Welcome to the 2020s: 5 predictions for the next decade in the NHL

The next decade is here, as 2020 has officially arrived with the beginning of a new year. With a fresh slate upon us, here is how we believe the next 10 years of hockey will shake out.

The NHL celebrated its centennial in 2017, marking a significant passage of time for the sport of hockey. While the start of a new decade isn’t much in comparison to the NHL marking its 100th year as a league just a few seasons ago, the last 10 years of hockey have brought a lot of change to the sport overall.

The Atlanta Thrashers became the league’s second version of the Winnipeg Jets. Las Vegas added a hockey team, which went to the Stanley Cup Final in their first season of existence. Taylor Hall was drafted No. 1 overall in 2010, then was traded … twice. The 2010 Winter Olympics saw Team Canada steal a heartbreaking victory over the United States and the decade ended with the NHL pulling out of the Olympics altogether in 2018.

Hockey has seen a lot of changes over the last 10 years, from players retiring to rule changes to new hockey markets. With the start of a new decade, we took it upon ourselves at FanSided to take a look at where we saw the futures of the various sports and entertainment markets going over the next 10 years.

Here is how we think the next 10 years will go for the sport of hockey and the NHL overall.

Alex Ovechkin will surpass Wayne Gretzky as the NHL’s all-time leading goal-scorer.

Alex Ovechkin is on pace for 49 goals this season, a number that would put him securely in the NHL’s top 10 goal scorers of all time after the year’s end if he passes the No. 700 mark. Wayne Gretzky’s 894 career goals is often seen as an unobtainable record in the current hockey era, but Ovechkin has a real chance to break that record within the coming decade.

Ovechkin is no doubt set to retire this decade. As of the start of 2020, Ovechkin is 34-years-old and has won a Stanley Cup with the Washington Capitals. Ovechkin is by far and away the NHL’s best modern goal scorer, and his skills really have yet to diminish drastically over time. He’s had eight 50 goal seasons and could realistically hit that number again this season should he not miss significant time this year.

Ovechkin seems to be on the path Jaromir Jagr has recently tread of playing high-level hockey well into his 40s, a feat not many hockey players accomplish considering what this sport does to athletes bodies. However, Ovechkin is a man out of time. A freak of nature. He’s stated that as long as he’s healthy, he’s going to continue playing hockey. Ovechkin has played coy with breaking Gretzky’s record in the past, but in 2019 he stated that it’s no doubt on his mind now.

If Ovechkin plays into his 40s, there feels like little doubt he’ll surpass Gretzky’s record. It’s only a matter of time.

The NHL will go back to the Olympics in 2022.

The NHL’s refusal to attend the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang was the first time the league sat out the Games since 1994. Without the NHL’s participation, the 2018 Winter Olympics belonged, instead, to women’s hockey and Team USA’s revenge that followed.

While Olympic talks are still up in the air for 2022, it’s hard to see the NHL sitting out these Games. In 2022, the Winter Olympics will head to Beijing, a hockey market the NHL has tried to get a foothold into for years. It’s hard to see the NHL passing up an opportunity to showcase their best in a market they’ve been looking to expand into.

There is, however, the matter of the NHL stopping mid-season to participate in the Olympics. There’s no easy solution to the problems the NHL faces in their Olympic participation, troubles no other major professional sports league has to face. Still, the NHL has made room in their World Cup of Hockey plans for a potential return to the Olympics in 2022, meaning the dream is not yet dead.

Houston will end up with a relocated hockey team.

The NHL will expand into Seattle for the 2021-22 season, but that does not mean we’ve seen the last of new hockey markets this upcoming decade. With Seattle’s inclusion, the NHL will end up at an even 32 teams, with eight teams in each of the league’s four divisions. It’s unlikely we’ll see a true expansion for some time in the NHL after Seattle is introduced, but we may very well see a relocated hockey team.

Houston has been the biggest name in the relocation talks for awhile now, with Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta stating that it’s a topic that has been regularly discussed as recently as September 2019.

“There’s not a month that goes by that we don’t have some type of talks about the NHL,” Fertitta said to Houston Public Media’s Houston Matters radio program.

Teams such as the Florida Panthers, Arizona Coyotes and Ottawa Senators have been public consensus as potential relocation targets for some time, though absolutely nothing concrete has been said. Even still, with Houston lobbying as much as they have, they seem to be the next in line for a potential relocated team, and it very well could happen as soon as this decade.

Gary Bettman will retire from his position as commissioner of the NHL.

The NHL has had Gary Bettman as commissioner of the league since February 1993, a long time for the now 67-year-old. Bettman has been the commissioner of the NHL through various lockouts and the addition of a salary cap, and will have expanded the league from 24 teams to 32 by 2021.

Bettman has been the face of the NHL’s management for a handful of decades now, and the 2020s feels like the perfect time for him to retire from his role as commissioner. Though Bettman has stated as recently as 2018 that he does not plan on leaving his position, this decade may say otherwise.

Bettman’s additions to the NHL have been indisputable in their impact on the game, but it may be time for a new voice to step in after Seattle takes the stage next year. The NHL isn’t getting any more popular with the newer generations, and a younger, forward-thinking commissioner may do the league some good.

The NHL will extend 3-on-3 overtime to 10 minutes instead of five.

The addition of 3-on-3 overtime has been a wonder for hockey over the last few seasons. Shootouts have come less frequently thanks to 3-on-3 overtime, and the format has even made its way to the All-Star Game, injecting new life into the tournament.

With the presence of shootouts still looming over tied hockey games, however, the NHL will take a look at expanding the 3-on-3 from five to 10 minutes, allowing for more opportunities to close out games in actual hockey play. Shootouts have lost their luster over the decade, going from an innovative field to a nuisance that halts momentum of overtime right in its tracks.

Adding five more minutes to 3-on-3 overtime increases the likelihood of goals scored in the extra frame, but also doesn’t make hockey games too long during the regular season. It’s a solid compromise that would make the sport of hockey a much more enjoyable one coming into a new decade.