Taxi Squads Set Up For Upcoming 2020-21 Season

While taxi squads have been rumored for more than a month, the NHL has officially put them into place for the 56-game season that starts on Jan. 13, including the guidelines set for them. Major League Baseball used a taxi squad during their 2000 season and the NHL has decided to use a similar system.

While the use of taxi squads is likely meant to keep players who just missed out on making the NHL roster as potential backups due to injury/COVID-19 related issues. However, teams could also look at it from a different perspective as well. With the danger that junior leagues seasons could be cancelled down the road, many teams may consider putting one or two of their top prospects on their taxi squad, which would allow the player exposure to their NHL teams and the ability to practice with them, which might be better than playing limited games in junior or trying to find them a permanent home overseas. There has been talk that there could be a rule that taxi squad players must play a certain amount of games to be eligible and cannot just sit there without playing in any games, but no word on whether a rule like that will be enacted. With the league prorating the entry-level slide, prospects would only be allowed to appear in six games before they would burn the first year of their entry-level contract, something teams wouldn’t want to do. So, a rule suggesting how much each taxi squad player must appear in could cause some issues.

According to CapFriendly, taxi squads will consist of four to six players and must include at least one goaltender, unless the NHL club is carrying three goaltenders on their roster. Waiver rules would still apply if the team wants to send them to the AHL and the salary cap implications would count as if the players were being buried in the minors (buried cap hit). Players will receive their full NHL salaries if they are on one-year deals, while two-year deal players will play for their AHL salary.

Taxi squad players are permitted to travel with the NHL squad, practice with them and join any team activities. They are not allowed to practice with any other group besides their NHL team, which includes not being allowed to practice or join in on any AHL functions. Players can be recalled to the NHL squad on any day, but must be done before 5 p.m. EST to play in that night’s game. Goaltenders can be recalled at any time if a team doesn’t have two active goaltenders to play.

If a taxi squad player is deemed unfit to play (injury, illness, COVID-19 quarantine), the NHL team can request the player not be counted as one of their six players.

Taxi squads will dissolve at the end of the NHL season.