2020β21 NHL season | |
---|---|
League | National Hockey League |
Sport | Ice hockey |
Duration | January 13 β July 7, 2021 |
Number of games | 56 |
Number of teams | 31 |
TV partner(s) |
CBC,
Sportsnet,
TVA Sports (Canada) NBC, NBCSN, USA, CNBC (United States) |
Draft | |
Top draft pick | Alexis Lafreniere |
Picked by | New York Rangers |
Regular season | |
Presidents' Trophy | Colorado Avalanche |
Season MVP | Connor McDavid ( Oilers) |
Top scorer | Connor McDavid (Oilers) |
Playoffs | |
Playoffs MVP | Andrei Vasilevskiy |
Stanley Cup | |
Champions | Tampa Bay Lightning |
Runners-up | Montreal Canadiens |
The 2020β21 NHL season was the 104th season of operation (103rd season of play) of the National Hockey League (NHL). Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the regular season was reduced to 56 games and began on January 13, 2021. Due to COVID-19 cross-border travel restrictions imposed by the Government of Canada, the league temporarily realigned for this season, putting all seven Canadian teams into one division. COVID-19 outbreaks caused the games of most teams to be rescheduled beyond the regular season's original end date of May 8, with the last game being moved to May 19. The playoffs began four days earlier on May 15, under a 16-team format with the top four teams from each division. [1]
The playoffs concluded on July 7, with the Tampa Bay Lightning defeating the Montreal Canadiens in the Stanley Cup Finals in five games, winning their second consecutive and third overall Stanley Cup in franchise history.
The 2020β21 season was originally planned to begin in October 2020 and end with the Stanley Cup being awarded in June 2021, but this had to be changed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting later than normal conclusion of the previous season. [2] In December, the league said that the season would be shorter than the typical 82 games. [3] Attendance at each arena was limited by local health orders. [4] The league also relies on attendance for at least 50 percent of its revenue, and the players were against spending the full season isolated in neutral-site bubbles similar to their situation during the 2020 playoffs. [5] With the NHL expecting to lose billions of dollars, several team owners privately told NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman that they wanted to suspend the season. But Bettman convinced them that they could not afford to sit out the season in the long run, especially with the expansion team Seattle Kraken joining the league in 2021β22, as well as the prospect of signing new U.S. national television deals with multiple networks . [6]
In July 2020, the league and the NHL Players' Association (NHLPA) initially agreed to tentatively schedule the opening of training camp on November 17, 2020, and the start of the regular season on December 1. [7] In October 2020, both the NHL and NHLPA began discussions on the specific details on how to proceed with the season. [5] On October 6, the NHL and the NHLPA agreed to delay the targeted start date of the regular season to January 1, 2021, and to decide at a later date when to open training camp. [8]
In mid-November 2020, deputy commissioner Bill Daly stated that the league was still targeting a January 1 start, but that "we have to build in flexibility for the hiccups that we expect will come along and have to expect will come along with potential COVID-19 positives and contact tracing requirements", citing "difficulties" faced by Major League Baseball and the National Football League over their handling of the pandemic. [9]
On December 20, the league unveiled its plans for a 56-game regular season, and that the teams would temporarily be realigned into four regional divisions. [10] Due to limitations on travel into and out of Canada, [11] the seven Canadian teams were aligned into a single North division. The seven teams in the North Division played each other nine or ten times during the regular season. [12]
To further reduce travel, the regular season schedule was arranged into baseball-style homestands, where multiple consecutive games with the same teams were played at the same location. [13] The only contentious issue with the temporary realignment was which two teams in the Central Time Zone would have to join the West Division. They would have more travel time playing games in the Pacific Time Zone, but they would be against the Anaheim Ducks, Los Angeles Kings, and San Jose Sharks, three of the seven teams that did not qualify for the expanded 24-team 2020 playoffs. [14] It was eventually decided to leave the Dallas Stars in the Central to make up for the team being in the Pacific Division from 1998 to 2013, and the Minnesota Wild and the St. Louis Blues moved to the West. [15]
It was the latest a season had started, and with the fewest games per team, since the 2012β13 season. That season, each team played only 48 games due to the aftermath of the 2012β13 NHL lockout.
Only for this season, the NHL allowed each team to retain an extra traveling group of four to six players, including one goaltender, known as the taxi squad. The taxi squad was designed to enable swift call-ups to the NHL team in the event of positive COVID-19 cases on each team. Waiver-eligible members of the taxi squad are still subject to waiver rules. Daly stated that the taxi squad was devised only to circumvent the difficulties presented by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and is not likely to be used again in future seasons. [16]
The 2020 NHL Entry Draft was originally scheduled for June 26β27, 2020, at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, [17] but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. [18] It took place on October 6 and 7 in a remote format, hosted from the NHL Network studios in Secaucus, New Jersey. [19] [7] The New York Rangers were awarded the first pick in the 2020 Draft after winning the second phase of the draft lottery on August 10 and selected Alexis Lafreniere. [20]
The league had originally scheduled this season's international, All-Star, and outdoor games prior to the pandemic.
Two preseason games were planned to be played in Europe: the Boston Bruins against Adler Mannheim at SAP Arena in Mannheim, Germany, and the Nashville Predators against SC Bern at PostFinance Arena in Bern, Switzerland. In addition, three regular season games, were also planned: the Boston Bruins and Nashville Predators at O2 Arena in Prague, Czech Republic; and two games between the Colorado Avalanche and Columbus Blue Jackets at Hartwall Arena in Helsinki, Finland, later in the fall. [21]
The 2021 Winter Classic planned for January 1, 2021, was to feature the Minnesota Wild hosting the St. Louis Blues at Target Field. The Florida Panthers and their BB&T Center were then scheduled to host the All-Star Game on January 30, and the Stadium Series game was to be hosted by the Carolina Hurricanes at CarterβFinley Stadium on February 20, against an opponent yet to be announced. [22]
On May 8, 2020, the league postponed the five international games, aiming to reschedule them for the 2021β22 season. [23] The league then announced on October 22, 2020, that the Winter Classic and the All-Star Game were also being postponed to the next year due to "ongoing uncertainty" since fan participation are considered "integral to the[ir] success. [24] [25] The decision to further postpone the Stadium Series game was made on December 23, also because fans would not be able to attend that event. [26]
This section may contain an excessive amount of intricate detail that may interest only a particular audience.(March 2024) |
To offset reduced revenue due to games being played with limited to no spectators, the NHL experimented with allowing additional advertising placements that aimed to retain between $80β90 million that would have otherwise been lost, including allowing teams to sell a sponsor placement on their players' helmets (helmet entitlement partner). [27] [28] [29] Sponsor logos include those along the bottom of the glass just above the boards, sponsor logos on front-row tarps covering unused seats, sponsor logos on the glass behind the benches (in addition to the boards below them), and virtual ads projected just inside the blue lines. [30]
The following teams announced their helmet sponsors for the season:
On January 5, 2021, the NHL announced that the Central, East, North, and West divisions this season would be sponsored by Discover Card, MassMutual, Scotiabank, and Honda respectively. [62]
On February 24, 2021, the NHL announced a partnership with DreamHack to serve as its new partner for esports events. [63]
The collective bargaining agreement (CBA), which had been in effect since the end of the 2012β13 NHL lockout, was set to enter its penultimate season in 2020β21. [64]
On July 10, 2020, the league reached an agreement to renew the CBA through the 2025β26 NHL season, including an increase of the minimum player salary to $750,000 from $700,000, increasing the maximum value of entry-level contracts, deferring 10% of player salaries for the 2020β21 season to cover costs associated with the pandemic (they were to be paid back over three seasons beginning 2022β23), escrow of player salaries capped at 20% for this season and decreasing incrementally to 14-18%, 10%, and 6% over the three seasons that follow (with the 6% applying thereafter), doubling of the playoff bonus pool to $32 million, and an agreement for the NHL to negotiate a return to the 2022 and 2026 Winter Olympics (after being absent from the 2018 Winter Olympics). [65] [66]
The CBA was automatically renewed through 2026β27 if player escrow debt falls between $125 million and $250 million after the 2024β25 season. [66]
As part of the new CBA, the salary cap remained at $81.5 million for the 2020β21 season. Future increases would occur incrementally until the league recovers from the financial impact of the pandemic. [65] [66]
The league announced on December 22, 2020, that the offside rules have been modified so that players only have to break the plane of the blue line to be ruled onside instead of having to actually touch it with their skate. [67]
For the first time, the NHL deployed the league's player and puck tracking system in all 31 NHL arenas. The system allowed on-air features such as speed displays, puck tracking graphics, and marker graphics hovering above players (though not to the extremes on-air of the mid-90s FoxTrax experiment). [68] [69] The league had planned to deploy this technology to all 31 arenas by September 2019, but a change to its primary technology partner delayed implementation until the 2020 playoffs. [70]
After the first week of the season, the league announced that it was temporarily suspending the puck tracking system due to performance issues, stating that "the first supply of 2020β21 pucks did not receive the same precise finishing treatments during the off-season manufacturing process as were used during the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs". The player tracking remained unaffected. [71]
On April 30, 2021, the Seattle Kraken paid the final installment of their expansion fee, formally admitting them into the NHL and allowing them to begin acquiring players. [72] The team signed their first player, Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) free agent Luke Henman, on May 12, 2021. [73]
Offβseason | |||
---|---|---|---|
Team | 2019β20 coach | 2020β21 coach | Story / Accomplishments |
Calgary Flames |
Bill Peters Geoff Ward* |
Geoff Ward | Peters resigned on November 29, 2019, after accusations of racism were made by former Rockford IceHogs player Akim Aliu when Peters was coaching the AHL club a decade earlier. Peters spent 11⁄3 seasons with the Flames, registering a record of 12β12β4 to start the season after reaching the first round of the playoffs as the top seed in the Western Conference the previous season. Ward, who served as an assistant coach, was named interim head coach. [74] [75] On September 14, Ward was named head coach. [76] |
Dallas Stars |
Jim Montgomery Rick Bowness* |
Rick Bowness | Montgomery was dismissed on December 10, 2019, due to "unprofessional conduct inconsistent with the core values and beliefs" of the Stars and the league. He spent 11⁄3 seasons with the Stars, registering a record of 17β11β3 to start the season after reaching the second round of the playoffs the previous season. Bowness, who served as an assistant coach, was named interim head coach. [77] [78] On October 29, Bowness was named head coach. [79] |
Minnesota Wild |
Bruce Boudreau Dean Evason* |
Dean Evason | Boudreau was fired on February 14, 2020, after 32⁄3 seasons with the team, which had registered a record of 27β23β7 to start the season. The Wild had reached the playoffs in the first two seasons of his tenure in Minnesota but had not qualified for the playoffs since the 2017β18 season. Evason, who had served as an assistant coach with the Wild since the start of the 2018β19 season, was immediately named interim head coach. [80] On July 13, Evason was named head coach. [81] |
New Jersey Devils |
John Hynes Alain Nasreddine* |
Lindy Ruff | Hynes was fired on December 3, 2019, after 41⁄3 seasons with the team, which had registered a 9β13β4 record to start the season. The Devils reached the playoffs once in Hynes' tenure, and did not advance past the first round in 2018. Nasreddine, who served as an assistant coach, was named interim head coach. [82] Nasreddine finished out the season 19β16β8, outside of the playoffs. On July 9, the Devils named Ruff as head coach who was previously an assistant coach for the New York Rangers. [83] |
San Jose Sharks |
Peter DeBoer Bob Boughner* |
Bob Boughner | DeBoer was fired on December 11, 2019, after 41⁄3 seasons with the team, which had registered a record of 15β16β2 to start the season. The Sharks qualified for the playoffs in all of the four previous seasons under DeBoer, and advanced to the 2016 Stanley Cup Finals. Boughner, who served as an assistant coach, was named interim head coach. [84] On September 22, Boughner was named head coach. [85] |
Washington Capitals | Todd Reirden | Peter Laviolette | Reirden was fired on August 24, 2020, after the team failed to get past the first round for the second consecutive year. The team won the division title each year under Reirden, accumulating an 89β46β16 record over two seasons. [86] On September 15, the Capitals named Laviolette as head coach, who had been fired by Nashville the previous season. [87] [88] |
Inβseason | |||
Team | Outgoing coach | Incoming coach | Story / Accomplishments |
Buffalo Sabres | Ralph Krueger | Don Granato* | Krueger was fired on March 17, 2021, after parts of two seasons with Buffalo, with the team suffering a 6β18β4 start and a 12-game losing streak. Krueger totaled a 36β49β12 record during his short tenure, and failed to lead the team to the playoffs in his lone complete season. Assistant coach Granato was named interim head coach. [89] |
Calgary Flames | Geoff Ward | Darryl Sutter | Ward was fired on March 4, 2021, after parts of two seasons with Calgary, with the team starting the season 11β11β2. Ward amassed a 35β26β5 record during his brief tenure, and led the team to the first round of the playoffs in 2020. Sutter, who had previously coached Calgary from 2002 to 2006, and most recently was head coach of the Los Angeles Kings from 2011 to 2017, was named as his replacement shortly afterwards. [90] [91] |
Montreal Canadiens | Claude Julien | Dominique Ducharme* | Julien was fired on February 24, 2021, after parts of five seasons during his second stint as head coach of the Canadiens, which had registered a 9β5β4 record to start the season. Julien compiled a 129β123β35 record during his second stint and the team reached the playoffs twice during his tenure, never advancing past the first round. Assistant coach Ducharme was named interim head coach. [92] |
(*) Indicates interim.
