On January 13th, The NHL ( National Hockey League ) began its 104th season, with teams and fans ready to watch and play. Due to COVID a lot of the rules have changed like no fans in the stadiums. Adem Vingan, a reporter from The Athletic_Ⓡ says, “There will be no fans in the stands if the NHL season resumes as planned. The raucous, rally towel-waving crowds that have come to define the Stanley Cup Playoffs will be replaced by silence.”

Predators forward, Matt Duchene added on, “When you skate out there for Game 1, and there’s not a sound but your skates on the ice, it’s going to be extremely bizarre. It’s going to be tough for us. It’s going to suck..”

Many teams have fan interactions with their goal horns, and chants for their team and other teams. The New York Islanders_Ⓡ have their “Yes, Yes, Yes” chant at the end of their goal horn, “ Let’s go Islanders” chant during periods, and many chants for the New York Rangers_Ⓡ.

But this doesn’t count for all teams. The Florida Panthers, Tampa Bay Lightning, Arizona Coyotes, and Dallas Stars will start allowing 23 to 30% of their fans back into the stadiums. This though comes with restrictions like masks, social distancing. And probably no food court.

The Boston Bruins, Buffalo Sabres, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Washington Capitals will compete against each other for the rest of the season in the East division.

The Carolina Hurricanes, Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Dallas Stars, Detroit Red Wings, Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators, and Tampa Bay Lightning will compete against each other for the rest of the season in the Central Division.

The Anaheim Ducks, Arizona Coyotes, Colorado Avalanche, Los Angeles Kings, Minnesota Wild, San Jose Sharks, St. Louis Blues, and Vegas Golden Knights will play the rest of the games of the season in the West Division.

The Montreal Canadiens, Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, Ottawa Senators, Toronto Maple Leafs, Vancouver Canucks, and Winnipeg Jets will play the rest of the games of the season in the North Division.

Another rule that changes this year is who each team will be playing. Instead of playing every team, they will only play the teams in their division. I do not know the exact reason for this is but I think the NHL_Ⓡ was trying to limit the amount of traveling each team does, in case a team member has covid and spread it amongst other teams, which could cause problems.

NCB Sports article clarifies all of the rules. Click here to read them. NCB Sports Hockey Rules for 2020-2021 season.