Washington Capitals: Christmas comes early for what awaits in 2021

Christmas came early Washington Capitals fans.

Washington Capitals hockey is on the horizon thanks to the NHL and NHLPA striking a deal on the 2021 season. Let’s learn more about what awaits next season. It’ll be a 56 game season beginning on Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2021 and concluding on May 8.

The Stanley Cup playoffs will feature a tournament of 16 teams in the traditional best of seven, four round format which will conclude around mid July. Doing this will allow the next season to begin at the regularly scheduled October time. Trust us, we miss hockey too. No Caps hockey in September (preseason), October, November, and December is really sad. August was fun while it lasted.

With the unpredictability of the novel coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19), the NHL and the NHLPA will be flexible and adaptable in the way they schedule games in hopes of keeping players, staff, and their families safe as well as the fans.

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As part of keeping the fans and players safe, most teams will begin the season without fans including the Caps. But it’ll be nice watching them from the comfort of our own couch and hopefully the team can still feel our presence cheering them on. It’s only temporary and not permanent.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said in a press release from the NHL:

"“The National Hockey League looks forward to the opening of our 2020-21 season, especially since the Return to Play in 2019-20 was so successful in crowning a Stanley Cup champion. While we are well aware of the challenges ahead, as was the case last spring and summer, we are continuing to prioritize the health and safety of our participants and the communities in which we live and play. And, as was the case last spring and summer, I thank the NHLPA, particularly Executive Director Don Fehr, for working cooperatively with us to get our League back on the ice.”"

Don Fehr, the NHLPA Executive Director added:

"“The Players are pleased to have finalized agreements for the upcoming season, which will be unique but also very exciting for the fans and Players alike. During these troubled times, we hope that NHL games will provide fans with some much needed entertainment as the players return to the ice.”"

We are in for a treat. 2020 has been a challenging year for us all with the pandemic and sadly we don’t know when it’ll go away. Despite this, we should be thankful that sports are back in full swing and hockey is on the way.