Offβseason | |||
---|---|---|---|
Team | 2019β20 GM | 2020β21 GM | Story / Accomplishments |
Arizona Coyotes |
John Chayka Steve Sullivan* |
Bill Armstrong | Chayka (after four years with the team) quit unexpectedly as the team headed into the 2020 Qualifying Round. Sullivan was named interim general manager. [93] Bill Armstrong was named general manager on September 16. Armstrong had previously served as assistant general manager of the St. Louis Blues. [94] |
Buffalo Sabres | Jason Botterill | Kevyn Adams | Botterill was fired on June 16, 2020, after three years as the Sabres' general manager. The team failed to make the playoffs during each season. Adams, who was serving as the senior vice president of business administration was named the general manager on the same day. [95] |
Florida Panthers | Dale Tallon | Bill Zito | Tallon and the Panthers mutually agreed to part ways on August 10, 2020. [96] Zito, formerly general manager of the Cleveland Monsters, the AHL affiliate of the Columbus Blue Jackets, was named general manager on September 2. [97] |
New Jersey Devils |
Ray Shero Tom Fitzgerald* |
Tom Fitzgerald | Shero was fired on January 12, 2020, after five years as the Devils' general manager. The team made the playoffs once during his tenure. Fitzgerald was named interim general manager. [98] On July 9, 2020, Fitzgerald was named general manager. [99] |
Inβseason | |||
Team | Outgoing general manager | Incoming general manager | Story / Accomplishments |
New York Rangers | Jeff Gorton | Chris Drury | Gorton was fired on May 5, 2021, shortly after the team became eliminated from the playoffs. Gorton joined the team in 2007 as a professional scout, becoming the general manager on July 1, 2015. Under his tenure, the Rangers made the playoffs three times. Drury was promoted to president and GM after previously serving as the associate GM. [100] |
Pittsburgh Penguins |
Jim Rutherford Patrik Allvin* |
Ron Hextall | Rutherford resigned on January 27, 2021, citing personal reasons. Rutherford joined the Penguins in 2014 as general manager and led the team to two Stanley Cup victories, making the playoffs in all six seasons. [101] Patrik Allvin was named interim general manager. On February 9, 2021, Ron Hextall was announced as the general manager. He was previously GM of the Philadelphia Flyers from 2014 to 2018. [102] |
(*) Indicates interim.
All American teams hosted a limited amount of in-person spectators during the regular season; only three admitted them at the start of the season. [108] While several Canadian teams submitted proposals (including Calgary, Edmonton, and Ottawa) to allow for in-person spectators, they were all rejected by local health authorities. All North Division games were played behind closed doors for the entirety of the regular season. [109] [110] [111] [112] During the Stanley Cup playoffs, a number of U.S. teams further increased their capacity, and three of the Canadian playoff teams admitted spectators for the first time, although only one team has offered tickets to the general public.
Team | Home games with spectators | Limitations | Source |
---|---|---|---|
Anaheim | Some | April 16: 10% capacity | [113] |
Arizona | All | Original: 25% capacity April 17: 50% capacity |
[108] [114] |
Boston | Some | March 22: 12% capacity May 10: 25% capacity May 29: Full capacity |
[115] [116] [117] |
Buffalo | Some | April 3: 10% capacity, with negative COVID PCR test no older than 72 hours or proof of full vaccination required (delayed from March 20, as the originally-scheduled game was postponed due to players from the opposing team being under league COVID protocol) | [118] [119] [120] |
Calgary | None | All games are played behind closed doors. | [112] [111] |
Carolina | Some | March 4: 15% capacity May 17: 12,000 spectators |
[121] [122] |
Chicago | Some | May 9: 25% capacity; last American team to begin allowing spectators. | [123] [124] |
Colorado | Some | April 2: 22% capacity May 12: 42.3% capacity |
[125] [126] |
Columbus | Some | March 2: 10% capacity March 9: 25% capacity |
[127] [128] [129] |
Dallas | All | Original: 25% capacity | [108] |
Detroit | Some | March 9: 750 spectators | [130] |
Edmonton | None | All games played behind closed doors. | [112] [111] |
Florida | All | Original: 30% capacity May 16: 50% capacity |
[108] [131] |
Los Angeles | Some | April 20: 10% capacity | [113] |
Minnesota | Some | April 5: 3,000 spectators | [132] |
Montreal | Some (playoffs only) | May 29: 2,500 spectators; first Canadian team to begin allowing spectators. June 18: 3,500 spectators |
[109] [133] [134] |
Nashville | Some | January 26: 15% capacity April 19: 33% capacity |
[135] [136] |
New Jersey | Some | March 1: 10% capacity April 2: 20% capacity |
[137] [138] |
NY Islanders | Some | March 18: 10% capacity, with negative COVID PCR test no older than 72 hours or proof of full vaccination required May 19: 25% capacity June 3: 12,000 spectators |
[118] [139] [140] [141] |
NY Rangers | Some | February 26: 10% capacity, with negative COVID PCR test no older than 72 hours or proof of full vaccination required | [118] [142] |
Ottawa | None | All games are played behind closed doors. | [110] |
Philadelphia | Some | March 7: 15% capacity | [143] |
Pittsburgh | Some | March 1: 15% capacity April 15: 25% capacity May 18: 50% capacity |
[144] [145] [146] [147] |
San Jose | Some | April 26: 1,000 spectators, negative COVID-19 test or proof of full vaccination was required to enter, initially began with 520 spectators before scaling to the legal maximum | [148] [149] |
St. Louis | Some | February 2: 1,400 spectators May 21: 50% capacity |
[150] [151] |
Tampa Bay | Some | March 13: 3,800 spectators May 5: 4,200 spectators May 20: 7,000 spectators |
[152] [153] |
Toronto | Invited guests only (playoffs only) | All games are played behind closed doors. May 31 playoff game was played with 550 invited healthcare workers; members of the general public were not admitted. | [109] [154] [155] |
Vancouver | None | All games are played behind closed doors. | [109] |
Vegas | Some | March 1: 15% capacity May 16: 50% capacity June 1: Full capacity |
[156] [157] [158] [159] |
Washington | Some | April 27: 10% capacity May 14: 25% capacity |
[160] [161] [162] [163] |
Winnipeg | Invited guests only (playoffs only) | All games are played behind closed doors. Up to 500 invited healthcare workers and the immediate families of team personnel are allowed beginning June 2. | [109] |
Due to Santa Clara County banning all contact sports in response to a local rise of COVID-19 cases, the San Jose Sharks began the season on an extended road trip. [164] Their first two home games on February 1 and 3 against the Vegas Golden Knights was to have been held at Gila River Arena, the home of division rival Arizona Coyotes, [165] but ended up being postponed due to a COVID outbreak among the Golden Knights . [166] On January 25, Santa Clara County health officials announced that they were lifting the ban, [167] but the Sharks stated that they still needed to work out several health and safety issues and therefore did not return to SAP Center until February 13. [168]
The Tampa Bay Lightning initially announced that it would cap Amalie Arena at 20 percent capacity. However, the team's ownership later announced that no spectators were going to be allowed at the arena for Lightning games through at least February 2, 2021, due to concerns surrounding local case numbers. [169] [170] The team later announced on March 4 that a maximum of 3,800 fans would be allowed at home games beginning March 13. [153] On May 20, the arena was allowed to expand to 7,000 spectators. [152]
On February 10, 2021, Governor of New York Andrew Cuomo announced that the state would allow large sports venues to host spectators at 10% of their capacity beginning February 23, 2021, affecting the Buffalo Sabres, New York Islanders, and New York Rangers. All spectators must present proof of a negative COVID-19 PCR test within 72 hours of the event, and may also be required to submit to a rapid test if their PCR test was within more than 48 hours of the event. [171] [172] By the end of March, Madison Square Garden removed the requirement for testing if the spectator is fully vaccinated (no fewer than 14 days since the spectator received the second dose of a two-dose vaccine). [173]
On March 1, 2021, Governor of Pennsylvania Tom Wolf announced that large indoor sports venues could now host spectators at 15% of their capacity, affecting the Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins. While the Penguins began hosting spectators the next day, [145] the Flyers were required to wait for the city of Philadelphia to revise its own stricter health orders to match state law first; however, the city quickly followed the state's guidance. [143] With their playoff run, the Penguins were able to increase to 50% capacity on May 18. [147]
Monumental Sports & Entertainment, parent company of the Washington Capitals, applied for a waiver for 10% capacity in Capital One Arena in late March. The city government initially did not grant the waiver, leaving it as pending; it was subsequently granted on April 9. [160] [161] The Capitals subsequently announced that they would admit spectators beginning with a home game on April 27. [162] The city later allowed an expansion to 25%, and the team would have been allowed to return to full capacity on June 11 if the Capitals advanced further into the playoffs. [163]
The Government of California announced on April 2 that indoor venues could host spectators at limited capacities with proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test, affecting the Anaheim Ducks, Los Angeles Kings, and San Jose Sharks. [174] The Ducks and Kings began admitting spectators at 10% capacity on April 16 and April 20, while the Sharks began admitting spectators on April 26, scaling up from 520 to the cap of 1,000 over time. [113] [148] [149]
On April 29, 2021, the city of Chicago announced that it would allow United Center to operate at a quarter of its capacity beginning May 9, making the Blackhawks the final U.S.-based NHL team to reopen its arena to spectators. [123]
