Earlier this week the NHL announced that they would be willing to push back the start of the 2020-2021 season into November to make an effort to complete the 2019-2020 season. This has good and bad implications that come with this. The good news is that it seems the NHL is doing whatever it takes to make sure the NHL season is finished this year. The bad news is that it doesn’t seem like the season will be resuming anytime soon.
With the news that the NHL is willing to cut into a part of next season, they also announced that they will be extending the self-quarantining period to April 30. This just further confirms that the NHL isn’t too close to finding a date to start the NHL season back up. It is possible that the NHL could use that time to find new locations that can hold games for some regular season games and even the playoffs.
However, with the uncertainty of when the NHL season will start up again, it is possible that the NHL will shorten the 2020-2021 season. This will likely happen whether this season finishes or not. If this season finishes, then it will likely finish in late Summer which would push the offseason through October and eventually start the 2020-2021 season up in November with a slightly abbreviated season. If this season never restarts, then there really can’t be a true timeline for when next season will begin unless they get the okay to play games without fans.
The sports world did receive some good news recently with the PGA tour announcing that they will start back up the tour in June without fans. Obviously, golf is not a contact sport and it can be easier to socially distance from each other on the golf course. It is still a step in the right direction and it opens the door for other sports to follow suit. 
The MLB has made it known that they are likely going to start their season within the next couple of months in empty stadiums in Arizona until it is deemed safe to for every team to return to their home stadiums. This is something the NHL has been looking into with potentially playing their games in North Dakota.
This idea seemed a little extreme until recently when Dr. Anthony Fauci, an expert on infectious diseases said that if the players play in empty stadiums and are tested every week, then it can be done as soon as this Summer. 
For NHL fans this is the news that we all wanted to hear. If the NHL and NHLPA can agree on locations in which the NHL can finish their season it seems like they will do go through with it. At this point, with this new information from Dr. Fauci it seems like it’s only a matter of where and when will the rest of the season be played.
For now, it looks like there is no way the NHL can finish their season and start the 2020-2021 season on time. If this season does finish, it is pretty much a guarantee the next season will start in November at the earliest. The fact that the NHL says they are willing to cut into next season goes to show how dedicated they are to completing this season.