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Canucks aim to play next game April 16; North Division regular season end date: May 16

Canucks aim to play next game April 16; North Division regular season end date: May 16

VANCOUVER, BC - FEBRUARY 17: ASn official NHL puck with the Vancouver Canucks logo sits on the ice during the NHL game against the Boston Bruins at Rogers Arena February 17, 2018 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Vancouver won 6-1. (Photo by Jeff Vinnick/NHLI via Getty Images)"n

NHLI via Getty Images

The NHL announced April 16 as the (tentative) date for the Canucks to resume play. In doing so, the league shed some light on how the schedule will look, and potential changes to the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Canucks aim to return to play on April 16; North Division regular season end: May 16

To start, here are the pertinent details regarding the Vancouver Canucks’ return from COVID-19 complications.

Sunday, April 11: Barring setbacks, the Canucks are scheduled to return to practice on Sunday.

Update: the league announced that the Canucks’ return to practice was pushed back.

Friday, April 16: If things go to plan, the Canucks resume their NHL regular season schedule against the Oilers on Friday.

Eight Canucks games were postponed due to COVID-19 protocol, and the NHL announced 13 date changes, along with two time changes, to revise the North Division 2020-21 regular season schedule.

May 16: The current planned end date for the North Division’s 2020-21 regular season schedule.

Interestingly, the NHL noted that the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs may begin “a few days earlier” for the Central, East, and West Divisions. Here’s how the league worded that:

The NHL will continue to assess the progression of the regular season before announcing definitive dates for the start of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. With the newly revised end date for the regular season for the North Division, it is possible that the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the East, Central and West Divisions could open a few days earlier than the North Division.

Beyond dealing with COVID complications, the Canucks have been busy during this break. They signed two debatable contract extensions involving Thatcher Demko (five years, $5M AAV) and Tanner Pearson (three years, $3.25M AAV).

NHL schedule changes

Here are the 13 dates that have been rescheduled, including eight Canucks games that were postponed due to COVID-19:


  • Game #829, Edmonton at Vancouver, scheduled for May 4, is now scheduled for Friday, April 16 at 9 p.m. ET
  • Game #567, Calgary at Vancouver, scheduled for March 31, is now scheduled for Wednesday, April 21 at 10 p.m. ET
  • Game #792, Vancouver at Toronto, scheduled for April 30, is now scheduled for Thursday, April 29 at 7:30 p.m. ET
  • Game #647, Vancouver at Calgary, scheduled for April 10, is now scheduled for Monday, May 3 at 9 p.m. ET
  • Game #593, Vancouver at Edmonton, scheduled for April 3, is now scheduled for Tuesday, May 4 at 9 p.m. ET
  • Game #662, Vancouver at Edmonton, scheduled for April 12, is now scheduled for Saturday, May 8 at 10 p.m. ET
  • Game #720, Ottawa at Calgary, scheduled for April 20, is now scheduled for Sunday, May 9 at 8 p.m. ET
  • Game #602, Vancouver at Winnipeg, scheduled for April 4, is now scheduled for Monday, May 10 at 8 p.m. ET
  • Game #619, Vancouver at Winnipeg, scheduled for April 6, is now scheduled for Tuesday, May 11 at 8 p.m. ET
  • Game #833, Toronto at Ottawa, scheduled for May 10, is now scheduled for Wednesday, May 12 at 7:30 p.m. ET
  • Game #673, Vancouver at Edmonton, scheduled for April 14, is now scheduled for Thursday, May 13 at 9 p.m. ET
  • Game #864, Calgary at Vancouver, scheduled for May 8, is now scheduled for Saturday, May 15 at TBD
  • Game #634, Vancouver at Calgary, scheduled for April 8, is now scheduled for Sunday, May 16 at TBD

Also, the NHL made two start time changes:


  • Game #710, Toronto at Vancouver, scheduled for 10 p.m. ET on Monday, April 19, is now scheduled to start at 9 p.m. ET
  • Game #510, Edmonton at Montreal, scheduled for 5:30 p.m. ET on Monday, May 10, is now scheduled to start at 7 p.m. ET

James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.