On May 18, 2021, the Canadiens announced that under changes to Quebec public health orders and curfews, it would be able to admit 2,500 spectators to Bell Centre no earlier than May 28. The Canadiens' Game 5 victory in their first-round series against Toronto on May 27 took the series back home to Montreal on May 29, making them the first Canadian NHL team to play a game with in-person spectators this season. [109] [133] On May 31, Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced that the provincial government and Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment would invite 550 fully-vaccinated health care workers to attend Game 7 at Scotiabank Arena, marking the Maple Leafs' first, and ultimately, only, [155] home game with any spectators this season. [154]
In June, the Manitoba government gave clearance to allow up to 500 fully-vaccinated health care workers, as well as the immediate family members of team staff, to attend Winnipeg Jets home games beginning with their second-round (North Division finals) series against Montreal. [175]
The regular season began on January 13, 2021. Teams played games within their division only. The teams in the three U.S. divisions played each of their seven division opponents eight times. [12]
On January 11, 2021, the NHL announced two outdoor games would be played on February 20 and 21 at the Edgewood Tahoe Resort in Lake Tahoe; the Flyers would play the Bruins and the Avalanche would play the Golden Knights. [176] [177]
The Saturday game between Colorado and Vegas was initially beset by ice quality issues; there was a lack of cloud cover, and as a result the playing surface was partially melted by direct sunlight. The game suffered a postponement of approximately eight hours following the end of the first period, with Colorado leading 1β0, in order to wait for sunset and repair the ice; play resumed at 9:00 PM local time (midnight ET), with Colorado ultimately winning 3β2. In an attempt to avoid further issues, the Sunday game between Boston and Philadelphia was rescheduled for 4:30 PM (7:30 ET), five and a half hours after the originally planned start time. [178]
Pos | Team | GP | W | L | OTL | RW | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | y – Carolina Hurricanes | 56 | 36 | 12 | 8 | 27 | 179 | 136 | +43 | 80 |
2 | x – Florida Panthers | 56 | 37 | 14 | 5 | 26 | 189 | 153 | +36 | 79 |
3 | x – Tampa Bay Lightning | 56 | 36 | 17 | 3 | 29 | 181 | 147 | +34 | 75 |
4 | x – Nashville Predators | 56 | 31 | 23 | 2 | 21 | 156 | 154 | +2 | 64 |
5 | e – Dallas Stars | 56 | 23 | 19 | 14 | 17 | 158 | 154 | +4 | 60 |
6 | e – Chicago Blackhawks | 56 | 24 | 25 | 7 | 15 | 161 | 186 | −25 | 55 |
7 | e – Detroit Red Wings | 56 | 19 | 27 | 10 | 17 | 127 | 171 | −44 | 48 |
8 | e – Columbus Blue Jackets | 56 | 18 | 26 | 12 | 12 | 137 | 187 | −50 | 48 |
Pos | Team | GP | W | L | OTL | RW | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | y – Pittsburgh Penguins | 56 | 37 | 16 | 3 | 29 | 196 | 156 | +40 | 77 |
2 | x – Washington Capitals | 56 | 36 | 15 | 5 | 29 | 191 | 163 | +28 | 77 |
3 | x – Boston Bruins | 56 | 33 | 16 | 7 | 25 | 168 | 136 | +32 | 73 |
4 | x – New York Islanders | 56 | 32 | 17 | 7 | 24 | 156 | 128 | +28 | 71 |
5 | e – New York Rangers | 56 | 27 | 23 | 6 | 24 | 177 | 157 | +20 | 60 |
6 | e – Philadelphia Flyers | 56 | 25 | 23 | 8 | 17 | 163 | 201 | −38 | 58 |
7 | e – New Jersey Devils | 56 | 19 | 30 | 7 | 15 | 145 | 194 | −49 | 45 |
8 | e – Buffalo Sabres | 56 | 15 | 34 | 7 | 11 | 138 | 199 | −61 | 37 |
Pos | Team | GP | W | L | OTL | RW | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | y – Toronto Maple Leafs | 56 | 35 | 14 | 7 | 29 | 187 | 148 | +39 | 77 |
2 | x – Edmonton Oilers | 56 | 35 | 19 | 2 | 31 | 183 | 154 | +29 | 72 |
3 | x – Winnipeg Jets | 56 | 30 | 23 | 3 | 24 | 170 | 154 | +16 | 63 |
4 | x – Montreal Canadiens | 56 | 24 | 21 | 11 | 20 | 159 | 168 | −9 | 59 |
5 | e – Calgary Flames | 56 | 26 | 27 | 3 | 22 | 156 | 161 | −5 | 55 |
6 | e – Ottawa Senators | 56 | 23 | 28 | 5 | 18 | 157 | 190 | −33 | 51 |
7 | e – Vancouver Canucks | 56 | 23 | 29 | 4 | 17 | 151 | 188 | −37 | 50 |
Pos | Team | GP | W | L | OTL | RW | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | p – Colorado Avalanche | 56 | 39 | 13 | 4 | 35 | 197 | 133 | +64 | 82 |
2 | x – Vegas Golden Knights | 56 | 40 | 14 | 2 | 30 | 191 | 124 | +67 | 82 |
3 | x – Minnesota Wild | 56 | 35 | 16 | 5 | 27 | 181 | 160 | +21 | 75 |
4 | x – St. Louis Blues | 56 | 27 | 20 | 9 | 19 | 169 | 170 | −1 | 63 |
5 | e – Arizona Coyotes | 56 | 24 | 26 | 6 | 19 | 153 | 176 | −23 | 54 |
6 | e – Los Angeles Kings | 56 | 21 | 28 | 7 | 19 | 143 | 170 | −27 | 49 |
7 | e – San Jose Sharks | 56 | 21 | 28 | 7 | 15 | 151 | 199 | −48 | 49 |
8 | e – Anaheim Ducks | 56 | 17 | 30 | 9 | 11 | 126 | 179 | −53 | 43 |
In each round, teams competed in a best-of-seven series following a 2β2β1β1β1 format (scores in the bracket indicate the number of games won in each best-of-seven series). [10] The team with home ice advantage played at home for games one and two (and games five and seven, if necessary), and the other team was at home for games three and four (and game six, if necessary). The top four teams in each division made the playoffs.
In the first round, the fourth- seeded team in each division played against the division winner from their division. The other series matched the second and third place teams from the divisions. In each round, home ice advantage was awarded to the team that had the better regular season record. Teams advancing to the Stanley Cup semifinals were re-seeded one through four based on regular season record.
First round | Second round | Stanley Cup semifinals | Stanley Cup Finals | ||||||||||||||||
C1 | Carolina | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
C4 | Nashville | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
C1 | Carolina | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
Central Division | |||||||||||||||||||
C3 | Tampa Bay | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
C2 | Florida | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
C3 | Tampa Bay | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
1 | Vegas | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
4 | Montreal | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
E1 | Pittsburgh | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
E4 | NY Islanders | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
E4 | NY Islanders | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
East Division | |||||||||||||||||||
E3 | Boston | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
E2 | Washington | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
E3 | Boston | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
4 | Montreal | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
2 | Tampa Bay | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
N1 | Toronto | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
N4 | Montreal | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
N4 | Montreal | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
North Division | |||||||||||||||||||
N3 | Winnipeg | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
N2 | Edmonton | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
N3 | Winnipeg | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
2 | Tampa Bay | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
3 | NY Islanders | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
W1 | Colorado | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
W4 | St. Louis | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
W1 | Colorado | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
West Division | |||||||||||||||||||
W2 | Vegas | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
W2 | Vegas | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
W3 | Minnesota | 3 |
The following players led the league in regular season points at the completion of games played on May 15, 2021. [216]
Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | +/β | PIM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Connor McDavid | Edmonton Oilers | 56 | 33 | 72 | 105 | +21 | 20 |
Leon Draisaitl | Edmonton Oilers | 56 | 31 | 53 | 84 | +29 | 22 |
Brad Marchand | Boston Bruins | 53 | 29 | 40 | 69 | +26 | 46 |
Mitch Marner | Toronto Maple Leafs | 55 | 20 | 47 | 67 | +21 | 20 |
Auston Matthews | Toronto Maple Leafs | 52 | 41 | 25 | 66 | +21 | 10 |
Mikko Rantanen | Colorado Avalanche | 52 | 30 | 36 | 66 | +30 | 34 |
Patrick Kane | Chicago Blackhawks | 56 | 15 | 51 | 66 | β7 | 14 |
Nathan MacKinnon | Colorado Avalanche | 48 | 20 | 45 | 65 | +22 | 37 |
Mark Scheifele | Winnipeg Jets | 56 | 21 | 42 | 63 | β4 | 12 |
Sidney Crosby | Pittsburgh Penguins | 55 | 24 | 38 | 62 | +8 | 26 |
The following goaltenders led the league in regular season goals against average at the conclusion of games played on May 15, 2021, while playing at least 1,320 minutes. [217]
Player | Team | GP | TOI | W | L | OTL | GA | SO | SV% | GAA |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Alex Nedeljkovic | Carolina Hurricanes | 23 | 1,392:02 | 15 | 5 | 3 | 44 | 3 | .932 | 1.90 |
Philipp Grubauer | Colorado Avalanche | 40 | 2,366:52 | 30 | 9 | 1 | 77 | 7 | .922 | 1.95 |
Marc-Andre Fleury | Vegas Golden Knights | 36 | 2,146:36 | 26 | 10 | 0 | 71 | 6 | .928 | 1.98 |
Semyon Varlamov | New York Islanders | 36 | 2,116:56 | 19 | 11 | 4 | 72 | 7 | .929 | 2.04 |
Chris Driedger | Florida Panthers | 23 | 1,361:36 | 14 | 6 | 3 | 47 | 3 | .927 | 2.07 |
Andrei Vasilevskiy | Tampa Bay Lightning | 42 | 2,523:37 | 31 | 10 | 1 | 93 | 5 | .925 | 2.21 |
Juuse Saros | Nashville Predators | 36 | 2,051:48 | 21 | 11 | 1 | 78 | 3 | .927 | 2.28 |
Tuukka Rask | Boston Bruins | 24 | 1,396:27 | 15 | 5 | 2 | 53 | 2 | .913 | 2.28 |
Mike Smith | Edmonton Oilers | 32 | 1,846:33 | 21 | 6 | 2 | 71 | 3 | .923 | 2.31 |
Jake Oettinger | Dallas Stars | 29 | 1,604:08 | 11 | 8 | 7 | 63 | 1 | .911 | 2.36 |
Voting concluded immediately after the end of the regular season. Statistics-based awards such as the Art Ross Trophy, Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy, William M. Jennings Trophy and the Presidents' Trophy are announced at the end of the regular season. [218] The Stanley Cup and the Conn Smythe Trophy is presented at the end of the Stanley Cup Finals. The Lester Patrick Trophy is announced following the conclusion of the playoffs.
