AHL Moves Anticipated Start Date For 2020-21 Season To February 5th, 2021

The American Hockey League (AHL) is pushing back the anticipated start date of their 2020-21 season once again, announcing Wednesday the league's Board of Governors approved the move to February 5th, 2021 as a new target starting date for their upcoming season.

Further details regarding the 2020-21 AHL season are still to be determined, but Syracuse Crunch owner Howard Dolgon was made available via a zoom conference call mere hours after the announcement to talk about what the latest announcement means for AHL hockey in 2020-21, and in particular, what is in store for Dolgon and the Crunch - one of the league's 12  independently owned AHL franchises.

Right off the bat, Dolgon's comments relative to current restrictions in New York regarding fan attendance at sporting events indicate that perhaps independently owned franchises can survive without fans in 2020-21, a juxtaposition from his stance in his previous media appearance in which he said it was unlikely the Crunch could survive without fans.

"I think from our standpoint and with our partners in Tampa, the intent is certainly to play - and to play either with or without fans - this season," Dolgon said. "Well, I think we could play without fans.  I think it would be a totally different structure and a different relationship with every NHL team. I think you're going to see nothing is going to be what you're used to."

Dolgon went as far as to claim independent owners aren't in too much of a difference than NHL-owned AHL franchises, using nearby Rochester as an example and explaining that while the Buffalo Sabres own their AHL affiliate Rochester Americans that the AHL affiliate still has its own expenses - the same that the Crunch do - staff, equipment, operating fees, etc.

Dolgon says understanding the reality of the 2020-21 season -  that "everyone is losing money this season" and it's more about "minimizing losses this season and aiming for a return closer to normalcy in 2021-22" coupled with the NHL's need for the AHL as its home for continuing the development of its younger players (who will undoubtedly need to be playing or at least active in some capacity when the NHL returns to play themselves sometime after January 1st) serve to keep NHL owners and AHL owners working together toward a workable solution for all parties involved.

For other independently owned AHL franchises, Dolgon indicated it's purely a case-by-case situation.

Lehigh Valley Phantoms co-owner Jim Brooks, who is also a member of the AHL's Return To Play Task Force, told InsideAHLHockey.com in an exclusive interview at the end of August that their communication with the Flyers is fantastic and "[Our] intention is that we are going to play. We haven't wavered from that. "I can't speak for all 31 teams, but I know from our perspective we want to play."

When asked in a no-matter-what type of fashion if the Phantoms were all-in on a 2020-21 AHL season if the league does return to the ice, Brooks said it would all depend on the situation.

When asked Wednesday evening if he thought all 31 AHL teams will be able to participate in a potential February 5th start to the 2020-21 season, Crunch owner Dolgon responded that he hopes the answer is yes, but doesn't think that will be the case.

"I think you're going to have a couple of markets that it may be difficult just based on where they are located, and with their travel," he said, adding, "You guys can figure out who those are. And they're good franchises. Being where we are located [in Syracuse, NY] - we don't have to get on a plane. We don't have to sleep in hotel rooms. We practice in our own rink. We're fortunate in that regard, but there are other franchises that may not be able to do it for that reason."

Teams geographically isolated in the AHL - like the Charlotte Checkers (Florida) and Texas Stars (Dallas) - might be harder to fit in a regional-based AHL schedule that we at InsideAHLHockey.com first reported from our interview with Phantoms' co-owner Jim Brooks back in August and was subsequently talked about by AHL President/CEO Scott Howson in a media appearance on the Around The A Podcast earlier this month.

"I think the length of the season will almost certainly be condensed, maybe significantly," Dolgon said of a potential 2020-21 AHL schedule. "Now an early February start, getting 76 regular season games is probably just impossible. We don't know what that will look like. 50 games?" Maybe less than that?"

AHL President/CEO Scott Howson told the AP's Stephen Whyno Wednesday that the AHL's RTP Task Force is set to meet again next week to come up with a schedule proposal likely to be heavily region-based where teams take day trips without hotel stays and minimize travel for what will certainly be a shortened season.

Similar to the league's previous decision to push back their anticipated start date back from October to December 4th, there are still plenty of unknowns and hurdles remaining for the AHL in their path toward returning to play in 2021 - now aimed at February 5th.

Testing protocols, the cost of said testing, as well as financial support from NHL teams to its AHL affiliates, the U.S.-Canada border, and managing 31 different teams in 31 different municipalities spanning two countries under one plan leaves plenty on the table that needs to be worked through.