While the NHL hasn't established a timetable for its eventual return, the league is looking at playing games late into the summer.
"Earlier (Tuesday), the National Hockey League did request from each of its 31 member clubs to provide available home dates for the month of August," TSN's Bob McKenzie reported on the latest edition of "Insider Trading."
If the NHL resumes in July or August, the players' contracts would need to be extended, as their deals expire June 30 with the new league year starting July 1, McKenzie adds. That would also affect players on work visas.
After the NHL paused its 2019-20 season amid the COVID-19 outbreak on March 12, the league asked its teams to work with their respective arenas to find potential home dates in July, according to the New York Post's Brett Cyrgalis.
On Tuesday, the NHL reportedly asked players and staff to self-quarantine through April 6, extending its initial directive by 10 days.
Deputy commissioner Bill Daly said recently that while the possibilities for the rest of the 2019-20 season are "almost endless," the league wants to avoid scenarios that prevent it from holding a full 2020-21 campaign.
The NHL has instructed its players and team staff to extend their ongoing self-isolation by 10 days due to the spread of the coronavirus, reports Sportsnet's Chris Johnston.
The decision was relayed to general managers and league officials in a conference call on Tuesday, Johnston adds.
On March 16, the NHL permitted players to fly home if they self-quarantined through March 27. The new protocol will take the quarantine period to at least April 6.
The league shut down operations on March 12 and has been weighing several options for potentially resuming play. At this point, a priority for the league is ensuring the 2020-21 schedule isn't affected by playing out the remainder of the current season.
Meanwhile, two members of the Ottawa Senators are the only NHL players who've been known to test positive for the virus.
The owners of the New Jersey Devils are backtracking after indicating they would temporarily reduce full-time employees' pay amid the coronavirus pandemic.
"Our commitment has been to do our best to keep all of our employees working through this very difficult situation," Devils co-owner Josh Harris said in a statement Tuesday. "As part of an effort to do that we asked salaried employees to take a temporary 20% pay cut while preserving everyone's full benefits - and keeping our 1,500 hourly workers paid throughout the regular season.
"After listening to our staff and players, it's clear that was the wrong decision," Harris continued. "We have reversed it and will be paying these employees their full salaries. This is an extraordinary time in our world - unlike any most of us have ever lived through before - and ordinary business decisions are not enough to meet the moment. To our staff and fans, I apologize for getting this wrong."
Harris and David Blitzer oversee the NHL club as well as the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers. On Monday night, Harris Blitzer Sports and Entertainment CEO Scott O'Neil confirmed a report from the New York Times' Marc Stein stating the owners were asking full-timers working for both organizations to trim their pay and move to a four-day workweek.
The salary reductions were reportedly aimed at employees making more than $50,000. The cuts would have been implemented from April 15 through the end of June, according to Stein.
Harris issued the same apology through the 76ers on Tuesday.
Earlier Tuesday, ESPN's Emily Kapan reported the NHL is temporarily cutting league office employees' salaries by 25% in hopes of avoiding any layoffs.
The Devils were the first NHL team to make a public commitment toward compensating hourly workers after the NHL paused its season in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak.
New Jersey Devils veteran Kyle Palmieri is optimistic about his team's future thanks to a handful of young, dynamic players.
"I think there are a lot of reasons to be optimistic," Palmieri said, according to NJ Advance Media's Randy Miller. "We have guys that haven’t even arrived in Jersey professionally yet that show a lot of promise."
After finding themselves near the bottom of the standings this season, the Devils began to look toward the future. After parting ways with Taylor Hall, Andy Greene, Wayne Simmonds, and Blake Coleman this season, the Devils find themselves with a pool of prospects and draft picks.
The list of prospects in the Devils' system with NHL potential is lengthy. It includes defensemen Ty Smith, Kevin Bahl, and Daniil Misyul. It also includes newly acquired winger Nolan Foote, who the Devils pried away from the Tampa Bay Lightning in the Coleman trade.
Palmieri is also aware of the potential of last year's No. 1 overall pick Jack Hughes, who was slotted into the lineup all season long.
"You look at the little flashes and the skill and the way he thinks and sees the game, and you can definitely see as he matures and gets used to the NHL level that he’s going to just keep getting better and better by the day," Palmieri said.
Hughes put together an underwhelming rookie campaign where he mustered up seven goals and 21 points in 61 games. Despite the lack of scoring, the 18-year-old showed immense potential as a future star in the league.
Palmieri added: "We're building and we're young, and guys are going to keep getting better year by year."
The 29-year-old forward has been a part of the Devils since the 2015-16 season. He's scored at least 24 goals in every campaign in New Jersey and is leading the Devils this season with 25 goals in 65 games. He is set to hit free agency at the end of the 2020-21 season.
We can't break these down by the good and bad, as all four looked likely to come down to the final week of the season, so we are going pick by pick.