The league had initially announced that both the Prince of Wales Trophy and the Clarence S. Campbell Bowl, normally presented at the end of the Eastern and Western Conference Finals respectively, would not be awarded due to the suspension of conferences this season. [219] After the opponents in the Stanley Cup Semifinals were set, it was instead decided that the New York Islanders and Tampa Bay Lightning, both of whom normally play in the Eastern Conference, would play for the Wales Trophy, thus leaving the Montreal Canadiens and Vegas Golden Knights to play for the Campbell Bowl. [220]
For the second consecutive season, no NHL Awards ceremony took place due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Adams, Byng, Clancy, Gregory, Masterton, Messier and Selke trophies were awarded during the Stanley Cup semifinals, while the Calder, Hart, Lindsay, Norris and Vezina trophies were announced during the Stanley Cup Finals.
Award | Recipient(s) | Runner(s)-up/Finalists |
---|---|---|
Stanley Cup | Tampa Bay Lightning | Montreal Canadiens |
Presidents' Trophy (Best regular-season record) |
Colorado Avalanche | Vegas Golden Knights |
Prince of Wales Trophy (Stanley Cup Semifinals winner) |
Tampa Bay Lightning | New York Islanders |
Clarence S. Campbell Bowl (Stanley Cup Semifinals winner) |
Montreal Canadiens | Vegas Golden Knights |
Art Ross Trophy (Player with most points) |
Connor McDavid (Edmonton Oilers) | Leon Draisaitl (Edmonton Oilers) |
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy (Perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication) |
Oskar Lindblom (Philadelphia Flyers) |
Matt Dumba (Minnesota Wild) Patrick Marleau (San Jose Sharks) |
Calder Memorial Trophy (Best first-year player) |
Kirill Kaprizov (Minnesota Wild) |
Alex Nedeljkovic (Carolina Hurricanes) Jason Robertson (Dallas Stars) |
Conn Smythe Trophy (Most valuable player, playoffs) |
Andrei Vasilevskiy (Tampa Bay Lightning) | Nikita Kucherov (Tampa Bay Lightning) |
Frank J. Selke Trophy (Defensive forward) |
Aleksander Barkov (Florida Panthers) |
Patrice Bergeron (Boston Bruins) Mark Stone (Vegas Golden Knights) |
Hart Memorial Trophy (Most valuable player, regular season) |
Connor McDavid (Edmonton Oilers) |
Nathan MacKinnon (Colorado Avalanche) Auston Matthews (Toronto Maple Leafs) |
Jack Adams Award (Best coach) |
Rod Brind'Amour (Carolina Hurricanes) |
Dean Evason (Minnesota Wild) Joel Quenneville (Florida Panthers) |
James Norris Memorial Trophy (Best defenceman) |
Adam Fox (New York Rangers) |
Victor Hedman (Tampa Bay Lightning) Cale Makar (Colorado Avalanche) |
King Clancy Memorial Trophy (Leadership and humanitarian contribution) |
Pekka Rinne (Nashville Predators) |
Kurtis Gabriel (San Jose Sharks) P. K. Subban (New Jersey Devils) |
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy (Sportsmanship and excellence) |
Jaccob Slavin (Carolina Hurricanes) |
Auston Matthews (Toronto Maple Leafs) Jared Spurgeon (Minnesota Wild) |
Ted Lindsay Award (Outstanding player) |
Connor McDavid (Edmonton Oilers) |
Sidney Crosby (Pittsburgh Penguins) Auston Matthews (Toronto Maple Leafs) |
Mark Messier Leadership Award (Leadership and community activities) |
Patrice Bergeron (Boston Bruins) | N/A |
Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy (Top goal-scorer) |
Auston Matthews (Toronto Maple Leafs) | Connor McDavid (Edmonton Oilers) |
Jim Gregory General Manager of the Year Award (Top general manager) |
Lou Lamoriello (New York Islanders) |
Marc Bergevin (Montreal Canadiens) Bill Zito (Florida Panthers) |
Vezina Trophy (Best goaltender) |
Marc-Andre Fleury (Vegas Golden Knights) |
Philipp Grubauer (Colorado Avalanche) Andrei Vasilevskiy (Tampa Bay Lightning) |
William M. Jennings Trophy (Goaltender(s) of team with fewest goals against) |
Marc-Andre Fleury and
Robin Lehner (Vegas Golden Knights) |
Semyon Varlamov and
Ilya Sorokin (New York Islanders) |
Lester Patrick Trophy (Service to ice hockey in U.S.) |
Jack Barzee | N/A |
On November 16, 2020, the NHL introduced Adidas "Reverse Retro" jerseys for all 31 teams, which feature throwback uniforms with a modern twist. [230]
The following is a list of notable players who played their first NHL game during the 2020β21 season, listed with their first team.
Player | Team | Notability |
---|---|---|
Kirill Kaprizov | Minnesota Wild | Calder Memorial Trophy winner |
Alexis Lafreniere | New York Rangers | First overall pick in the 2020 Draft |
Ilya Sorokin | New York Islanders | One-time NHL All-Star team |
Jeremy Swayman | Boston Bruins | William M. Jennings Trophy winner |
The following is a list of players of note who played their last NHL game in 2020β21, listed with their team:
This was the seventh season of the league's 12-year Canadian national broadcast rights deal with Sportsnet. This included Sportnet's sub-licensing agreements to air Hockey Night in Canada games on CBC Television and French-language broadcasts on TVA Sports. [265] As a result of the league's temporary realignment, HNIC and Wednesday Night Hockey only aired all-Canadian regular season games, and the Sunday-night Hometown Hockey broadcasts were temporarily suspended. [266]
This was the tenth and final season of NBC Sports' U.S. national media rights to the NHL, and its 16th consecutive season overall as rightsholder. [269] [270] On January 22, 2021, it was reported that NBCUniversal would shut down NBCSNβthe main U.S. cable broadcaster of the NHLβby the end of the year, with its programming to be subsumed by USA Network and its streaming service Peacock. [271] [272]
NBC dropped out of negotiations for the new NHL media contracts, with Sports Business Journal reporting that the network had offered less than US$100 million per-season (roughly half the value of its existing contract) for a package centred upon Peacock, and "never was aggressive in pursuing a renewal". [270] The NHL divided its next round of media rights between ESPN/ABC [273] [274] and Turner Sports, both under seven-year contracts that take effect in the 2021β22 season. [275] [276]
NHL Network began to air its first original game telecasts (as opposed to simulcasts from regional networks), NHL Network Showcase, on February 6, 2021. The inaugural season featured 16 weekend afternoon games through the remainder of the season. Modeled after the similarly named broadcasts on sister channel MLB Network, the games are called by Stephen Nelson and rotating analysts. They are drawn from the "European Game of the Week" package, which had been introduced in the 2018β19 season to provide opportunities for primetime NHL broadcasts by European rightsholders; with the introduction of original broadcasts for the window, the NHL Network Showcase feed is being repackaged for distribution as a world feed in Europe. [277] [278] [279]
Harnarayan Singh, after spending the previous decade calling games in the Punjabi language for Hockey Night in Canada, made his English play-by-play debut this season working HNIC games in Alberta. [288] [289]
After the retirement of Mike Emrick, the lead play-by-play position for the NHL on NBC was rotated between Kenny Albert and John Forslund during the regular season. Albert eventually assumed the lead role during the 2021 Stanley Cup Finals. [290]
In January 2021, it was announced that Sportsnet commentator Dave Randorf would become the new play-by-play announcer for the Tampa Bay Lightning on Bally Sports Sun, succeeding Rick Peckham. [291]
Pittsburgh Penguins radio play-by-play announcer Mike Lange retired following the season. Lange, the voice of the Penguins for 46 seasons, only called four home games towards the end of the season, including two playoff games, with designated successor Josh Getzoff calling a majority of the games. [292]
For most regular season games, the home team's regional rightsholder served as the host broadcaster, providing a neutral "world feed" to the away team's local rightsholder and other media partners, which was then overlaid with remote commentary. NBC also used the world feed during its non-exclusive telecasts, with its commentators working remotely from NBC Sports' studios in Stamford, Connecticut, but had its own crews on-site for its exclusive broadcasts (including Wednesday Night Hockey and games on the NBC broadcast network). [68] A similar arrangement was used in Canada by Sportsnet, TSN, TVA Sports, and RDS, based primarily on their respective national and regional rights, with Sportsnet producing Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver, and half of Toronto's games, TSN producing Ottawa, Winnipeg, and half of Toronto's games, and RDS and TVA Sports splitting Montreal. TSN and Sportsnet's respective parent companies Bell Media and Rogers Media jointly own Dome Productions, which provides the broadcast facilities for both networks. [69]
For its exclusive Hockey Night in Canada and Wednesday Night Hockey national broadcasts, Sportsnet either used its regular national production crews or its local Calgary, Edmonton, Toronto, or Vancouver production crews. [69] Sportsnet also suspended production of its remote Hometown Hockey broadcasts. [293] To further reduce travel during the regular season, Sportsnet/HNIC's lead play-by-play announcer Jim Hughson opted to only call national Vancouver home games (and would ultimately retire after the conclusion of the season), [294] and Chris Cuthbert (who joined Sportsnet from TSN during the suspension of play) mostly worked games in Eastern Canada. [288]
[T]he league felt it owed the Stars something because they had been penalized β under the old alignment β for years, by being placed in the Pacific Division ... Essentially, the decision came down to asking an organization other than Dallas to do the penance this time around. The mitigating circumstance, for the teams that did land in the West, is that based on the level of competition, there does appear to be an easier path to the playoffs there than in the Central
In addition to a spot in the Stanley Cup Final, the winner of the Golden Knights-Canadiens series will claim the Clarence S. Campbell Bowl, while the Islanders-Lightning will battle for the Prince of Wales Trophy.
The Bruins' new alternate sweater is a gold remix of the team's white home uniform worn at Boston Garden from 1981-95, which included trips to the Stanley Cup Final in 1988 and 1990.
