looked as weird on him as a baseball uniform did.
Allen Iverson - Memphis Grizzlies
Rocky Widner / National Basketball Association / Getty
Iverson signed a one-year deal with the Grizzlies during free agency in 2009, but he played a grand total of three games before leaving the team for what was described as "personal reasons." Clearly Memphis wasn't the Answer.
He did find his way back to the 76ers for a final cup of coffee in the Association later that season, but it was short-lived as well.
Patrick Ewing - Orlando Magic
TONY RANZE / AFP / Getty
After 15 remarkable campaigns with the New York Knicks, Ewing was shipped to Seattle for a season and then joined Orlando a year later for the final stage of his Hall of Fame career. At 39-years-old, Ewing started only four of 65 games played for the Magic, averaging six points.
Hakeem Olajuwon - Toronto Raptors
Kent Horner / National Basketball Association / Getty
The Dream won everything there is to win over a dominant 17-year stretch with the Houston Rockets but was dealt to the Raptors in 2001 in a move that's largely been forgotten by everyone south of the Canadian border. Olajuwon was hardly a factor as Toronto qualified for the playoffs for a third consecutive year. He retired after one season.
NHL
Martin Brodeur - St. Louis Blues
Jasen Vinlove / USA Today
Few players in NHL history are as synonymous with a team as Brodeur is with the New Jersey Devils, but the all-time wins leader opted to call it quits as a member of the Blues in 2015. Brodeur won three Stanley Cups, four Vezina Trophies, and 688 games with the Devils compared to just seven games with St. Louis.
Mike Modano - Detroit Red Wings
Aside from the most controversial goal in NHL history, Modano's No. 9 jersey flapping as he flew down the wing is arguably the longest-lasting image of the most successful era in Dallas Stars history. His No. 90 in Detroit did not produce the same profound effect, as Modano played just 40 contests and posted 11 points with the Red Wings before head coach Mike Babcock prevented him from playing in his 1,500th game.
Bobby Orr - Chicago Blackhawks
Focus On Sport / Focus on Sport / Getty
Orr was the Tom Brady of the Boston area in the early 1970s. The swift-skating blue-liner won two Stanley Cups, eight consecutive Norris Trophies, three MVPs, and two Conn Smythes during his Bruins tenure to cement his status as one of the greatest players to have ever lived. In 1976, chronic knee issues and complications with his agent forced Orr to hit free agency and ultimately sign in Chicago. He appeared in just 26 games over two seasons in the Windy City due to injuries before retiring.
Mats Sundin - Vancouver Canucks
Bill Smith / National Hockey League / Getty
In his 13th year with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Sundin, who holds franchise records in goals and points, refused to be traded at the deadline with free agency pending and the team seeking a rebuild. The captain's decision created plenty of angst among Leafs fans, and frustrations grew tenfold when Sundin sat out to start the 2008-09 season before signing with Vancouver that December. Sundin played 41 games with the Canucks plus a brief playoff run, and, as fate would have it, the lasting memory of his time on the West Coast was a shootout winner in his return to Toronto.
MLB
Sammy Sosa - Texas Rangers
Icon Sports Wire / Icon Sportswire / Getty
After 13 memorable years in Chicago with the Cubs, Sosa joined the Orioles for a season, left the game entirely for a year, then found a new landing spot with the Rangers in 2007. His stop in Texas was more productive than Baltimore, and he did join the 600 home run club in the Lone Star State, but it was a lackluster finish to a polarizing career.
Randy Johnson - San Francisco Giants
MediaNews Group/Bay Area News via Getty Images / MediaNews Group / Getty
Even at 45 years of age, Johnson couldn't get enough of striking out batters with his devastating slider, so he joined the Giants in 2009 for one last hurrah. The Bay Area wasn't too kind to the Big Unit, who crafted a 4.88 era in 96 innings before stepping off the mound for good.
Mike Piazza - Oakland Athletics
Stephen Dunn / Getty Images Sport / Getty
Piazza served as the heart and soul of the New York Mets before the end of his career brought him out west to San Diego and Oakland. The Hall of Fame catcher appeared in just 83 games for the Athletics in 2007, and while A's colors look nice on anyone, Piazza belonged in orange and blue.
Wade Boggs - Tampa Bay Devil Rays
Robert Rogers / Major League Baseball / Getty
Boggs hit the first home run in Rays history and notched his 3,000th hit while a member of the organization. Still, does anyone really associate the legendary third baseman with Tampa Bay when reflecting on his Hall of Fame career?
The Vancouver Canucks signed former Minnesota State forward Marc Michaelis to a one-year contract, the team announced Thursday.
Michaelis, 24, was the WCHA Offensive Player of the Year in 2019-20, racking up 20 goals and 24 assists in 31 games while captaining the Mavericks to a 31-5-2 record.
"Marc has exceptional offensive instincts and proven leadership," Canucks general manager Jim Benning said. "We look forward to adding his skill and playmaking ability to the franchise."
The 5-foot-10, 185-pound forward has represented his native Germany several times on the international stage, including the 2015 world juniors, and the 2018 and 2019 World Championships.
Vancouver also inked forward Will Lockwood, the club's third-round pick in 2016, to a two-year pact.
Lockwood recently finished a four-year career at the University of Michigan, captaining the Wolverines to an 18-14-4 record in his senior year. He broke out in his junior year, tallying 16 goals and 15 assists in 36 games. He took a step back in 2019-20, though, recording just 23 points in 33 contests.
"Will is a hardworking, two-way winger with natural scoring ability," Benning said. "He plays with urgency and creates chances for himself and his teammates. We look forward to adding his speed and tenacity to our roster."
