The Deputy Commissioner of the NHL says several options are being explored for the continuation of the 2019-20 NHL season and the door is wide open at the moment. Speaking the Canadian Press, Bill Daly said the possibilities are just about endless.
"I'm really not positioned a week into this to rule out anything," Daly said, according to The Canadian Press. "The possibilities on how this plays out and what we're able to come up with as an end to the 2019-20 season is almost endless."
Some options have already been thrown around, like a 24-team playoff that includes every club with a win percentage of .500 or higher up to the point where the season was suspended due to concerns over COVID-19. The biggest thing, according to Daly, is that the 2020-21 season isn't compromised in any way by the continuation of this season. That includes any kind of late start or a reduction in the amount of games.
As for what the NHL is facing, Daly said he's worked for the league since 1996 and, despite going through two work stoppages since then, the current situation is unprecedented.
"I've never seen anything quite like it," Daly said. "There was serious concern about the situation. But I certainly didn't see it unfolding and unraveling as quickly as it did from the point that we ended that meeting to having to pause the season roughly one week later.
"It was quick."
There's still no firm deadline for when the NHL might return and the situation seems to chance daily, if not more often than that.
