Fenway Park, as seen during a game between the Boston Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays on May 28, 2018. (Photo/Cameron Merritt)

By Cameron Merritt

Could another Boston team be calling Fenway Park home this year?

According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman on Thursday, the Boston Bruins are exploring the possibility of playing games in Fenway Park and other venues in the Boston area “if it will allow them to have fans in attendance.”

While calling the idea “a long shot,” Friedman said the Bruins, along with the Anaheim Ducks, Los Angeles Kings and Pittsburgh Penguins, have been in contact with both local officials and venues to play outdoor home games this season, with The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun adding that the Dallas Stars and Nashville Predators were also exploring the possibility.

On the Bruins, Friedman said they’ve been in contact with state and city officials about a variety of options and that he had heard of “specific mention” of Fenway Park, where the Bruins hosted the Philadelphia Flyers for the 2010 Winter Classic. Since then, “America’s Most Beloved Ballpark” has been no stranger to hockey, hosting Frozen Fenway since 2010, featuring Hockey East teams as well as games by area high school teams.

Friedman said that Fenway wasn’t the only venue being considered. The Bruins have also played in Foxboro, with Gillette Stadium the site of the 2016 Winter Classic between the Bruins and the Montreal Canadiens.

While an interesting proposal, it seems fairly unlikely, with Friedman saying there are multiple obstacles in the way, namely the cost of hosting multiple outdoor games, including repairs being needed to make to the playing service following such games, and the approval of such game by the players and opponents, not to mention that the 2020-21 NHL season does not yet have an official start date and the current COVID-19 pandemic with recent case numbers in the United States higher than they’ve ever been.

According to Friedman, in a survey done by all 31 NHL teams, “several would not be thrilled with the idea of switching between indoor and outdoor venues during the season,” while a previous report from The Athletic cited by Friedman quoted Deputy Commissioner Bill Daley as calling the idea of playing more outdoor games “not likely.”

Following Friedman and other outlet’s stories, the Bruins put out a statement confirming the report.

“We are in consistent contact with the NHL as well as officials from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the City of Boston, and are exploring all possible venue options for the upcoming season – including Fenway Park,” the Bruins wrote. “At this point we are in the exploratory phase.”

While the interest is certainly there from the Bruins, as well as the other teams, the hurdles in the way currently seem a little too tall to overcome, at least in the next few months. The New England Patriots have previously stated they will not and are not allowed to host fans at Gillette Stadium through the end of the season, something the Commonwealth probably won’t be budging on after announcing a record 6,477 new cases, beating the previous record of 4,613 from the day before.

In my own opinion, while an interesting concept, I just don’t see it being feasible giving the current pandemic. Until the vaccine is readily available and enough people have been vaccinated, I doubt Massachusetts will see fans back in the seats of Fenway, Gillette, the TD Garden and other venues. My guess for a realistic timeline will be the Fall of 2021, a year from now at the absolute latest. Potentially fans will be welcomed in smaller numbers earlier in the year, but I don’t envision that occurring for at least a few months if not longer, especially with case numbers as they are and the vaccinations not starting until later this month.

No set start date for the 2020-21 season is also not an ideal look, though a decision on one will certainly be made in the near future. However that itself has several serious obstacles the league must address, most notably that nonessential travel between the United States and Canada, where both the league and seven of its teams are based, is prohibited, with the Canadian government holding firm on not lifting the order until the end of the pandemic. Through this, the Toronto Blue Jays spent the 2020 MLB season based largely in Buffalo, New York as well as other Major League ballparks in the US and the Toronto Raptors will be based out of Tampa, Florida for the upcoming NBA season, which is scheduled to start Dec. 22, though it’s worth noting both Toronto teams are their nations sole representative in their respective leagues.

Overall, I wouldn’t hold my breath on having the opportunity to watch the Bruins take the ice at Fenway, Gillette or another area stadium on a regular basis anytime soon, though, since any of the current or upcoming professional sports seasons will certainly be anything but normal, you never know.