Due to COVID-19, the 2020-21 NHL season has proven to be one like no other we have seen before. Here’s what you need to know:
The NHL began their regular season with the Philadelphia Flyers vs. Pittsburgh Penguins Game on January 13, 2021, after just completing their previous 2019-2020 season on September 28, 2020.
Last year’s regular season games were cut short in March due to COVID-19, and all play was suspended for months. It was then resumed in May of 2020 with a modified playoff competition in which teams were divided into two groups and players practiced and played in “Hub Cities” away from their families.
COVID-19
There were no positive cases of COVID-19 during that time, and the season concluded with the Tampa Bay Lightning taking the Stanley Cup home to Florida. On January 13, 2021 the Tampa Bay Lightning unveiled their championship banner, but with a message from the team, “The trophies are for the players, but the banner is for the fans, and we are going to wait until the fans are back in the stadium before we raise the banner.” This was a team-wide decision to make sure that the fans knew their value to the team.
As the new season begins, rather than the bubble format, players remain at their own residences but are required to have daily COVID-19 testing done. While this has worked for some teams, it hasn’t proven effective for all of the other teams.
The Dallas Stars announced on January 1, 2021, that 17 players had tested positive for COVID-19. This resulted in the scheduled January 14th Stars-Panthers game being postponed. All other January games were scheduled to continue on as normal as long as players continue to test negative for COVID-19.
COVID-19 has also hit other teams this season; the Buffalo Sabers have suspended play until at least February 8, 2021 due to COVID-19 cases. This has been a recurring problem that the NHL has faced, with different games being postponed. Despite that, so far the organization has managed to keep most teams afloat.
Flyers Season
The first game of the season was played at the Wells Fargo Center where the Philadelphia Flyers and the Pittsburgh Penguins battled for the first win. The Flyers were able to come out on top in a strong game, winning 6-3. A notable player was the Penguins’ Captain Sidney Crosby, who had a goal early in the second period after Flyers goalie Carter Hart tried to clear the puck out of his zone from behind the goal. Fans noticed the remarkable stick work displayed by Crosby in his game tying goal. Flyers Right wing, Joel Farabee came out of the game with 4 points, having three assists and one goal. Another major accomplishment was that of Flyers Forward, Oskar Lindblom who recently recovered from Ewing’s Sarcoma.
Lindblom scored a goal early in the third period, making the Flyers lead 5-3. This goal is the first point for Lindblom this season. It is also his first game back at the Wells Fargo Center since he left the NHL in January for his cancer treatment.
Tampa Bay Lightning
On January 13, 2021, the Lightning brought the heat and ended up winning 5-1 (maybe as late payback) and securing the first place in the Discover Central division. The defending cup winners showed up strong in their season opener against the Chicago Blackhawks. This game gave NHL fans a flashback to the 2014-15 season when the two battled for the Stanley Cup title, Chicago winning the cup 4-2.
New Divisions
This season will also bring new divisions and conferences to the league. Due to COVID-19, Canadian players can not travel to the United States, and vice versa. In accordance with this rule, the NHL created four new divisions that are slightly modified from those of previous years. The Discover Central is made up of Tampa Bay, Carolina, Columbus, Florida, Nashville, and Chicago. The remaining three divisions are MassMutual East, Honda West, and the Canadian division, Scotia North. The teams in each division will not cross over, resulting in an overwhelming amount of divisional games. For the Pennsylvania rivalry this means constant battle of the state!
Seattle Kraken
During the typical expansion draft, a team gets voted and added to the NHL team list. This year the Seattle Kraken were supposed to make their NHL debut, but there was no draft this year, which resulted in the Kraken’s opening season being postponed to a later year that has not yet been determined. This is partially due to the fact that new hockey teams form by taking 1-2 players from each existing team. That was not possible this year due to COVID-19, therefore fans will need to wait another year to see Seattle in play. In the meantime, residents of Washington State can silently cheer on their second favorite team.
San Jose Sharks
San Jose Sharks player, Evander Kane, came out with the news that he has filed for bankruptcy. He is said to be $26.8 million dollars in debt which is a combination of money lost gambling, housing fees, living expenses—he lives with 7 family members—and the recent birth of his daughter. This will make a dent on his 7-year, $49 million dollar contract.
Sources said Kane was still debating playing this season or taking a break to spend time with his daughter. Despite what some said, Kane has showed up for 8 games so far this season, scoring 2 goals and gaining 5 points. NHL fans are awaiting news on Kane’s current situation for the foreseeable future.
The NHL has successfully played several games this season and continues to have at least one game per day since January 13.