2020β21 NHL season | |
---|---|
League | National Hockey League |
Sport | Ice hockey |
Duration | January 13 β July 7, 2021 |
Number of games | 56 |
Number of teams | 31 |
TV partner(s) |
CBC,
Sportsnet,
TVA Sports (Canada) NBC, NBCSN, USA, CNBC (United States) |
Draft | |
Top draft pick | Alexis Lafreniere |
Picked by | New York Rangers |
Regular season | |
Presidents' Trophy | Colorado Avalanche |
Season MVP | Connor McDavid ( Oilers) |
Top scorer | Connor McDavid (Oilers) |
Playoffs | |
Playoffs MVP | Andrei Vasilevskiy |
Stanley Cup | |
Champions | Tampa Bay Lightning |
Runners-up | Montreal Canadiens |
The 2020β21 NHL season was the 104th season of operation (103rd season of play) of the National Hockey League (NHL). Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the regular season was reduced to 56 games and began on January 13, 2021. Due to COVID-19 cross-border travel restrictions imposed by the Government of Canada, the league temporarily realigned for this season, putting all seven Canadian teams into one division. COVID-19 outbreaks caused the games of most teams to be rescheduled beyond the regular season's original end date of May 8, with the last game being moved to May 19. The playoffs began four days earlier on May 15, under a 16-team format with the top four teams from each division. [1]
The playoffs concluded on July 7, with the Tampa Bay Lightning defeating the Montreal Canadiens in the Stanley Cup Finals in five games, winning their second consecutive and third overall Stanley Cup in franchise history.
The 2020β21 season was originally planned to begin in October 2020 and end with the Stanley Cup being awarded in June 2021, but this had to be changed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting later than normal conclusion of the previous season. [2] In December, the league said that the season would be shorter than the typical 82 games. [3] Attendance at each arena was limited by local health orders. [4] The league also relies on attendance for at least 50 percent of its revenue, and the players were against spending the full season isolated in neutral-site bubbles similar to their situation during the 2020 playoffs. [5] With the NHL expecting to lose billions of dollars, several team owners privately told NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman that they wanted to suspend the season. But Bettman convinced them that they could not afford to sit out the season in the long run, especially with the expansion team Seattle Kraken joining the league in 2021β22, as well as the prospect of signing new U.S. national television deals with multiple networks . [6]
In July 2020, the league and the NHL Players' Association (NHLPA) initially agreed to tentatively schedule the opening of training camp on November 17, 2020, and the start of the regular season on December 1. [7] In October 2020, both the NHL and NHLPA began discussions on the specific details on how to proceed with the season. [5] On October 6, the NHL and the NHLPA agreed to delay the targeted start date of the regular season to January 1, 2021, and to decide at a later date when to open training camp. [8]
In mid-November 2020, deputy commissioner Bill Daly stated that the league was still targeting a January 1 start, but that "we have to build in flexibility for the hiccups that we expect will come along and have to expect will come along with potential COVID-19 positives and contact tracing requirements", citing "difficulties" faced by Major League Baseball and the National Football League over their handling of the pandemic. [9]
On December 20, the league unveiled its plans for a 56-game regular season, and that the teams would temporarily be realigned into four regional divisions. [10] Due to limitations on travel into and out of Canada, [11] the seven Canadian teams were aligned into a single North division. The seven teams in the North Division played each other nine or ten times during the regular season. [12]
To further reduce travel, the regular season schedule was arranged into baseball-style homestands, where multiple consecutive games with the same teams were played at the same location. [13] The only contentious issue with the temporary realignment was which two teams in the Central Time Zone would have to join the West Division. They would have more travel time playing games in the Pacific Time Zone, but they would be against the Anaheim Ducks, Los Angeles Kings, and San Jose Sharks, three of the seven teams that did not qualify for the expanded 24-team 2020 playoffs. [14] It was eventually decided to leave the Dallas Stars in the Central to make up for the team being in the Pacific Division from 1998 to 2013, and the Minnesota Wild and the St. Louis Blues moved to the West. [15]
It was the latest a season had started, and with the fewest games per team, since the 2012β13 season. That season, each team played only 48 games due to the aftermath of the 2012β13 NHL lockout.
Only for this season, the NHL allowed each team to retain an extra traveling group of four to six players, including one goaltender, known as the taxi squad. The taxi squad was designed to enable swift call-ups to the NHL team in the event of positive COVID-19 cases on each team. Waiver-eligible members of the taxi squad are still subject to waiver rules. Daly stated that the taxi squad was devised only to circumvent the difficulties presented by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and is not likely to be used again in future seasons. [16]
The 2020 NHL Entry Draft was originally scheduled for June 26β27, 2020, at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, [17] but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. [18] It took place on October 6 and 7 in a remote format, hosted from the NHL Network studios in Secaucus, New Jersey. [19] [7] The New York Rangers were awarded the first pick in the 2020 Draft after winning the second phase of the draft lottery on August 10 and selected Alexis Lafreniere. [20]
The league had originally scheduled this season's international, All-Star, and outdoor games prior to the pandemic.
Two preseason games were planned to be played in Europe: the Boston Bruins against Adler Mannheim at SAP Arena in Mannheim, Germany, and the Nashville Predators against SC Bern at PostFinance Arena in Bern, Switzerland. In addition, three regular season games, were also planned: the Boston Bruins and Nashville Predators at O2 Arena in Prague, Czech Republic; and two games between the Colorado Avalanche and Columbus Blue Jackets at Hartwall Arena in Helsinki, Finland, later in the fall. [21]
The 2021 Winter Classic planned for January 1, 2021, was to feature the Minnesota Wild hosting the St. Louis Blues at Target Field. The Florida Panthers and their BB&T Center were then scheduled to host the All-Star Game on January 30, and the Stadium Series game was to be hosted by the Carolina Hurricanes at CarterβFinley Stadium on February 20, against an opponent yet to be announced. [22]
On May 8, 2020, the league postponed the five international games, aiming to reschedule them for the 2021β22 season. [23] The league then announced on October 22, 2020, that the Winter Classic and the All-Star Game were also being postponed to the next year due to "ongoing uncertainty" since fan participation are considered "integral to the[ir] success. [24] [25] The decision to further postpone the Stadium Series game was made on December 23, also because fans would not be able to attend that event. [26]
This section may contain an excessive amount of intricate detail that may interest only a particular audience.(March 2024) |
To offset reduced revenue due to games being played with limited to no spectators, the NHL experimented with allowing additional advertising placements that aimed to retain between $80β90 million that would have otherwise been lost, including allowing teams to sell a sponsor placement on their players' helmets (helmet entitlement partner). [27] [28] [29] Sponsor logos include those along the bottom of the glass just above the boards, sponsor logos on front-row tarps covering unused seats, sponsor logos on the glass behind the benches (in addition to the boards below them), and virtual ads projected just inside the blue lines. [30]
The following teams announced their helmet sponsors for the season:
On January 5, 2021, the NHL announced that the Central, East, North, and West divisions this season would be sponsored by Discover Card, MassMutual, Scotiabank, and Honda respectively. [62]
On February 24, 2021, the NHL announced a partnership with DreamHack to serve as its new partner for esports events. [63]
The collective bargaining agreement (CBA), which had been in effect since the end of the 2012β13 NHL lockout, was set to enter its penultimate season in 2020β21. [64]
On July 10, 2020, the league reached an agreement to renew the CBA through the 2025β26 NHL season, including an increase of the minimum player salary to $750,000 from $700,000, increasing the maximum value of entry-level contracts, deferring 10% of player salaries for the 2020β21 season to cover costs associated with the pandemic (they were to be paid back over three seasons beginning 2022β23), escrow of player salaries capped at 20% for this season and decreasing incrementally to 14-18%, 10%, and 6% over the three seasons that follow (with the 6% applying thereafter), doubling of the playoff bonus pool to $32 million, and an agreement for the NHL to negotiate a return to the 2022 and 2026 Winter Olympics (after being absent from the 2018 Winter Olympics). [65] [66]
The CBA was automatically renewed through 2026β27 if player escrow debt falls between $125 million and $250 million after the 2024β25 season. [66]
As part of the new CBA, the salary cap remained at $81.5 million for the 2020β21 season. Future increases would occur incrementally until the league recovers from the financial impact of the pandemic. [65] [66]
The league announced on December 22, 2020, that the offside rules have been modified so that players only have to break the plane of the blue line to be ruled onside instead of having to actually touch it with their skate. [67]
For the first time, the NHL deployed the league's player and puck tracking system in all 31 NHL arenas. The system allowed on-air features such as speed displays, puck tracking graphics, and marker graphics hovering above players (though not to the extremes on-air of the mid-90s FoxTrax experiment). [68] [69] The league had planned to deploy this technology to all 31 arenas by September 2019, but a change to its primary technology partner delayed implementation until the 2020 playoffs. [70]
After the first week of the season, the league announced that it was temporarily suspending the puck tracking system due to performance issues, stating that "the first supply of 2020β21 pucks did not receive the same precise finishing treatments during the off-season manufacturing process as were used during the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs". The player tracking remained unaffected. [71]
On April 30, 2021, the Seattle Kraken paid the final installment of their expansion fee, formally admitting them into the NHL and allowing them to begin acquiring players. [72] The team signed their first player, Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) free agent Luke Henman, on May 12, 2021. [73]
Offβseason | |||
---|---|---|---|
Team | 2019β20 coach | 2020β21 coach | Story / Accomplishments |
Calgary Flames |
Bill Peters Geoff Ward* |
Geoff Ward | Peters resigned on November 29, 2019, after accusations of racism were made by former Rockford IceHogs player Akim Aliu when Peters was coaching the AHL club a decade earlier. Peters spent 11⁄3 seasons with the Flames, registering a record of 12β12β4 to start the season after reaching the first round of the playoffs as the top seed in the Western Conference the previous season. Ward, who served as an assistant coach, was named interim head coach. [74] [75] On September 14, Ward was named head coach. [76] |
Dallas Stars |
Jim Montgomery Rick Bowness* |
Rick Bowness | Montgomery was dismissed on December 10, 2019, due to "unprofessional conduct inconsistent with the core values and beliefs" of the Stars and the league. He spent 11⁄3 seasons with the Stars, registering a record of 17β11β3 to start the season after reaching the second round of the playoffs the previous season. Bowness, who served as an assistant coach, was named interim head coach. [77] [78] On October 29, Bowness was named head coach. [79] |
Minnesota Wild |
Bruce Boudreau Dean Evason* |
Dean Evason | Boudreau was fired on February 14, 2020, after 32⁄3 seasons with the team, which had registered a record of 27β23β7 to start the season. The Wild had reached the playoffs in the first two seasons of his tenure in Minnesota but had not qualified for the playoffs since the 2017β18 season. Evason, who had served as an assistant coach with the Wild since the start of the 2018β19 season, was immediately named interim head coach. [80] On July 13, Evason was named head coach. [81] |
New Jersey Devils |
John Hynes Alain Nasreddine* |
Lindy Ruff | Hynes was fired on December 3, 2019, after 41⁄3 seasons with the team, which had registered a 9β13β4 record to start the season. The Devils reached the playoffs once in Hynes' tenure, and did not advance past the first round in 2018. Nasreddine, who served as an assistant coach, was named interim head coach. [82] Nasreddine finished out the season 19β16β8, outside of the playoffs. On July 9, the Devils named Ruff as head coach who was previously an assistant coach for the New York Rangers. [83] |
San Jose Sharks |
Peter DeBoer Bob Boughner* |
Bob Boughner | DeBoer was fired on December 11, 2019, after 41⁄3 seasons with the team, which had registered a record of 15β16β2 to start the season. The Sharks qualified for the playoffs in all of the four previous seasons under DeBoer, and advanced to the 2016 Stanley Cup Finals. Boughner, who served as an assistant coach, was named interim head coach. [84] On September 22, Boughner was named head coach. [85] |
Washington Capitals | Todd Reirden | Peter Laviolette | Reirden was fired on August 24, 2020, after the team failed to get past the first round for the second consecutive year. The team won the division title each year under Reirden, accumulating an 89β46β16 record over two seasons. [86] On September 15, the Capitals named Laviolette as head coach, who had been fired by Nashville the previous season. [87] [88] |
Inβseason | |||
Team | Outgoing coach | Incoming coach | Story / Accomplishments |
Buffalo Sabres | Ralph Krueger | Don Granato* | Krueger was fired on March 17, 2021, after parts of two seasons with Buffalo, with the team suffering a 6β18β4 start and a 12-game losing streak. Krueger totaled a 36β49β12 record during his short tenure, and failed to lead the team to the playoffs in his lone complete season. Assistant coach Granato was named interim head coach. [89] |
Calgary Flames | Geoff Ward | Darryl Sutter | Ward was fired on March 4, 2021, after parts of two seasons with Calgary, with the team starting the season 11β11β2. Ward amassed a 35β26β5 record during his brief tenure, and led the team to the first round of the playoffs in 2020. Sutter, who had previously coached Calgary from 2002 to 2006, and most recently was head coach of the Los Angeles Kings from 2011 to 2017, was named as his replacement shortly afterwards. [90] [91] |
Montreal Canadiens | Claude Julien | Dominique Ducharme* | Julien was fired on February 24, 2021, after parts of five seasons during his second stint as head coach of the Canadiens, which had registered a 9β5β4 record to start the season. Julien compiled a 129β123β35 record during his second stint and the team reached the playoffs twice during his tenure, never advancing past the first round. Assistant coach Ducharme was named interim head coach. [92] |
(*) Indicates interim.
