The NHL announced on December 20 that the 2021 regular season would begin on January 13.
The schedule, a shortened sprint of 56 games to the Stanley Cup playoffs, was worked out with the expectation that some games would have to be postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun: “The key word this season is ‘nimble’.” The surge in cases in the US and Canada should unfortunately have an impact on the Games.
As mentioned earlier, the key word this season is “nimble”. I expect the multi-team schedule will most likely change multiple times over the course of the season due to positive testing. Get used to it. https://t.co/T3GklgInCk
– Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) January 8, 2021
On Jan. 8, that expectation was met after the stars announced six players and two employees who tested positive for the coronavirus. The team closed its training facility as a precaution and since the news came six days before the start of the season in Dallas, the first three games were postponed.
Also on January 8th, the Blue Jackets announced on the same day that they had “kept a number of players out of the team’s training” “out of caution and in accordance with NHL COVID-19 protocols.” The team hasn’t postponed any games yet.
NHL Games Affected by COVID-19
| Date of play ppd. | game | Reschedule the appointment |
|---|---|---|
| Thursday, Jan. 14 | Stars with Panthers | Monday February 22nd |
| Fri., Jan. 15 | Stars with Panthers | Monday 3rd May |
| Sun 17th January | Stars on lightning | Tuesday May 4th |
| Tuesday January 19th | Stars on lightning | Monday May 10th |
| Tuesday January 19th | Predatory hurricanes * | Tuesday March 2nd |
| Thursday January 21st | Panthers in hurricanes | Wednesday February 17th |
| Sat, Jan. 23 | Panthers in hurricanes | Sun, March 7th |
| Tuesday, January 26th | Lightning in hurricanes | Monday February 22nd |
* Hurricanes at Predators was the first NHL game to be postponed on the day of.
Since the Dallas games were postponed in January, the following games were also affected:
- Panthers at Red Wings, originally scheduled for February 21st, is now Sat, February 20th.
- Stars at Panthers, originally scheduled for February 23rd, is now Wed, February 24th.
- Sabers at Penguins, originally scheduled for March 27th, is now Fri, March 26th.
- Bruins at Capitals, originally scheduled for April 11th, is now Sat. April 10th.
- Penguins at Sabers, originally scheduled for April 20th, is now Monday April 19th.
- Panthers at Lightning, originally scheduled for May 4th, is now Tuesday, March 16th
After Carolina’s games were postponed in January, the following games were also switched:
- Blue Jackets at Hurricanes, originally scheduled for February 16, is now Monday, February 15.
- Panthers at Lightning, originally scheduled for February 16, is now Monday, February 15.
- Hurricanes at Lightning, originally scheduled for February 22nd, is now Wed, February 24th
