Covid-19: Why a Canadian team might have the best chance of winning the Stanley Cup

I just want to take a moment and thank all of the amazing sports radio hosts in Winnipeg, Hamilton and Vancouver. Plus all of the other people who make it possible that we can listen to sports radio everyday and feel like we’re being heard.

You will be missed.

So this year, like last year is a weird season in the NHL that has had many ups and downs over the course of the young season.

The biggest one is how much Covid-19 is affecting games in the U.S.A. and what the NHL intends to do about it. So far (knock on wood) the Canadian Division hasn’t been affected by the virus in any way once the season has started and will most likely not see a major disruption.

This poses a major problem for the NHL and the clock is ticking for them to get this issue fixed before the playoffs begin. The amount of total games played in the Canadian division sits around thirteen on average and the average in America is about eleven. Now that might not seem that significant but with the postponements of games happening all the way to February 16th and the New Jersey Devils not playing a game for another six days. The gap between the Canadian Division and the rest of the league might grow.

Now I know the NHL must have a contingency plan in case the season can’t be finished in the US. But what about Canada, will they finish all of their games or just finish with the same amount of games as the rest of the league. What happens if they have a Covid outbreak in the divisional round while Canadian teams won’t seem to have that problem. They will be able to finish up their series and await for the other teams to finish theirs.

The problem is they could be await up to ten to fifteen days if there is an outbreak and could have a sizable advantage. Say the Lightning and Boston are in the series to determine who goes to the Semi-Finals in the playoffs. They’ve played three games so far and four players from the Bruins get Covid. Both teams would have to quarantine for ten days and the play the rest of their games which could take another seven days if they went to a seven game series.

Now extended rest isn’t the best solution either, it can cause a team to get out of the intense rhythm that hockey players get into during the playoffs. But rest, over no rest usually preferred.

The way it’s looking right now whoever the Canadian team is they would have to play in the U.S. much like the Raptors in the NBA or the Blue Jays in the MLB.

We will have to see going forward but a Canadian team will have a slight advantage going into the semi-finals with all the questions around Covid. The NHL will have to do a better job to make this a more level playing field.

Have a great evening

Joseph