Typically, NHL fans would be gearing up for some playoff hockey right about now.
But morale appears to be at an all-time low — at least for former Boston Bruins winger Milan Lucic.
The 2019-20 regular season was scheduled to wrap up April 4, but the COVID-19 outbreak caused the NHL to pause the season March 12. At this point, there’s no indication of when the season will resume, what that’ll mean for postseason play or even if there will be a Stanley Cup champion.
And that reality seems to be hitting Lucic hard right now.
“The optimism of getting back sooner than later, it’s not there like it was a couple weeks ago,” Lucic told TSN’s Jermain Franklin on Monday.
Lucic, who plays for the Calgary Flames, was gearing up for his first postseason with the team when the league paused play. Now, he’s up for any kind of modification if it means he’d get a shot at playoffs.
“If it comes down to playing with no fans, because that’s the only option, I’m definitely all in for that,” Lucic said.
At this point, there haven’t been any definitive decisions on what games could look like once sports are able to start back up. But for now, there’s no restart in sight. And the longer the season is paused, the more players will likely will share in Lucic’s logic.
