The first domino to fall was the NHL coming out with a Return to Play plan. Today the hockey insiders are tweeting the details about the format for the play-in series as well as the 2019-20 playoffs.
From Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet we get this:
The NHL Playoffs will not be bracketed, but re-seeded after every round. Qualifying will be best-of-five. All other rounds will be best-of-seven.
From his colleague Chris Johnston we get this:
Going with four best-of-sevens (instead two best-of fives then two best-of-sevens) could add as many as nine days to the playoffs.
The “integrity” of the playoffs was prioritized with this decision. It was important to the players. But the entire playoff tournament could last 68 days, which might pose challenges if a second wave of coronavirus hits in the fall.
From Pierre LeBrun of TSN:
Keep in mind, this is just the format agreement. Still to come are Phase 3 (training camp) and Phase 4 (games/hubs/protocol) which still have to be negotiated. Only preliminary talks so far on those fronts.
What might this mean for a team like the Jets?
Photo Credit: Colby Spence
Murat Ates of The Athletic Winnipeg thinks it could be to their advantage:
I like re-seeding for Winnipeg because it could help the Jets dodge St. Louis or Colorado in round one. (I’m assuming at least one underdog play-in winner.)
Regardless it is simply just another domino that has fallen as the NHL tries to conclude the 2019-20 season with the presentation of the Stanley Cup sometime in October.