Offβseason | |||
---|---|---|---|
Team | 2019β20 GM | 2020β21 GM | Story / Accomplishments |
Arizona Coyotes |
John Chayka Steve Sullivan* |
Bill Armstrong | Chayka (after four years with the team) quit unexpectedly as the team headed into the 2020 Qualifying Round. Sullivan was named interim general manager. [93] Bill Armstrong was named general manager on September 16. Armstrong had previously served as assistant general manager of the St. Louis Blues. [94] |
Buffalo Sabres | Jason Botterill | Kevyn Adams | Botterill was fired on June 16, 2020, after three years as the Sabres' general manager. The team failed to make the playoffs during each season. Adams, who was serving as the senior vice president of business administration was named the general manager on the same day. [95] |
Florida Panthers | Dale Tallon | Bill Zito | Tallon and the Panthers mutually agreed to part ways on August 10, 2020. [96] Zito, formerly general manager of the Cleveland Monsters, the AHL affiliate of the Columbus Blue Jackets, was named general manager on September 2. [97] |
New Jersey Devils |
Ray Shero Tom Fitzgerald* |
Tom Fitzgerald | Shero was fired on January 12, 2020, after five years as the Devils' general manager. The team made the playoffs once during his tenure. Fitzgerald was named interim general manager. [98] On July 9, 2020, Fitzgerald was named general manager. [99] |
Inβseason | |||
Team | Outgoing general manager | Incoming general manager | Story / Accomplishments |
New York Rangers | Jeff Gorton | Chris Drury | Gorton was fired on May 5, 2021, shortly after the team became eliminated from the playoffs. Gorton joined the team in 2007 as a professional scout, becoming the general manager on July 1, 2015. Under his tenure, the Rangers made the playoffs three times. Drury was promoted to president and GM after previously serving as the associate GM. [100] |
Pittsburgh Penguins |
Jim Rutherford Patrik Allvin* |
Ron Hextall | Rutherford resigned on January 27, 2021, citing personal reasons. Rutherford joined the Penguins in 2014 as general manager and led the team to two Stanley Cup victories, making the playoffs in all six seasons. [101] Patrik Allvin was named interim general manager. On February 9, 2021, Ron Hextall was announced as the general manager. He was previously GM of the Philadelphia Flyers from 2014 to 2018. [102] |
(*) Indicates interim.
All American teams hosted a limited amount of in-person spectators during the regular season; only three admitted them at the start of the season. [108] While several Canadian teams submitted proposals (including Calgary, Edmonton, and Ottawa) to allow for in-person spectators, they were all rejected by local health authorities. All North Division games were played behind closed doors for the entirety of the regular season. [109] [110] [111] [112] During the Stanley Cup playoffs, a number of U.S. teams further increased their capacity, and three of the Canadian playoff teams admitted spectators for the first time, although only one team has offered tickets to the general public.
Team | Home games with spectators | Limitations | Source |
---|---|---|---|
Anaheim | Some | April 16: 10% capacity | [113] |
Arizona | All | Original: 25% capacity April 17: 50% capacity |
[108] [114] |
Boston | Some | March 22: 12% capacity May 10: 25% capacity May 29: Full capacity |
[115] [116] [117] |
Buffalo | Some | April 3: 10% capacity, with negative COVID PCR test no older than 72 hours or proof of full vaccination required (delayed from March 20, as the originally-scheduled game was postponed due to players from the opposing team being under league COVID protocol) | [118] [119] [120] |
Calgary | None | All games are played behind closed doors. | [112] [111] |
Carolina | Some | March 4: 15% capacity May 17: 12,000 spectators |
[121] [122] |
Chicago | Some | May 9: 25% capacity; last American team to begin allowing spectators. | [123] [124] |
Colorado | Some | April 2: 22% capacity May 12: 42.3% capacity |
[125] [126] |
Columbus | Some | March 2: 10% capacity March 9: 25% capacity |
[127] [128] [129] |
Dallas | All | Original: 25% capacity | [108] |
Detroit | Some | March 9: 750 spectators | [130] |
Edmonton | None | All games played behind closed doors. | [112] [111] |
Florida | All | Original: 30% capacity May 16: 50% capacity |
[108] [131] |
Los Angeles | Some | April 20: 10% capacity | [113] |
Minnesota | Some | April 5: 3,000 spectators | [132] |
Montreal | Some (playoffs only) | May 29: 2,500 spectators; first Canadian team to begin allowing spectators. June 18: 3,500 spectators |
[109] [133] [134] |
Nashville | Some | January 26: 15% capacity April 19: 33% capacity |
[135] [136] |
New Jersey | Some | March 1: 10% capacity April 2: 20% capacity |
[137] [138] |
NY Islanders | Some | March 18: 10% capacity, with negative COVID PCR test no older than 72 hours or proof of full vaccination required May 19: 25% capacity June 3: 12,000 spectators |
[118] [139] [140] [141] |
NY Rangers | Some | February 26: 10% capacity, with negative COVID PCR test no older than 72 hours or proof of full vaccination required | [118] [142] |
Ottawa | None | All games are played behind closed doors. | [110] |
Philadelphia | Some | March 7: 15% capacity | [143] |
Pittsburgh | Some | March 1: 15% capacity April 15: 25% capacity May 18: 50% capacity |
[144] [145] [146] [147] |
San Jose | Some | April 26: 1,000 spectators, negative COVID-19 test or proof of full vaccination was required to enter, initially began with 520 spectators before scaling to the legal maximum | [148] [149] |
St. Louis | Some | February 2: 1,400 spectators May 21: 50% capacity |
[150] [151] |
Tampa Bay | Some | March 13: 3,800 spectators May 5: 4,200 spectators May 20: 7,000 spectators |
[152] [153] |
Toronto | Invited guests only (playoffs only) | All games are played behind closed doors. May 31 playoff game was played with 550 invited healthcare workers; members of the general public were not admitted. | [109] [154] [155] |
Vancouver | None | All games are played behind closed doors. | [109] |
Vegas | Some | March 1: 15% capacity May 16: 50% capacity June 1: Full capacity |
[156] [157] [158] [159] |
Washington | Some | April 27: 10% capacity May 14: 25% capacity |
[160] [161] [162] [163] |
Winnipeg | Invited guests only (playoffs only) | All games are played behind closed doors. Up to 500 invited healthcare workers and the immediate families of team personnel are allowed beginning June 2. | [109] |
Due to Santa Clara County banning all contact sports in response to a local rise of COVID-19 cases, the San Jose Sharks began the season on an extended road trip. [164] Their first two home games on February 1 and 3 against the Vegas Golden Knights was to have been held at Gila River Arena, the home of division rival Arizona Coyotes, [165] but ended up being postponed due to a COVID outbreak among the Golden Knights . [166] On January 25, Santa Clara County health officials announced that they were lifting the ban, [167] but the Sharks stated that they still needed to work out several health and safety issues and therefore did not return to SAP Center until February 13. [168]
The Tampa Bay Lightning initially announced that it would cap Amalie Arena at 20 percent capacity. However, the team's ownership later announced that no spectators were going to be allowed at the arena for Lightning games through at least February 2, 2021, due to concerns surrounding local case numbers. [169] [170] The team later announced on March 4 that a maximum of 3,800 fans would be allowed at home games beginning March 13. [153] On May 20, the arena was allowed to expand to 7,000 spectators. [152]
On February 10, 2021, Governor of New York Andrew Cuomo announced that the state would allow large sports venues to host spectators at 10% of their capacity beginning February 23, 2021, affecting the Buffalo Sabres, New York Islanders, and New York Rangers. All spectators must present proof of a negative COVID-19 PCR test within 72 hours of the event, and may also be required to submit to a rapid test if their PCR test was within more than 48 hours of the event. [171] [172] By the end of March, Madison Square Garden removed the requirement for testing if the spectator is fully vaccinated (no fewer than 14 days since the spectator received the second dose of a two-dose vaccine). [173]
On March 1, 2021, Governor of Pennsylvania Tom Wolf announced that large indoor sports venues could now host spectators at 15% of their capacity, affecting the Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins. While the Penguins began hosting spectators the next day, [145] the Flyers were required to wait for the city of Philadelphia to revise its own stricter health orders to match state law first; however, the city quickly followed the state's guidance. [143] With their playoff run, the Penguins were able to increase to 50% capacity on May 18. [147]
Monumental Sports & Entertainment, parent company of the Washington Capitals, applied for a waiver for 10% capacity in Capital One Arena in late March. The city government initially did not grant the waiver, leaving it as pending; it was subsequently granted on April 9. [160] [161] The Capitals subsequently announced that they would admit spectators beginning with a home game on April 27. [162] The city later allowed an expansion to 25%, and the team would have been allowed to return to full capacity on June 11 if the Capitals advanced further into the playoffs. [163]
The Government of California announced on April 2 that indoor venues could host spectators at limited capacities with proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test, affecting the Anaheim Ducks, Los Angeles Kings, and San Jose Sharks. [174] The Ducks and Kings began admitting spectators at 10% capacity on April 16 and April 20, while the Sharks began admitting spectators on April 26, scaling up from 520 to the cap of 1,000 over time. [113] [148] [149]
On April 29, 2021, the city of Chicago announced that it would allow United Center to operate at a quarter of its capacity beginning May 9, making the Blackhawks the final U.S.-based NHL team to reopen its arena to spectators. [123]
