Blackhawks ‘excited’ to be among teams in NHL return to play plan

If any team will be revitalized by the NHL’s unprecedented 24-team postseason format, it’s the Chicago Blackhawks.

The Blackhawks snuck into the final spot of the qualifying round with a .514 points percentage, ahead of only the Montreal Canadiens who earned the 12th seed in the Eastern Conference with a .500 points percentage.

With a long pause since the last games were played, and rosters that were able to get healthy, more than ever it feels like anything can happen in the NHL postseason.

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When you have Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews and Corey Crawford on your roster, and momentum completely reset, it's a game changer.

“We are excited that the Chicago Blackhawks will be among the teams that will compete for the Stanley Cup, per the National Hockey League’s Return to Play Plan announced today,” interim president Danny Wirtz said in a statement. “That alone is great for our fans, the city of Chicago and the state of Illinois.”

Making it more exciting is the fact that when the NHL paused in March, the Blackhawks had a 2.5% chance of earning a postseason berth, according to Hockey Reference’s Playoff Probability Report which simulates the remainder of the regular season.

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Wirtz says the Hawks are taking pride in another aspect of the Return to Play Plan too.

“We are also proud that Chicago, including our home arena the United Center, is being considered as one of the two possible hub cities as part of the league’s plan,” Wirtz said. “Moving forward, we will stay in close communication with the NHL, the City of Chicago and state leaders to ensure safety protocols for our players and staff are met. We anticipate a controlled conditioning phase followed by a formal training camp.”

So far the NHL listed 10 possible hub cities, and said two will be chosen at a later date based on various criteria like: number of COVID-19 cases in the area, access to adequate testing, secure hotels and transportation.

In addition, teams will be able to return to their home facilities for “voluntary, small group” training in early June, with formal training camps set to begin no earlier than July 1.

But before that can happen in Chicago, any move will have to get the green light from Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Gov. J.B. Pritzker.

In the state’s “Restore Illinois” Plan, indoor gatherings of 50 or fewer people are allowed in Phase 4. However the state is just now gearing up for Phase 3, in which only gatherings of 10 or fewer people are allowed. For any region of the state to move on from Phase 3 to Phase 4, they will have to maintain a COVID-19 positivity rate of under 20%, while also increasing by no more than 10% over a 14-day period. There will also have to be adequate testing and contact tracing for 90% percent of diagnoses within 24 hours.

Pritzker addressed the plan in his daily press conference on Wednesday, and Kelly Bauer provided the play-by-play of his comments on Twitter:

Pritzker on NHL: "Actually, as you know, the state is the one that sets the parameters for any play that might exist int he state, and then the city of Chicago, of course, has the ability to be more stringent ... ." All major leagues have contacted them. "I am as anxious as, I...
— Kelly Bauer (@BauerJournalism) May 27, 2020

"think, many people are to get our sports up and running again. The problem is, we can't put spectators in the stands today. There's just no way to do that safely, according to the doctors. What the leagues have asked is not for that. What they've asked is for the ability to ...
— Kelly Bauer (@BauerJournalism) May 27, 2020

"run games ... televised with no spectators. Even that, as you can imagine, think about two teams, all of the surrounding people who work for the team involved, it's a lot of people. We've worked with them. They've actually come up with reasonably good plans." He's "anxious" ...
— Kelly Bauer (@BauerJournalism) May 27, 2020

to get baseball up again and hopes to do it going into July. He can't say when the Blackhawks will be "at it again."
— Kelly Bauer (@BauerJournalism) May 27, 2020

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