Done deal: NHL starts August 1st

At last, an official decision on when and how the NHL playoffs will begin has been announced. On Friday, the NHL and the NHLPA ratified a new Collective Bargaining Agreement stretching through the 2025-26 season, and in that deal a finished Return to Play Plan was officially declared.

The playoffs will start on August 1st, and as previously known, eight teams from each conference will fight in best of five games for a spot in the regular playoffs, while the four top teams from each conference will be facing each other in a straight series to decide seeding for the regular playoffs. Down below is the tentative schedule going forward.

Saturday, August 1st:

Eastern conference:

x NY Rangers-Carolina

x Florida-NY Islanders

x Montreal-Pittsburgh

Western conference (Edmonton):

x Chicago-Edmonton

x Winnipeg-Calgary

Sunday, August 2nd:

Eastern conference:

x Columbus-Toronto

Round-robin:

x Philadelphia-Boston

Western conference:

x Minnesota-Vancouver

x Arizona-Nashville

Round-robin:

x St. Louis-Colorado

Monday, August 3rd:

Eastern conference:

x NY Rangers-Carolina

x Montreal-Pittsburgh

Round-robin:

x Washington-Tampa Bay

Western conference:

x Winnipeg-Calgary

x Chicago-Edmonton

Round-robin:

x Dallas-Vegas

Tuesday, August 4th:

Eastern conference:

x Florida-NY Islanders

x Carolina-NY Rangers

x Columbus-Toronto

Western conference:

x Calgary-Winnipeg

x Nashville-Arizona

x Minnesota-Vancouver

Wednesday, August 5th:

Eastern conference:

x NY Islanders-Florida

x Pittsburgh-Montreal

Round-robin:

x Tampa Bay-Boston

Western conference:

x Nashville-Arizona

x Edmonton-Chicago

Round-robin:

x Colorado-Dallas

Thursday, August 6th:

Eastern conference:

x Toronto-Columbus

x Carolina-NY Rangers

Round-robin:

x Washington-Philadelphia

Western conference:

x Vancouver-Minnesota

x Calgary-Winnipeg

Round-robin:

x Vegas-St. Louis

Friday, August 7th:

Eastern conference:

x NY Islanders-Florida

x Pittsburgh-Montreal

x Toronto-Columbus

Western conference:

x Nashville-Arizona

x Vancouver-Minnesota

x Edmonton-Chicago

Saturday, August 8th:

Eastern conference:

x NY Rangers-Carolina

x Montreal-Pittsburgh

Round-robin:

x Boston-Washington

Western conference:

x Winnipeg-Calgary

x Chicago-Edmonton

Round-robin:

x Vegas-Colorado

Sunday, August 9th:

Eastern conference:

x Florida-NY Islanders

x Columbus-Toronto

Round-robin:

x Philadelphia-Tampa Bay

Western conference:

x Minnesota-Vancouver

x Arizona-Nashville

Round-robin:

x Dallas-St. Louis

Source: NHL.com

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