The picks
Winnipeg Jets: No playoffs (+150)
A run of four successive wins just before the season got suspended thrust the Jets back into the playoff mix, though they had the disadvantage of playing one more game than all the teams around them. If the season did end up being played out, I think the Jets would have ended up missing the playoffs.
My criticism of the team's depth down the middle turned out to be justified, as was my concern about their thin defensive corps, but was I ever wrong about Connor Hellebuyck. "Hellebuyck took a step back and resembled the goalie he was in 2017 more than he did the Vezina nominee we saw in 2018. Now, In three years as a starter, he's been average twice. Which season sounds like the outlier here?"
His 2018 season sure doesn't seem like an outlier now. He's been the best player on this team for stretches this season and without his exploits, the Jets would have already been well out of the playoff picture.
Carolina Hurricanes: Yes playoffs (-160)
Admittedly this would have turned out to be closer than I originally expected, but the Hurricanes were absolutely making the playoffs. After loading up at the deadline, Carolina was looking likelier to make a deep run than they were to miss out on the postseason altogether. Looking at the standings, the Hurricanes were an overwhelming favorite to claim the top wild-card spot.
"Carolina has an elite group of young forwards and should be a lock to make the playoffs this year. If sophomore Andrei Svechnikov takes the leap toward becoming the elite scorer he was expected to be when he was drafted, this team could be looking at a division title."
This prediction was probably the most questionable. With 79 points, the Flames were holding down third in the Pacific Division, but the Vancouver Canucks were just a point back with a game in hand. Finishing ahead of the Canucks was their best chance to make the playoffs, because their odds likely weren't great in a muddled wild-card race with the Nashville Predators and Minnesota Wild each holding games in hand.
My main concern surrounded Calgary coming off a season in which almost all its top players set career highs in points. I expected regression, and regression I got. None of Johnny Gaudreau, Elias Lindholm, or Sean Monahan produced anywhere close to their 2018-19 totals and the Flames were in a desperate battle for a playoff spot because of it.
New York Rangers: No playoffs (-150)
Kudos to the Rangers for making this closer than I expected it to be. They were left for dead a month-and-a-half ago before going scorched earth on the rest of the league to pull into the wild-card race. The odds were still stacked against them, but they certainly weren't out of it.
My biggest issue with the Rangers was how all the hype surrounding them following a busy offseason had people overlooking the lack of depth on their roster. Depth scoring has proven to be a big issue for them, but the reason they're still in the mix is because Artemi Panarin and Mika Zibanejad have quite remarkably been able to do it all on their own. At least I look good for saying "Zibanejad is excellent."
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.
With most sports on an indefinite hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, teams and athletes are promoting social distancing. Clubs are temporarily updating their logos to reflect the practice, and athletes are offering fans their advice and emphasizing the importance of taking proper measures to reduce the spread of the coronavirus. Let's take a look at what has been done so far.
Carolina Hurricanes
The Carolina Hurricanes' alternate logo is a hurricane warning flag, with the shape of North Carolina formed in the space in between the two flags.
David Beckham's MLS club made its debut March 1 and has now introduced a subtle change to its crest. The original logo has two white herons with two of their legs intertwined.
Anadolu Agency / Anadolu Agency / Getty
The club's new temporary logo moves the herons to either side of the shield so that they are not touching.
We miss you and we want to see you 𝘀𝗼𝗼𝗻. For that to happen we all need to stay home, be smart and practice 𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴.
Though the logo remains the same, the message Nike is sending resonates with sports fans around the world. Many Nike athletes, including Tiger Woods and Cristiano Ronaldo, shared this message on their social media platforms.
Nearly 10 days ago, Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry posted a video urging fans to flatten the curve by practicing proper hygiene and social distancing.
We all have to take responsibility for ourselves and do whatever it takes to #stopthespread. There’s a sense of urgency to flatten the curve and give ourselves and the healthcare system the best chance to get through this pandemic. Share this message and let’s protect each other! pic.twitter.com/T8JfydahCu
Normally known for his lighthearted humor, former Florida Panthers netminder Roberto Luongo got serious with his plea for people to stay home, self-isolate as much as possible, and take social distancing seriously.
Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Chris Paul reminded everyone that it's important to stay home and urged people to act selflessly. He also commended healthcare workers for their efforts during this time and expressed his appreciation for teachers.
The NHL is temporarily cutting the salaries of league office employees by 25% due to the coronavirus pandemic that's put the 2019-20 season on pause, according to ESPN's Emily Kaplan.
The league is hoping the move will allow it to avoid layoffs, Kaplan's sources said.
The Montreal Canadiens, meanwhile, are proceeding with temporary layoffs. Groupe CH, which owns the Canadiens, announced Tuesday that it will temporarily lay off 60% of the organization's employees effective March 30. Ownership also created a $6-million fund to "enhance" affected workers' employment insurance benefits for eight weeks.
