Melting ice
League and NHLPA clear hurdle, focusing on Jan. 13 as start date for 2021 season
The spread of COVID-19 is still ultimately in control of what kind of 2021 NHL season we have, but at least the league and the NHLPA have cleared one major hurdle in their return-to-play efforts.
TSN’s Darren Dreger reported late Monday night that the two sides have moved on from the financial discussions that were slowing the return efforts (angering many on the players’ side) and are now focusing on the protocols and logistics for what would be a Jan. 13 season start. The league had been looking for an increase in escrow from the players to offset expected revenue losses, but after the PA asked for their own concessions on Sunday, the league decided to move on from the issue, reported Dreger. The financial terms of the Memorandum of Understanding signed in July will stand as is.
While this news provides a glimmer of hope, there is still much work to be done to hammer out protocols and many other logistical matters. It appears the aim now is for a 56-game schedule following a 10-day training camp.
But these talks are playing out in front of a second COVID-19 surge that is continuing to wreak havoc.
The sporting world is not excluded. Monday night’s 49ersBills football game had to be moved from Santa Clara, Calif., to Arizona because of a surge in northern California. Three Boston University men’s hockey players were removed from the
Team USA World Junior Championships roster because of positive tests within the Terrier program, which was forced to pause team activities. Postponements of college athletic events have become a regularity. And on Tuesday, Massachusetts Gov.
Charlie Baker announced new rollbacks on reopening efforts.
Realignment seems almost a certainty, with an All- Canadian division in the works to account for that country’s quarantine requirements. The Toronto Raptors, the NBA’s only Canadian franchise, have had to move operations to Tampa Bay, at least for the start of the season, which begins Dec. 22.
It was revealed last week that several NHL teams, including the Bruins, have been exploring the idea of holding outdoor games to recoup losses, with one of the B’s desired locations being Fenway Park. That would be a costly proposition which neither the league nor the various municipalities have signed off on. While it stands to reason that crowds would be allowed at outdoor venues before indoor ones, fans have still not been allowed at Gillette Stadium for Patriots’ games.
Whatever structure is hashed out, it will have to be approved by the league’s Board of Governors and the PA’s Executive Board. Some owners are reportedly not too thrilled with the current agreements (and some believe the B’s Jeremy Jacobs is in that camp), but it remains to be seen if there are enough of them — and they’re disgruntled enough — to try to scrap the season.
If all the hurdles are cleared, then team front offices can get back to tidying up the loose ends of their respective rosters. While some have major work to do — the Stanley Cup champion Lightning are already over the salary cap and still have to re-sign RFAs Anthony Cirelli and Erik Cernak — the B’s do have one rather important piece of business in front of them.
Zdeno Chara, the B’s captain for the last 14 years, remains unsigned and the 43-year-old defenseman is still undecided about what path he wants to take.
“Nothing’s changed,” said Chara’s agent Matt Keator on Tuesday. “We’re still waiting to see what the season would look like.”
There could be more clarity — if there can be such a thing these days — by the end of the week. And there’s not much time to spare, as players would have to return to their teams’ cities and go through varied degrees of quarantine.