Gary Bettman Is Reportedly About to Announce a Major Change to the Canadiens' Schedule

The league is seriously considering increasing the regular season from 82 to 84 games.

This would be the first modification to the number of games in the NHL since 1995-1996, the year the league reduced the schedule from 84 to 82 games.

Your Montreal Canadiens could soon be playing 84 games per season, and this change could be made official soon.

Adding these two games would force the league to adjust its preseason schedule. As a result, fewer exhibition games would be played, and the regular season would start slightly earlier.

However, starting the season earlier is not intended to extend it into May but rather to ease the congestion of the regular schedule.

The Stanley Cup will still be awarded in June, but perhaps a little earlier than in recent seasons.

One has to wonder if Gary Bettman and the NHL are truly considering the players in all of this.

Adding two more games to an already packed schedule significantly increases the risk of injuries.

According to what LeBrun mentioned last July, these discussions between the NHL and the NHLPA are taking place as part of the collective bargaining agreement renewal.

This suggests that the players are open to the idea and that fatigue does not concern them too much..

Still, an 84-game schedule will be exhausting, especially when there is an Olympic break or a World Cup during the season.

But what wouldn't we do to put a little more money in our pockets?

Indeed, with revenue sharing, it won't just be the owners benefiting, but also the players. This will definitely be a story to follow!