On Phase 3
TSN: Pierre LeBrun said that there had been some talk last week that Phase 3 could be pushed back to August 1st. Believe that the NHL and NHLPA wanted to firm up the date of July 10th so players could start making plans on when they may need to leave for their team’s city.
“Now. It has to be said that that date could still change if negotiations drag on Phase 3 and Phase 4, and those negotiations are just at its infancy right now, although there’s a lot of back and forth happening hopefully over the next two, three, four weeks, they do get an agreement on return to play, finally. As far as the games and the protocols and everything else. The league and the players did not commit to announcing a start of those games, because that’s the last being negotiated.”
For Phase 4, the start of playoff games, they are hopeful for August 1st, give or take a few days before or after.
Chris Johnston of Sportsnet: The NHL and NHLPA basically have until the end of June to work out all the details and vote on the return to play agreement. Their to-do list includes:
“• Get clarity from the Canadian government on whether a 14-day quarantine will continue to apply to NHL players entering the country, which directly affects whether Toronto, Edmonton or Vancouver can be chosen as a hub city and whether Canadian-based teams might choose to move their training camps to the U.S.
• Finalize the two hub cities where games will be played.
• Reach agreement on the collective bargaining issues pertaining to a return to play, which include critical dates, the 2020-21 salary cap, a potential cap on escrow and other contractual matters.
• Establish protocols that govern Phases 3 and 4, which include testing, rules governing those who produce a positive result, living conditions in the hub cities, family visits and roughly a thousand other considerations, both big and small.”
