NHL reportedly considering one city per division, not neutral sites, for season restart

In a surprising twist, the NHL is reportedly leaning away from a neutral site idea and is instead looking at a one city per division format for if the season can resume.

The neutral site NHL playoff idea that has been floating around for the last few weeks may not come to pass like many believed it would. On Tuesday, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman dropped a bomb on fan’s hopes with a late night blog breaking down a few tidbits of information the insider picked up.

The major point of note in Friedman’s piece is that the NHL’s neutral site idea is now a “no-go,” and instead the league is now looking at playing games at one city site per each of the league’s four divisions. Here’s how Friedman breaks it down in his piece on Sportsnet:

"Instead, we’re looking at one NHL city per division to resume the season. Teams from that division would be brought to this location. And, it sounds like the plan is to complete the regular season — if possible. One idea, a triple-header per day at each location to get it done in three weeks. The players have to agree."

Friedman also speculates that sites such as Edmonton, Minnesota and Raleigh could be potential targets for the NHL to consider, given their relatively low case rates for coronavirus.

The idea of the NHL going to four sites — one for each division — is a major departure from the neutral site idea that’s been talked about for the last few weeks. The NHL itself has been mum on the idea, as NHLPA executive director Donald Fehr stated that the league has not had discussions yet on the idea in mid-April.

Neutral sites no longer the best option for the NHL

Neutral sites as a whole have gained traction in the last few weeks as the league looks for every possible avenue to return from the season pause amidst the coronavirus pandemic. However, the four site idea that splits the NHL’s return up into their respective divisions makes a bit of sense from the league’s perspective. Neutral sites offer a lot of unknowns on the NHL’s part, from housing players to in-arena facilities and what have you.

Putting the NHL’s return into four separate cities — which would then whittle down to one for the Stanley Cup Final — that the league is already familiar with takes those unknowns out of the equation. Of course, as Friedman’s report states, the players would have to agree to the idea, which also has the league restarting the regular season and playing a triple-header each day to get the regular season complete in three weeks.

It’s an ambitious plan, for sure. The league has been adamant about playing regular season games before any sort of possible postseason if the season can resume, in part as a tune-up for players but also to recoup as much lost money as possible from television deals. Given how quickly things have changed over the last few weeks, it’s very likely that this idea may not fully come to pass as well if the league can return later this year.

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