(Photo Credit: SinBin.vegas Photographer Brandon Andreasen)

For decades, locker rooms have been a common area for players and media to gather after games and after practices. It’s an interesting dynamic, as credentialed men and women get to bombard athletes with positive or negative questions about the outcome of the game. It’s regulated by the club and the league, however it’s mostly a free-for-all and the millionaire players have to suck it up. Or else they get reprimanded and/or look terrible in the public eye.

That was pre-NHL pause.

With health concerns of groups larger than ten, it would be impossible to allow that process to continue. Heck, at this point in time there are too many players for one locker room. So, while there’s uncertainty among the media and players, we all understand things could drastically change.

I don’t think they should be… It’s just intrusive. I would co-sign the idea that we shouldn’t eliminate all access. -JJ Redick, NBA Forward

NBA sharpshooter JJ Redick on The Ringer podcast last week discussed the NBA freeze. The conversation transitioned to the relationship between players and the media, and how Redick would like more restrictions once play resumes.

Redick’s gripe sounds a bit NBA’ish. There are fewer players on a team, and more media covering basketball. Plus, the NBA allows media lockerroom access before game, which doesn’t exist in the NHL. However, there are elements to his complaints that every player in any league would agree with.

Camera guys are in the lockerroom during the media availability and they’re filming you while you are getting dressed… Why are you filming me when I’m putting my tights on? Why do you need to know how I tie my shoes? That feels a little weird too me. -Redick

I often wondered if Golden Knights players were overwhelmed or annoyed dealing with the media every day. Let’s face it, many of us couldn’t compose ourselves as well as they do after a bad loss. Over the past few years, I’ve asked players how they felt about their media responsibilities and came away with different responses.

Since all of these questions were off the record, I won’t reveal the players’ names but they all had a common theme. The bottom line, the Golden Knights know it’s part of their jobs, and they recognize it’s a way to connect with fans. One player said he enjoyed it and had fun chatting it up with the media. Another player told me he’s so used to it that it’s part of his routine. A third player explained, it wasn’t often he spoke in postgame scrums, so when he did it usually meant his contributions helped the team win.

As expected, their moods change after a loss. Most players don’t look forward to the media rush after dropping two points, but again, they understand their role. If an individual player missed an open shot, turned the puck over, or gave up the game-winning goal those players will likely answer the bell. One player hinted if they are good enough to make millions of dollars playing the sport, they can handle the heat after a loss.

A player that caused his team to lose would rather take the needling questions from the media then have his teammate do it for him. Also, certain players don’t want to be known only for answering questions after a win, and ducking out after a loss. It’s bad for their image, and some feel like they’re letting down the fans. Again, these are proud, honest NHL players we’re dealing with, not other professional athletes.

The overall feeling I got after a few casual conversations was that Vegas players want a genuine working relationship with the media. As long as it’s respectful, players don’t mind giving 5-8 minutes of their time after a win or loss. However the NHL decides to regulate the flow of media it will be completely foreign for both parties. One thing is for sure, the players will adjust quicker. Realistically, they are players and would rather focus on playing hockey. They won’t mind the change because there’s a good chance they get their locker room back and get to keep it for themselves.

It’s up to us at SinBin.vegas to work within the forthcoming new accessibility rules to bring information and content fans expect. If not, you all have full access to harass Ken and I. We can handle the heat.

Every day it seems like the news surrounding the virus is getting worse and worse. Unless you are actively seeking out positivity, you can’t help but feel like it’s spiraling out of control in the wrong direction.

That’s why yesterday’s news from the TSN Insider Trading crew came as such a welcome surprise. According to Frank Seravalli, a group of NHL players has begun working on a proposal to play regular-season games in late July followed by the playoffs in August and September. That would leave an “offseason” including the draft and free agency in October and then the 2020-21 season to begin, and be played in full, in November.

(Photo Credit: SinBin.vegas Photographer Brandon Andreasen)

The plan is still in the “idea phase” and has not yet been sent up to the league as a true proposal but Pierre LeBrun says it already has the blessing of many players and at least one NHL owner.

Obviously, any plan to return to playing hockey and awarding the Cup for this season should be embraced with open arms by the Golden Knights (we’ve already discussed this), but this one is about as good as it possibly gets for Las Vegas.

First off, bringing back a few regular-season games would be terrific for a team that has little to no danger of falling out of the playoffs. Meanwhile, the games should have enough importance that they aren’t glorified preseason games. Hockey won’t look like hockey, and definitely not playoff hockey, for at least a week or two, so playing a few games before the playoffs will be huge in getting the game back up to speed.

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The NHL season is officially “paused” with the hope that it will resume sometime in the near future. When, or if, that will happen remains a mystery to all as slowing the spread of the virus takes precedence over all else. However, hockey will return at some point, be it in April, May, or much later. The NHL is not gone forever which means the Golden Knights will return to the ice and like every team will feel the effects of the hiatus.

Injuries

The Golden Knights were set to play in Minnesota with a pretty banged up roster. Mark Stone and Max Pacioretty were both on the shelf until at least the end of March, Alex Tuch has been out since February 13th and suffered a set back a few days ago extending the injury, Chandler Stephenson missed a game with a wrist injury but was expected to play yesterday, and Cody Glass had been ruled out for the season after knee surgery.

(Photo Credit: SinBin.vegas Photographer Brandon Andreasen)

The hiatus is almost certainly going to last a month, which means aside from Glass, the Golden Knights should be as close to healthy as any team in the league when hockey does indeed return. Every team will benefit from the break but it will have a greater impact on playoff teams who were potentially heading in without a star player or two. Colorado and Tampa Bay stand to gain more than Vegas, but the Golden Knights have to like their chances entering a playoff run as healthy as they’ll likely be whenever this does end.

Schedule Format

There are plenty of potential options the league could use if the season does start back up with a plan to award the 2020 Stanley Cup. For the most part, any option will benefit the Golden Knights.

The Golden Knights were going to make the playoffs if the season was played out in full, but now, there’s essentially no format that will keep them out. There are really two options for the NHL.

• Select playoff teams based on points percentage on March 11th
• Return for a few regular season games before the playoffs begin

It’ll all depend on timing, but either option has the Golden Knights sitting pretty. As of the pause, Vegas is in 1st place by three points and .021 percentage points over Edmonton. Also, the Golden Knights have moved up to 3rd place in the Western Conference. A few games being added to the regular season could shuffle things at bit, but no matter what, the Golden Knights will be in pretty good shape.

Playoff Format

The NHL playoffs normally take more than two months to complete. The league may not have that kind of time this year. So, there are two choices the NHL can make to shorten that time frame. First, they can remove games from the early rounds. The first round might become a best-of-five, maybe the second round too. Instead of having to win 16 games, maybe it shrinks to only 14. The other option is to tighten up the dates on the games played. Play back-to-backs on the home games or when travel is light. The normal format has at least one day between every game and sometimes two. It takes two weeks to finish a seven-game series. The calendar may dictate needing to wrap series up in 10 days instead.

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