Washington Capitals: NHL gets it right with 2021 season
Washington Capitals hockey returns on Jan. 13.
It’s offically official Washington Capitals fans. The NHL and NHL Player’s Association have struck an agreement to play a 56 game regular season schedule beginning on Jan. 13, 2021 for the 2020-21 season. It’ll have a completely different look in a shortened season.
First let’s take a look at each division that was announced. The North: Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, Montreal Canadiens, Ottawa Senators, Toronto Maple Leafs, Vancouver Canucks, Winnipeg Jets.
The West: Anaheim Ducks, Arizona Coyotes, Colorado Avalanche, Los Angeles Kings, Minnesota Wild, San Jose Sharks, St. Louis Blues, Vegas Golden Knights.
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The Central: Carolina Hurricanes, Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Dallas Stars, Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators, Tampa Bay Lightning.
Finally, the East: Boston Bruins, Buffalo Sabres, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, and your Washington Capitals.
Looking at each division there is no doubt that the East will be considered “Murderer’s Row”. Here’s where it gets crazy. Each team in the East, Central and West divisions will play every other team in their division eight times while each team in the North Division will play every other team in it’s division nine or 10 times. That means eight Caps vs. Pens games for your viewing pleasure.
In reaching an agreement on the format for the season, the NHL and NHLPA determined that the ongoing closure of the United States-Canada border required realignment and the purpose of these divisions is to minimize travel as much as possible by shifting exclusively to intradivisional play.
Most arenas, including Capital One Arena, won’t be hosting fans for at least the initial part of the season but the press release from the NHL states, “However, depending on the prevailing conditions both in local markets and across North America, the League will be prepared to play games in one or more “neutral site” venues per division should it become necessary.
From watching two of the Washington Wizards preseason games at Capital One Arena, we could determine that the lower bowl will have tarp over it with sponsors and team logos. They also lowered the secondary jumbotrons.
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It’ll be a season unlike any other with this new format and it will take some getting used to, but the way the divisions align should help the NHL get better ratings than they did at the season restart over the summer. It should be a fun roller coaster ride.