New Hampshire governor discussed neutral site games with NHL

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and deputy commissioner Bill Daly have said that they are discussing all options as the league attemps to find out a way to resume to play and to finish the 2019-20 season when health officials direct that it is safe to do so.

And that can mean playing the remainder of the games in neutral sites.

According to Sportsnet, North Dakota was one potential location for the NHL to return to play and New Hampshire has become another possible location to help complete the season.

New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu took part in WEEI Sports Radio Network on Friday and was questioned whether he had discussed with the NHL about the possibility to host some games in his state. He confirmed that although they don’t know whether it is going to happen, it is true that they are talking about it.

It is thought that if the NHL could return in this form, it would need to happen at some neutral sites. While social distancing rules would have to soften, players would need to remain isolated as well as get tested regularly.

Sununu added that there are still some issues to sort through and figure out before they could proceed.

Meanwhile, Bettman is still optimistic that a Stanley Cup will be able to be awarded this year. The postponement of the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics to 2021 has extended the chance for the NHL to take place in late July and August.

Having said that it is ideal if any return would include finishing the regular season, Bettman also admitted that “might be impossible.” Players would not only need some weeks in order to get back in game shape before heading into playoffs, but the league also does not want any return-to-play decision in order to disrupt a full 82-game 2020-21 season. His guess at this point is that they are probably going to be playing in the summer, which is something that they can certainly do.