Indeed, there have been numerous significant injuries to key players like Patrik Laine and Drew Doughty in preseason games. Just look at Laine's injury, which was caused by an AHL player.
The question of the hour is whether the NHL is open to reducing the number of preseason games. Players now train year-round, and the necessity for these matches is no longer there.
It seems that it is in Gary Bettman's plans to reach an agreement with the NHL Players' Association to reduce the number of preseason games and increase the regular season to 84 games.
Pierre LeBrun then discusses another possibility: having AHL players play against each other. Visiting teams send their rookies and players who do not belong to the NHL, and they play against the stars of the local club.
This makes no sense, and we really have a potential solution here.
POLL | ||
Do you think there are too many preseason games in the NHL? | ||
Yes | 162 | 76.8 % |
No | 49 | 23.2 % |
List of polls |