Who has arena dates available?
Sean Shapiro: The NHL started reaching out to teams yesterday morning to see what dates their arena is available for during the ‘Olympic break.’
Some teams will have more dates available than others, so re-scheduling could get interesting.
David Pagnotta: There has been a lot behind the scenes work to re-work the NHL schedule now that players won’t be going to the Olympics.
For now, the NHL plans on going ahead with the All-Star weekend in Vegas. They are also looking at giving players a bye week before they resume their schedule in mid-February.
Quick hits on testing, revenue, Oilers, and executive searches
Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet: Since the NHL made the call to not go to the Olympics, individual players are not allowed to go. If the decision was left up to the players, it would have been an option for them to go.
Some are calling for only testing symptomatic players, but this would be a non-starter for Canada.
The Montreal Canadiens played the Philadelphia Flyers in an empty arena last week. One executive: “That’s $2M of revenue we will never see again.”
Approximate revenue for each home game for Canadian teams: Toronto Maple Leafs ($3.5 million), Canadiens ($2.3 million), Vancouver Canucks ($1.8 million), Calgary Flames ($1.4 million), Winnipeg Jets ($1.4 million), and Ottawa Senators ($650,000).
There was a rumor last week that the NHL would pause until January 1st to protect the Winter Classic.
Though Jakob Chychrun to the Edmonton Oilers makes some sense, have been told it’s very unlikely.
The Canadiens, Anaheim Ducks and Chicago Blackhawks are expected to increase their executive searches in the new year.
The Globe and Mail’s Gary Mason listed Jennifer Botterill, Angela Ruggiero and Jayne Hefford as candidates for a Vancouver Canucks front office position. Jim Rutherford has permission to speak with Pittsburgh Penguins AGM Patrik Allvin.
