The objectives, Gary Bettman said, have not changed.
The NH still wants to start the 2020-21 season Dec. 1, and to play a full, 82-game regular-season schedule, followed by four best-of-seven playoff rounds.
But Bettman acknowledged during a press conference Saturday that the coronavirus pandemic could prevent the league from getting next season underway by its target date, and that there's no guarantee a full season will be possible.
"I will not be surprised if it slips into later December," he said. "It could slip into January, But there's no point right now in making any definitive comments on our plans, because there's still too much that we don't know.
"Nobody can tell me whether or not the border between the United States and Canada is going to be open by a (specific) date. Nobody can tell me what the state of COVID-19 is going to be. Nobody can tell me whether or nor our arenas will be able to have either socially distanced or fully occupied buildings.
"We're going to have to do the same thing we did to get ready for the Return to Play (plan for the current playoffs): Explore all the options. Be flexible and agile enough to implement when the appropriate time comes."
NHL clubs operate largely on gate revenues, so whether fans are allowed to attend games -- and how many are permitted to do so -- could have an impact on when next season begins.
Bettman submitted a scenario, which he presented as a spur-of-the-moment thought, under which the season could begin with arenas empty, then progress to having crowds of limited size and, finally, regular attendance.
"Whatever is safe for the health and safety of everybody involved in our game is always our foremost priority," deputy commissioner Bill Daly said. "Obviously, we're going to be very familiar with the local (crowd-size) restrictions and local health authority rules. We sometimes impose even stricter rules, if it's the opinion of our medical advisors that we should do so."
Even if public health is the primary concern, the fiscal well-being of some franchises could become an issue, too, if crowds are limited or prohibited for an extended period. Bettman, though, said he does not expect any teams to have their survival threatened by pandemic-related problems.
"The only good news in this context is that the ownership of the 31 -- soon to be 32 (when Seattle joins in 2021-22) -- NHL franchises has never been stronger and healthier," he said. "And while nobody has any revenue coming in right now and owners are obviously writing checks to cover overhead and expenses, our franchises will get through this and will come out stronger on the other side.
"Yes, there will be a revenue hit. It's no secret that attendance, directly and indirectly, impacts at least 50 percent of our revenues. ... (Attendance) will determine how much the shortfall is, off of where we were and off of where we were projecting. While we know it will be less -- we know there's a substantial revenue impact -- I'm comfortable that our franchises will be strong enough to weather this."
Although the Stanley Cup final between Tampa Bay and Dallas just gets underway Saturday night, but Bettman admittedly is looking forward to the end of the series.
"Handing the Cup over to the captain of the winning team will probably be the first time since March 12 that I'll breathe a sigh of relief," he said. "And maybe I'll get a full night's sleep."
After that, the focus surely will shift to 2020-21, even though it continues to be shrouded by uncertainty. And might be for quite a while.
"Anything that anybody suggests or reads or writes or commentates about next season is nothing more than speculation," Bettman said.
Well, there is one thing that seems certain, even if it remains entirely aspirational.
"Our goal is to get back to as great a sense of normalcy as possible," Bettman said. "Under whatever circumstances are presented."
• Forget goals and assists and save percentages, here's the most remarkable statistic to come out of this postseason: Bettman said the league has administered more than 31,000 COVID-19 tests to players and team staffers and had zero positive results.
• Don't look for the league to expand the playoff field beyond 16 teams in future seasons, even though it had 24 participate this year. "I've never been a fan of expanding the playoffs," Bettman said. "I still believe that what we have, in a normal year, is the right way to go."
• Daly said the league has been willing to schedule games in a series on consecutive days throughout these playoffs because of the "hub city" setup that means there is "no travel, a lot less wear-and-tear on the players." Outside of what happens on the ice, of course.
• Bettman said that if the Winter Classic, scheduled for Jan. 1 at Target Field in Minneapolis, has to be called off because of the start of the season being pushed back, the league "will make good on it in some fashion" for Minnesota, which is to play host to the game.