If I were in charge of the NHL schedule, preseason would be shortened, the regular season would start around Sept. 20, and the Stanley Cup would be awarded by May 31. No June hockey in my dream world.

That would allow for the draft to go mid-June at the latest and the opening of free agency around June 20-23 or so. No more July 1-4 free agency fireworks, it’s always been ridiculous that’s been the case on national holidays three days apart on each side of the border.

That would be the perfect schedule.

Instead, there are some owners in non-traditional hockey markets who actually would prefer not to have any games in October at all, they want a later starting season so as not to compete as much with U.S. college football, baseball playoffs and the NFL. It’s why some of those clubs have light October schedules as it is.

Ridiculous.

Drop the puck in September!

-Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic, where you can read ($) more hockey topics.