Each team will play a 56-game schedule and face teams only in its division during the regular season, which will begin Jan. 13, 2021, after the NHL and NHL Players' Association announced agreement on the plan Sunday.
The top four teams in each division will qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs, when each round will be best-of-7.
The Boston Bruins, Buffalo Sabres, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals will be in the East Division.
The Carolina Hurricanes, Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Dallas Stars, Detroit Red Wings, Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators and Tampa Bay Lightning will compete in the Central Division.
The Anaheim Ducks, Arizona Coyotes, Colorado Avalanche, Los Angeles Kings, Minnesota Wild, San Jose Sharks, St. Louis Blues and Vegas Golden Knights will play in the Pacific Division.
The Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, Montreal Canadiens, Ottawa Senators, Toronto Maple Leafs, Vancouver Canucks and Winnipeg Jets will play in the North Division.
The first two rounds of the playoffs will be intradivisional, with the first-place team playing the fourth-place team and the second-place team facing the third-place team in the first round. The four teams that advance from the second round to the Semifinal Round will be seeded by their points total in the regular season, with the No. 1 seed playing the No. 4 seed in one series and the No. 2 and No. 3 seeds facing off in the other.
The 2020-21 season has been delayed due to continuing concerns surrounding the coronavirus. The last game was played Sept. 28, when the Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Dallas Stars 2-0 in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final.
