Wings face uncertain offseason

In a normal offseason, the Red Wings would have a calendar with all the upcoming dates for important events.

That calendar would include the NHL Entry Draft, development camp, July 1 free agency, NHL Prospect Tournament in Traverse City, training camp in Traverse City, then the schedule of preseason games in September before the regular season got underway in October.

That has all gone out the window due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which halted the regular season on March 12.

On Tuesday, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman spelled out the plan for the league moving forward, which included canceling the rest of the regular season, moving forward with a 24-team playoff and a modified draft lottery that could include two phases.

The first part of the draft lottery is set for June 26, which was supposed to be the first day of the draft in Montreal.

The timetable for the playoffs depends on when teams can resume skating together in small groups, followed by a training camp that will begin no earlier than July 10.

That means that the 2020-21 season will certainly not begin in October and no one can say for sure when it will.

"It's not going to be easy," Wings coach Jeff Blashill said on a Zoom conference call Thursday. "Obviously, that'll be from mid-March until sometime later in the year for certain, if we are able to play this year. The one thing that's important in any of this in our decision-making is that we're fluid and flexible because we don't really know exact dates like you would in a normal year so we're going to have to be really good about being fluid and flexible, making adjustments as needed, as the NHL continues to make its best decision as it can."

For the Red Wings and the other six non-playoff teams -- Ottawa Senators, San Jose Sharks, Los Angeles Kings, Anaheim Ducks, New Jersey Devils and Buffalo Sabres -- that potentially could mean not playing games for 9-10 months.

"I've had some discussions with players about this, there is some concern amongst the players that it's a big disadvantage in the sense that the seven teams that are off, those players, forget the teams, just as players going that long without an organized practice with coaches, going at full speed and stuff like that," Blashill said. "So I'm hoping we can look toward some creative solutions with the NHL. Those conversations obviously have been on the back burner until the return to play protocol was put in place, so we'll see as the summer goes along. We'll work within the parameters that the NHL gives us. We'll try to be as creative as we can be to make sure our players aren't at a disadvantage when the puck drops next year."

Alternate captain Luke Glendening is the Red Wings' player representative so he was part of the group that voted on the league's Return to Play plan.

"I think first and foremost, we were just trying to get anything that we could in terms of getting teams back and playing," Glendening said on the call. "Obviously the seven teams that aren't involved didn't put ourselves in a great situation. Even when they expanded the playoffs by eight teams, we're still not making it. We didn't have a lot to hang our hat on. I think we were excited for the possibility that some hockey would be played and that they would get back.

"Ultimately, all seven teams that weren't involved, we felt we were voting on it just because we didn't have a dog in the fight, whether it was 16 teams, 24 teams, we weren't playing either way. So that was a little tough but like I said, we thought that the group of guys who spoke with the NHL did a great job and we believed in what they were doing."

According to the collective bargaining agreement, the Wings' coaches aren't permitted to have on-ice contact with the players during the offseason.

But in light of the circumstances, perhaps arrangements could be made for a mini-camp or something similar if it is safe to do so.

"Obviously, we're living in totally different times," Blashill said. "This layoff is as long a layoff as any of our guys have ever had outside of a long-term injury. The players, staffs and management of these seven teams will hope to look toward some creative solutions. I can't answer what those will be but I think it's important we look towards that now that we're moving on and have this return to play protocol. I want to do everything we can to make sure that we're as ready as individuals and a team for next season. So I'm hoping we get some different opportunities than we've had in the past."

Glendening said they might be able to look to what other sports do during their offseason.

"It's a unique situation. I know in the NFL, they do those OTAs (organized team activities) so there are options," Glendening said. "I don't know if the NHL and the NHLPA will agree to something like that. It's an interesting proposition and maybe could be used."

The players wouldn't want to overtrain too early and then still be not playing so there is a balance that has to be struck.

"It's hard," Dylan Larkin said on the call. "I've had a lot of talks with Mike Barwis, our trainer, our team trainer as well, someone I've been working with for the past six years. He's a smart guy and we've already come up with a few different plans depending on what happens. Right now, I think I really haven't taken much time off and I've been in the gym, healing up injuries that were lingering this season, so this is a valuable time for myself to make sure my body's 100-percent healthy coming into next season and making sure that I'm getting ahead of everyone else while either guys are playing and getting banged up or guys are sitting at home because they think they don't want to train yet or whatever it may be.

"I've started early but I'm looking forward to this time where I can change my body and change into a stronger, more explosive athlete. There's obviously the downside that we're not playing but there's also a positive where you can do some serious changes in the body during this time."

Glendening said he can draw on some previous experience when he played two sports.

"I can go back to my high school days when I played football and then I would think I was in great shape and I'd step on the rink for hockey and I'd feel terrible and out of shape," Glendening said. "Skating's just not one of those things that transfers very easily but that being said, guys are riding the bike, they're running, they're working out so they'll be ready and be in shape. It's obviously going to take some time like it does every summer to get back into it. This will be no exception."

Larkin is hopeful that the league will find a way to allow the Red Wings to get back on the ice as a full group, or as close to it, at some point.

"As this goes, we have nine months, I wouldn't like to take that long away from the guys," Larkin said. "I hope there's some way we can all get together this summer and we can all have time where we're all here and training together. I think that would be so valuable for our young group of guys and for our team. I hope the league can work something for the seven teams that didn't get to play in the playoffs and that we can get together. I know it's hard with guys out in Europe, but I think when August or late July comes around, there will be a time and a place when everything's safe that we can all get back together and have some time where we can work on next year."