It started with a question from a reader: What if the NHL held a draft where each of the 24 teams who’ll be resuming the season could pick one player from the seven outsiders?
Not permanently. Just a loaner, one that would join a contender for the rest of whatever the 2019-20 season looks like, then return to his original team for next year and beyond. Consider it a temporary boost to a postseason that’s already breaking most of the rules anyway.
Would the NHL ever do this? Of course not, for a million reasons, starting with the fact that it barely makes sense.