Bettman ensures NHL champion will be crowned

The NHL commissioner Gary Bettman appeared in a virtual town hall hosted by the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday, and dismissed the notion of cancelling the NHL season without deciding a champion.

Two months have passed since the NHL paused its season, and the AHL officially cancelled the season this week. However, that is not something the NHL is planning on. In response to a question during the virtual town hall, Bettman said ending the season without crowning a champion is “not even something I'm considering”. He continued on later in the 20 minute question and answer session to say: “It's got to be fair, it's got to have integrity, and if we do it over the summer on some modified basis, then we'll do it on that basis.”

There has only been two seasons in history when the Stanley Cup was not awarded. The 2005 lockout season, and the 1919 season, which was cancelled due to the spanish flu. If the season were to return, it appears the NHL have started to lean more into the idea of skipping straight to the playoffs, and pursue the hub-city format, most likely with four different hub cities. If that was to happen, Vancouver has emerged as one of the top candidates.

Some details of the conversation between Premier John Horgan and NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman, courtesy of a BC Government spokesperson.

Vancouver is "well placed" as a potential hub city in the eyes of the NHL, given BC's response to the pandemic. #Canucks pic.twitter.com/vGmVyZLzb6— Rob Williams (@RobTheHockeyGuy) May 13, 2020

MUST READ

47 minutes ago  |  By Vincent Carbonneau Oilers fans just got major confirmation involving two core pieces

1 hour ago  |  By Vincent Carbonneau Quinn Hughes just sparked major buzz involving Tate McRae after fans spotted a controversial move online

1 hour ago  |  By Vincent Carbonneau A surprise coaching favorite is suddenly emerging in Toronto

2 hours ago  |  By Vincent Carbonneau Avalanche fans are buzzing after Jared Bednar's latest Cale Makar comments

3 hours ago  |  By Vincent Carbonneau More bad news just dropped for Martin St. Louis and Ivan Demidov

3 hours ago  |  By Vincent Carbonneau Elliotte Friedman just raised a major red flag about the Canucks and Adam Foote

4 hours ago  |  By Vincent Carbonneau Sidney Crosby was caught in a heated exchange with a referee and fans heard everything

4 hours ago  |  By Vincent Carbonneau An NHL insider suggests a massive change is coming in Edmonton

MORE STORIES