Anaheim Ducks: NHL Discusses Start Date Options for 2020-21 Season
By Ciara Durant
After six months away from the ice, there is hope on the horizon that the Anaheim Ducks could see action by January.
When the Anaheim Ducks played their final game of the 2019-20 season against the St. Louis Blues, the thought that they wouldn’t see the ice for over six months seemed preposterous. However, much like the COVID-19 pandemic, the rest of the season became one filled with unpredictability. When the NHL finally came up with a solution to resolve the season, the Anaheim Ducks were left on the outside looking in.
With the Stanely Cup Finals well underway, however, there are a few questions at the forefront of everyone’s mind. When will the 2020-21 season begin? How long will the Anaheim Ducks hiatus really last? While there are no concrete answers to these questions, talk of the 2020-21 season has begun to surface.
In his annual state of the league address, NHL Commissioner, Gary Bettman, stated that the league has started to discuss plans and different options for the 2020-21 season. Nevertheless, there are still many unknowns when it comes to COVID-19. This puts the NHL in a bit of a predicament, seeing as how they cannot predict what could transpire in the coming months.
This brings forth a lot of questions that still remain unanswered. Hopefully, the wait for answers will be short-lived. But, the possibilities of a December or January start date have been openly discussed.
"“Dec. 1 has always been a notional date. I will not be surprised if it slips into later December, could slip into January. But there’s no point right now in making any definitive comments on our plans because there’s still too much we don’t know.” –Gary Bettman, NHL Commisioner"
The 2020-21 season has unknowns in spades. However, what we do know is that Bettman anticipates the league will play a full 82-game season. The drawback of this plan, however, is that he has openly discussed that he does not want the season to go deep into the summer.
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This will make it a whirlwind year, not just for the Anaheim Ducks, but all 31 NHL teams. Speeding through the season brings about a whole host of other issues that could probably, in itself, be the basis for another article.
The good news for Anaheim Ducks fans though is that talking gets the ball rolling. The NHL is actively seeking a solution for the 2020-21 season. And while predictions don’t necessarily give us concrete answers, it does give us hope that in due time, things will slowly reveal themselves.
Who knows when the 2020-21 season will begin? What we do know, however, is that we are one step closer to watching our boys out on the ice. Let’s just hope Bob Murray isn’t afraid to make a bit splash at the 2020 NHL Entry Draft and during Free Agency.
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