On May 18, 2021, the Canadiens announced that under changes to Quebec public health orders and curfews, it would be able to admit 2,500 spectators to Bell Centre no earlier than May 28. The Canadiens' Game 5 victory in their first-round series against Toronto on May 27 took the series back home to Montreal on May 29, making them the first Canadian NHL team to play a game with in-person spectators this season. [109] [133] On May 31, Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced that the provincial government and Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment would invite 550 fully-vaccinated health care workers to attend Game 7 at Scotiabank Arena, marking the Maple Leafs' first, and ultimately, only, [155] home game with any spectators this season. [154]
In June, the Manitoba government gave clearance to allow up to 500 fully-vaccinated health care workers, as well as the immediate family members of team staff, to attend Winnipeg Jets home games beginning with their second-round (North Division finals) series against Montreal. [175]
The regular season began on January 13, 2021. Teams played games within their division only. The teams in the three U.S. divisions played each of their seven division opponents eight times. [12]
On January 11, 2021, the NHL announced two outdoor games would be played on February 20 and 21 at the Edgewood Tahoe Resort in Lake Tahoe; the Flyers would play the Bruins and the Avalanche would play the Golden Knights. [176] [177]
The Saturday game between Colorado and Vegas was initially beset by ice quality issues; there was a lack of cloud cover, and as a result the playing surface was partially melted by direct sunlight. The game suffered a postponement of approximately eight hours following the end of the first period, with Colorado leading 1β0, in order to wait for sunset and repair the ice; play resumed at 9:00 PM local time (midnight ET), with Colorado ultimately winning 3β2. In an attempt to avoid further issues, the Sunday game between Boston and Philadelphia was rescheduled for 4:30 PM (7:30 ET), five and a half hours after the originally planned start time. [178]
Pos | Team | GP | W | L | OTL | RW | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | y – Carolina Hurricanes | 56 | 36 | 12 | 8 | 27 | 179 | 136 | +43 | 80 |
2 | x – Florida Panthers | 56 | 37 | 14 | 5 | 26 | 189 | 153 | +36 | 79 |
3 | x – Tampa Bay Lightning | 56 | 36 | 17 | 3 | 29 | 181 | 147 | +34 | 75 |
4 | x – Nashville Predators | 56 | 31 | 23 | 2 | 21 | 156 | 154 | +2 | 64 |
5 | e – Dallas Stars | 56 | 23 | 19 | 14 | 17 | 158 | 154 | +4 | 60 |
6 | e – Chicago Blackhawks | 56 | 24 | 25 | 7 | 15 | 161 | 186 | −25 | 55 |
7 | e – Detroit Red Wings | 56 | 19 | 27 | 10 | 17 | 127 | 171 | −44 | 48 |
8 | e – Columbus Blue Jackets | 56 | 18 | 26 | 12 | 12 | 137 | 187 | −50 | 48 |
Pos | Team | GP | W | L | OTL | RW | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | y – Pittsburgh Penguins | 56 | 37 | 16 | 3 | 29 | 196 | 156 | +40 | 77 |
2 | x – Washington Capitals | 56 | 36 | 15 | 5 | 29 | 191 | 163 | +28 | 77 |
3 | x – Boston Bruins | 56 | 33 | 16 | 7 | 25 | 168 | 136 | +32 | 73 |
4 | x – New York Islanders | 56 | 32 | 17 | 7 | 24 | 156 | 128 | +28 | 71 |
5 | e – New York Rangers | 56 | 27 | 23 | 6 | 24 | 177 | 157 | +20 | 60 |
6 | e – Philadelphia Flyers | 56 | 25 | 23 | 8 | 17 | 163 | 201 | −38 | 58 |
7 | e – New Jersey Devils | 56 | 19 | 30 | 7 | 15 | 145 | 194 | −49 | 45 |
8 | e – Buffalo Sabres | 56 | 15 | 34 | 7 | 11 | 138 | 199 | −61 | 37 |
Pos | Team | GP | W | L | OTL | RW | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | y – Toronto Maple Leafs | 56 | 35 | 14 | 7 | 29 | 187 | 148 | +39 | 77 |
2 | x – Edmonton Oilers | 56 | 35 | 19 | 2 | 31 | 183 | 154 | +29 | 72 |
3 | x – Winnipeg Jets | 56 | 30 | 23 | 3 | 24 | 170 | 154 | +16 | 63 |
4 | x – Montreal Canadiens | 56 | 24 | 21 | 11 | 20 | 159 | 168 | −9 | 59 |
5 | e – Calgary Flames | 56 | 26 | 27 | 3 | 22 | 156 | 161 | −5 | 55 |
6 | e – Ottawa Senators | 56 | 23 | 28 | 5 | 18 | 157 | 190 | −33 | 51 |
7 | e – Vancouver Canucks | 56 | 23 | 29 | 4 | 17 | 151 | 188 | −37 | 50 |
Pos | Team | GP | W | L | OTL | RW | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | p – Colorado Avalanche | 56 | 39 | 13 | 4 | 35 | 197 | 133 | +64 | 82 |
2 | x – Vegas Golden Knights | 56 | 40 | 14 | 2 | 30 | 191 | 124 | +67 | 82 |
3 | x – Minnesota Wild | 56 | 35 | 16 | 5 | 27 | 181 | 160 | +21 | 75 |
4 | x – St. Louis Blues | 56 | 27 | 20 | 9 | 19 | 169 | 170 | −1 | 63 |
5 | e – Arizona Coyotes | 56 | 24 | 26 | 6 | 19 | 153 | 176 | −23 | 54 |
6 | e – Los Angeles Kings | 56 | 21 | 28 | 7 | 19 | 143 | 170 | −27 | 49 |
7 | e – San Jose Sharks | 56 | 21 | 28 | 7 | 15 | 151 | 199 | −48 | 49 |
8 | e – Anaheim Ducks | 56 | 17 | 30 | 9 | 11 | 126 | 179 | −53 | 43 |
In each round, teams competed in a best-of-seven series following a 2β2β1β1β1 format (scores in the bracket indicate the number of games won in each best-of-seven series). [10] The team with home ice advantage played at home for games one and two (and games five and seven, if necessary), and the other team was at home for games three and four (and game six, if necessary). The top four teams in each division made the playoffs.
In the first round, the fourth- seeded team in each division played against the division winner from their division. The other series matched the second and third place teams from the divisions. In each round, home ice advantage was awarded to the team that had the better regular season record. Teams advancing to the Stanley Cup semifinals were re-seeded one through four based on regular season record.
First round | Second round | Stanley Cup semifinals | Stanley Cup Finals | ||||||||||||||||
C1 | Carolina | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
C4 | Nashville | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
C1 | Carolina | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
Central Division | |||||||||||||||||||
C3 | Tampa Bay | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
C2 | Florida | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
C3 | Tampa Bay | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
1 | Vegas | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
4 | Montreal | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
E1 | Pittsburgh | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
E4 | NY Islanders | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
E4 | NY Islanders | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
East Division | |||||||||||||||||||
E3 | Boston | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
E2 | Washington | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
E3 | Boston | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
4 | Montreal | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
2 | Tampa Bay | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
N1 | Toronto | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
N4 | Montreal | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
N4 | Montreal | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
North Division | |||||||||||||||||||
N3 | Winnipeg | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
N2 | Edmonton | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
N3 | Winnipeg | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
2 | Tampa Bay | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
3 | NY Islanders | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
W1 | Colorado | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
W4 | St. Louis | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
W1 | Colorado | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
West Division | |||||||||||||||||||
W2 | Vegas | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
W2 | Vegas | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
W3 | Minnesota | 3 |
The following players led the league in regular season points at the completion of games played on May 15, 2021. [216]
Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | +/β | PIM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Connor McDavid | Edmonton Oilers | 56 | 33 | 72 | 105 | +21 | 20 |
Leon Draisaitl | Edmonton Oilers | 56 | 31 | 53 | 84 | +29 | 22 |
Brad Marchand | Boston Bruins | 53 | 29 | 40 | 69 | +26 | 46 |
Mitch Marner | Toronto Maple Leafs | 55 | 20 | 47 | 67 | +21 | 20 |
Auston Matthews | Toronto Maple Leafs | 52 | 41 | 25 | 66 | +21 | 10 |
Mikko Rantanen | Colorado Avalanche | 52 | 30 | 36 | 66 | +30 | 34 |
Patrick Kane | Chicago Blackhawks | 56 | 15 | 51 | 66 | β7 | 14 |
Nathan MacKinnon | Colorado Avalanche | 48 | 20 | 45 | 65 | +22 | 37 |
Mark Scheifele | Winnipeg Jets | 56 | 21 | 42 | 63 | β4 | 12 |
Sidney Crosby | Pittsburgh Penguins | 55 | 24 | 38 | 62 | +8 | 26 |
The following goaltenders led the league in regular season goals against average at the conclusion of games played on May 15, 2021, while playing at least 1,320 minutes. [217]
Player | Team | GP | TOI | W | L | OTL | GA | SO | SV% | GAA |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Alex Nedeljkovic | Carolina Hurricanes | 23 | 1,392:02 | 15 | 5 | 3 | 44 | 3 | .932 | 1.90 |
Philipp Grubauer | Colorado Avalanche | 40 | 2,366:52 | 30 | 9 | 1 | 77 | 7 | .922 | 1.95 |
Marc-Andre Fleury | Vegas Golden Knights | 36 | 2,146:36 | 26 | 10 | 0 | 71 | 6 | .928 | 1.98 |
Semyon Varlamov | New York Islanders | 36 | 2,116:56 | 19 | 11 | 4 | 72 | 7 | .929 | 2.04 |
Chris Driedger | Florida Panthers | 23 | 1,361:36 | 14 | 6 | 3 | 47 | 3 | .927 | 2.07 |
Andrei Vasilevskiy | Tampa Bay Lightning | 42 | 2,523:37 | 31 | 10 | 1 | 93 | 5 | .925 | 2.21 |
Juuse Saros | Nashville Predators | 36 | 2,051:48 | 21 | 11 | 1 | 78 | 3 | .927 | 2.28 |
Tuukka Rask | Boston Bruins | 24 | 1,396:27 | 15 | 5 | 2 | 53 | 2 | .913 | 2.28 |
Mike Smith | Edmonton Oilers | 32 | 1,846:33 | 21 | 6 | 2 | 71 | 3 | .923 | 2.31 |
Jake Oettinger | Dallas Stars | 29 | 1,604:08 | 11 | 8 | 7 | 63 | 1 | .911 | 2.36 |
Voting concluded immediately after the end of the regular season. Statistics-based awards such as the Art Ross Trophy, Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy, William M. Jennings Trophy and the Presidents' Trophy are announced at the end of the regular season. [218] The Stanley Cup and the Conn Smythe Trophy is presented at the end of the Stanley Cup Finals. The Lester Patrick Trophy is announced following the conclusion of the playoffs.
