As they say in hockey, let's do that hockey!
If the NHL were to resume, the season would end and go straight to the playoffs, according to ESPN! The NHL would have two "hub" cities for its restart if the proposed 24-team playoff format is approved by the league and the NHLPA. So that would mean that most teams would play at a neutral site, unless St. Paul is one of the "hub" cities. The 24-team playoff plan would have the top four seeds participating in a three-game tournament during the play-in round, and the play-in round would have seeds 5-12 playing against each other. If the playoff format would start today it would look like this:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Top seeds:Boston Bruins(1),Tampa Bay Lightning(2),Washington Capitals(3),Philadelphia Flyers(4)
Play-in series:Pittsburgh Penguins(5) vs.Montreal Canadiens(12),Carolina Hurricanes(6) vs.New York Rangers(11),New York Islanders(7) vs.Florida Panthers(10),Toronto Maple Leafs(8) vs.Columbus Blue Jackets(9)
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Top seeds:St. Louis Blues(1),Colorado Avalanche(2),Vegas Golden Knights(3),Dallas Stars(4)
Play-in series: Edmonton Oilers(5) vs.Chicago Blackhawks(12), Nashville Predators(6) vs.Arizona Coyotes(11), Vancouver Canucks(7) vs.Minnesota Wild(10), Calgary Flames(8) vs.Winnipeg Jets(9)