The NHL officially suspended play March 12 due to the growing threat of the COVID-19 virus.
The Minnesota Wild inked forward Mitchell Chaffee to a two-year, entry-level deal, the team announced Tuesday.
Chaffee, 22, tallied 16 goals and 29 points through 30 games for the University of Massachusetts in 2019-20. The 6-foot winger amassed 47 goals and 95 points in 108 outings over three seasons with the program. He was named to the Hockey East All-Academic Team in both 2017 and 2019.
The NCAA season was officially canceled on March 12 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Minnesota signed forward prospects Adam Beckman and Damien Giroux each to three-year, entry-level pacts on Monday.
The NHL season is suspended indefinitely due to the COVID-19 outbreak, and while the league hopes it will eventually be able to resume and conclude the 2019-20 campaign, that's far from a foregone conclusion. We're breaking down some of the major storylines that hang in the balance.
Before hockey was halted, the Colorado Avalanche were enjoying their best season in many years. The Edmonton Oilers, led by Hart Trophy favorite Leon Draisaitl and a certain superstar running mate, looked primed to start delivering on the promise of the Connor McDavid era. Anything can happen in the playoffs, which served as a rallying cry for the nine teams occupying a wild-card spot or within a few points of one.
Plenty of squads stand to begrudge what could have been if the regular season must be truncated or the playoffs can't be held at all. But no team's what-if scenario would sting quite like that of the Philadelphia Flyers.
Philly is a low-key tortured franchise, overshadowed in its division by the teams that employ Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby and narrowly eclipsed in historical plight by, to pick one glaring example, the Toronto Maple Leafs. At 43 seasons and counting, the Flyers own the NHL's fourth-longest championship drought, and this sure wasn't supposed to be the year that the Stanley Cup returned to the City of Brotherly Love.
Travis Konecny. Icon Sportswire / Getty Images
Non-rebuilding teams that miss the playoffs by 16 points - and are mercurial to the point of rattling off eight-game winning and losing streaks in the same season - don't tend to inspire high expectations when they ice much of the same roster the following season. After stumbling to that fate in 2018-19, Philadelphia's turnaround was among the better storylines of this paused campaign. Conservatively, they were set to enter the playoffs as a sensible dark-horse pick.
Hockey Reference's Simple Rating System, a metric that quantifies how good a team is based on its goal differential and strength of schedule, pegs Philadelphia as the NHL's fourth-best club through the suspension of play, behind only the Boston Bruins, the Tampa Bay Lightning, and Colorado. The Flyers started to round into truly fearsome form at an optimal time, winning nine straight games from Feb. 18 to March 7 and outscoring opponents 39-17 over that span.
The Flyers did make a few notable offseason changes. They hired Alain Vigneault as head coach. They traded for Matt Niskanen and Kevin Hayes (then signed the latter to a seven-year deal). From the start of the season, they entrusted Carter Hart, the league's youngest No. 1 goalie, with the task of stabilizing a perpetually troublesome position. (Seriously, this list isn't too pretty.)
Those moves were uniformly positive, and internal growth and resurgence took care of the rest. Travis Konecny, a first-round pick in 2015, is looking like a budding star. Offense came from many sources, from top-six mainstays Sean Couturier, Jakub Voracek, and Claude Giroux to an Ivan Provorov-led blue-line corps that combined to score 44 goals, one of the NHL's best such marks.
Carter Hart (left) and Kevin Hayes. Len Redkoles / NHL / Getty Images
Fortified defensive play was paramount in the Flyers' rise: They're eighth in the league in goals allowed (191) a season after finishing 29th (280). They pace the NHL in home wins (25) and wins by three goals or more (21). All of this occurred without Nolan Patrick, the No. 2 pick in 2017, who's been sidelined since training camp due to a migraine disorder. (Philadelphia was also playing without Oskar Lindblom, the 23-year-old forward who was diagnosed in December with Ewing's sarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer.)
With the Flyers just one point behind Washington for the first seed in the Metropolitan Division, they seemed ready to rectify their generally underwhelming last decade of hockey. A refresher on recent club history: After barely making the playoffs and then surging, rather surprisingly, to the Cup final in 2009-10, Philly's next two teams were much stronger but bowed out in consecutive second rounds. Three postseason trips since have produced no series victories.
Rather than head into the playoffs on a tear, these Flyers may be left to wonder if this year's returns are repeatable. Konecny, Couturier, Voracek, Giroux, Hayes, and Provorov are all signed through at least 2022, but their contracts have Philly close to the cap. Meanwhile, Ovechkin and Crosby's enduring stardom and the ascent of the Bruins and Lightning to juggernaut status emphasize how strong the top of the Eastern Conference has become.
But again, anything can happen in the playoffs, as those plucky 2010 Flyers, whose Cup dreams were finally dashed by Patrick Kane's great vanishing goal, can attest. When will they get to try to make good on that hopeful adage again?