The league had initially announced that both the Prince of Wales Trophy and the Clarence S. Campbell Bowl, normally presented at the end of the Eastern and Western Conference Finals respectively, would not be awarded due to the suspension of conferences this season. [219] After the opponents in the Stanley Cup Semifinals were set, it was instead decided that the New York Islanders and Tampa Bay Lightning, both of whom normally play in the Eastern Conference, would play for the Wales Trophy, thus leaving the Montreal Canadiens and Vegas Golden Knights to play for the Campbell Bowl. [220]
For the second consecutive season, no NHL Awards ceremony took place due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Adams, Byng, Clancy, Gregory, Masterton, Messier and Selke trophies were awarded during the Stanley Cup semifinals, while the Calder, Hart, Lindsay, Norris and Vezina trophies were announced during the Stanley Cup Finals.
Award | Recipient(s) | Runner(s)-up/Finalists |
---|---|---|
Stanley Cup | Tampa Bay Lightning | Montreal Canadiens |
Presidents' Trophy (Best regular-season record) |
Colorado Avalanche | Vegas Golden Knights |
Prince of Wales Trophy (Stanley Cup Semifinals winner) |
Tampa Bay Lightning | New York Islanders |
Clarence S. Campbell Bowl (Stanley Cup Semifinals winner) |
Montreal Canadiens | Vegas Golden Knights |
Art Ross Trophy (Player with most points) |
Connor McDavid (Edmonton Oilers) | Leon Draisaitl (Edmonton Oilers) |
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy (Perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication) |
Oskar Lindblom (Philadelphia Flyers) |
Matt Dumba (Minnesota Wild) Patrick Marleau (San Jose Sharks) |
Calder Memorial Trophy (Best first-year player) |
Kirill Kaprizov (Minnesota Wild) |
Alex Nedeljkovic (Carolina Hurricanes) Jason Robertson (Dallas Stars) |
Conn Smythe Trophy (Most valuable player, playoffs) |
Andrei Vasilevskiy (Tampa Bay Lightning) | Nikita Kucherov (Tampa Bay Lightning) |
Frank J. Selke Trophy (Defensive forward) |
Aleksander Barkov (Florida Panthers) |
Patrice Bergeron (Boston Bruins) Mark Stone (Vegas Golden Knights) |
Hart Memorial Trophy (Most valuable player, regular season) |
Connor McDavid (Edmonton Oilers) |
Nathan MacKinnon (Colorado Avalanche) Auston Matthews (Toronto Maple Leafs) |
Jack Adams Award (Best coach) |
Rod Brind'Amour (Carolina Hurricanes) |
Dean Evason (Minnesota Wild) Joel Quenneville (Florida Panthers) |
James Norris Memorial Trophy (Best defenceman) |
Adam Fox (New York Rangers) |
Victor Hedman (Tampa Bay Lightning) Cale Makar (Colorado Avalanche) |
King Clancy Memorial Trophy (Leadership and humanitarian contribution) |
Pekka Rinne (Nashville Predators) |
Kurtis Gabriel (San Jose Sharks) P. K. Subban (New Jersey Devils) |
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy (Sportsmanship and excellence) |
Jaccob Slavin (Carolina Hurricanes) |
Auston Matthews (Toronto Maple Leafs) Jared Spurgeon (Minnesota Wild) |
Ted Lindsay Award (Outstanding player) |
Connor McDavid (Edmonton Oilers) |
Sidney Crosby (Pittsburgh Penguins) Auston Matthews (Toronto Maple Leafs) |
Mark Messier Leadership Award (Leadership and community activities) |
Patrice Bergeron (Boston Bruins) | N/A |
Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy (Top goal-scorer) |
Auston Matthews (Toronto Maple Leafs) | Connor McDavid (Edmonton Oilers) |
Jim Gregory General Manager of the Year Award (Top general manager) |
Lou Lamoriello (New York Islanders) |
Marc Bergevin (Montreal Canadiens) Bill Zito (Florida Panthers) |
Vezina Trophy (Best goaltender) |
Marc-Andre Fleury (Vegas Golden Knights) |
Philipp Grubauer (Colorado Avalanche) Andrei Vasilevskiy (Tampa Bay Lightning) |
William M. Jennings Trophy (Goaltender(s) of team with fewest goals against) |
Marc-Andre Fleury and
Robin Lehner (Vegas Golden Knights) |
Semyon Varlamov and
Ilya Sorokin (New York Islanders) |
Lester Patrick Trophy (Service to ice hockey in U.S.) |
Jack Barzee | N/A |
On November 16, 2020, the NHL introduced Adidas "Reverse Retro" jerseys for all 31 teams, which feature throwback uniforms with a modern twist. [230]
The following is a list of notable players who played their first NHL game during the 2020β21 season, listed with their first team.
Player | Team | Notability |
---|---|---|
Kirill Kaprizov | Minnesota Wild | Calder Memorial Trophy winner |
Alexis Lafreniere | New York Rangers | First overall pick in the 2020 Draft |
Ilya Sorokin | New York Islanders | One-time NHL All-Star team |
Jeremy Swayman | Boston Bruins | William M. Jennings Trophy winner |
The following is a list of players of note who played their last NHL game in 2020β21, listed with their team:
This was the seventh season of the league's 12-year Canadian national broadcast rights deal with Sportsnet. This included Sportnet's sub-licensing agreements to air Hockey Night in Canada games on CBC Television and French-language broadcasts on TVA Sports. [265] As a result of the league's temporary realignment, HNIC and Wednesday Night Hockey only aired all-Canadian regular season games, and the Sunday-night Hometown Hockey broadcasts were temporarily suspended. [266]
This was the tenth and final season of NBC Sports' U.S. national media rights to the NHL, and its 16th consecutive season overall as rightsholder. [269] [270] On January 22, 2021, it was reported that NBCUniversal would shut down NBCSNβthe main U.S. cable broadcaster of the NHLβby the end of the year, with its programming to be subsumed by USA Network and its streaming service Peacock. [271] [272]
NBC dropped out of negotiations for the new NHL media contracts, with Sports Business Journal reporting that the network had offered less than US$100 million per-season (roughly half the value of its existing contract) for a package centred upon Peacock, and "never was aggressive in pursuing a renewal". [270] The NHL divided its next round of media rights between ESPN/ABC [273] [274] and Turner Sports, both under seven-year contracts that take effect in the 2021β22 season. [275] [276]
NHL Network began to air its first original game telecasts (as opposed to simulcasts from regional networks), NHL Network Showcase, on February 6, 2021. The inaugural season featured 16 weekend afternoon games through the remainder of the season. Modeled after the similarly named broadcasts on sister channel MLB Network, the games are called by Stephen Nelson and rotating analysts. They are drawn from the "European Game of the Week" package, which had been introduced in the 2018β19 season to provide opportunities for primetime NHL broadcasts by European rightsholders; with the introduction of original broadcasts for the window, the NHL Network Showcase feed is being repackaged for distribution as a world feed in Europe. [277] [278] [279]
Harnarayan Singh, after spending the previous decade calling games in the Punjabi language for Hockey Night in Canada, made his English play-by-play debut this season working HNIC games in Alberta. [288] [289]
After the retirement of Mike Emrick, the lead play-by-play position for the NHL on NBC was rotated between Kenny Albert and John Forslund during the regular season. Albert eventually assumed the lead role during the 2021 Stanley Cup Finals. [290]
In January 2021, it was announced that Sportsnet commentator Dave Randorf would become the new play-by-play announcer for the Tampa Bay Lightning on Bally Sports Sun, succeeding Rick Peckham. [291]
Pittsburgh Penguins radio play-by-play announcer Mike Lange retired following the season. Lange, the voice of the Penguins for 46 seasons, only called four home games towards the end of the season, including two playoff games, with designated successor Josh Getzoff calling a majority of the games. [292]
For most regular season games, the home team's regional rightsholder served as the host broadcaster, providing a neutral "world feed" to the away team's local rightsholder and other media partners, which was then overlaid with remote commentary. NBC also used the world feed during its non-exclusive telecasts, with its commentators working remotely from NBC Sports' studios in Stamford, Connecticut, but had its own crews on-site for its exclusive broadcasts (including Wednesday Night Hockey and games on the NBC broadcast network). [68] A similar arrangement was used in Canada by Sportsnet, TSN, TVA Sports, and RDS, based primarily on their respective national and regional rights, with Sportsnet producing Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver, and half of Toronto's games, TSN producing Ottawa, Winnipeg, and half of Toronto's games, and RDS and TVA Sports splitting Montreal. TSN and Sportsnet's respective parent companies Bell Media and Rogers Media jointly own Dome Productions, which provides the broadcast facilities for both networks. [69]
For its exclusive Hockey Night in Canada and Wednesday Night Hockey national broadcasts, Sportsnet either used its regular national production crews or its local Calgary, Edmonton, Toronto, or Vancouver production crews. [69] Sportsnet also suspended production of its remote Hometown Hockey broadcasts. [293] To further reduce travel during the regular season, Sportsnet/HNIC's lead play-by-play announcer Jim Hughson opted to only call national Vancouver home games (and would ultimately retire after the conclusion of the season), [294] and Chris Cuthbert (who joined Sportsnet from TSN during the suspension of play) mostly worked games in Eastern Canada. [288]
[T]he league felt it owed the Stars something because they had been penalized β under the old alignment β for years, by being placed in the Pacific Division ... Essentially, the decision came down to asking an organization other than Dallas to do the penance this time around. The mitigating circumstance, for the teams that did land in the West, is that based on the level of competition, there does appear to be an easier path to the playoffs there than in the Central
In addition to a spot in the Stanley Cup Final, the winner of the Golden Knights-Canadiens series will claim the Clarence S. Campbell Bowl, while the Islanders-Lightning will battle for the Prince of Wales Trophy.
The Bruins' new alternate sweater is a gold remix of the team's white home uniform worn at Boston Garden from 1981-95, which included trips to the Stanley Cup Final in 1988 and 1990.