Arizona Is Officially Open For NHL

Arizona will be open for all pro sports, but most importantly, hockey starting Saturday May 16th.

On Tuesday, Gov. Doug Ducey welcomed pro sports, including the NBA, MLB and NHL, to play games in his state without fans, beginning Saturday. In doing so, he became the first governor in the United States to make such a proclamation.

Ducey said he’s looking at a declining number in the percentage of COVID-19 tests that come back positive as his main guidance.

As of Thursday the NHL has yet to release a timeline of when things may get back on track but, according to reports, the NHL is considering a 24-team playoff with no regular-season games upon its return. And Calgary Flames GM Brad Treliving believes the NHL could announce its return-to-play plan as soon as next week as well as a plan for the 2020 NHL Draft.

"I think there’s momentum, No state secrets here, but I do sense some momentum that next week there could be at least a preliminary plan put in place for where we go."

Gary Bettman has also gone on record stating that canceling the remainder of the season is not an option and something he nor the league is even considering.