The collective bargaining agreement (CBA) that the league and the National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA) signed on July 10, 2020, included a provision opening the possibility for the NHL to explore participation at the 2022 and Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics. By the time the league released the regular schedule on July 22, discussions were still ongoing with the International Olympic Committee on sending players to the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, particularly in regards to COVID-19 health protocols and insurance issues. Two working schedules were thus created that were not released to the public, one with an Olympics break and one without. The schedule released on July 22 included an Olympics break from February 7 to 22; if the league and the IOC cannot reach a deal, then the other schedule without the Olympics break will be used, and some teams will have to reschedule up to 16 of their home dates.