The NHL’s return to play officially has a start date.

It was announced on Friday evening that the league and NHLPA have ratified a four-year extension of the league’s CBA (which will now run through the 2025-26 season), and that the action from the two bubble cities of Toronto and Edmonton will begin on Aug. 1.

The Rangers will be part of the league’s first game since mid-March, as they’ll begin their best-of-five Qualifying Round series against the Carolina Hurricanes on Aug. 1 at noon.

The Islanders’ meanwhile, will take part in the league’s second game the same day, as they begin their best-of-five series against the Florida Panthers at 4 p.m.

In all 24 teams (12 from each conference) will be playing in the NHL restart, with the top four teams in each conference (The Bruins, Flyers, Capitals, and Lightning in the East) playing a round robin against each other to determine the top four seeds for the First Round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

The entire Qualifying Round will take place over nine days from August 1-10, squeezing in a total of 52 games with no less than five games per day between the two conferences.

“Today, the NHL and the NHLPA announced a significant agreement that addresses the uncertainty everyone is dealing with, the framework for the completion of the 2019-20 season and the foundation for the continued long-term growth of our League,” NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said. “I thank NHLPA Executive Director Don Fehr and Special Assistant to the Executive Director Mathieu Schneider, the more than 700 NHL Players – particularly those who worked on our Return to Play Committee – and the NHL’s Board of Governors for coming together under extraordinary circumstances for the good of our game.

“While we have all worked very hard to try to address the risks of COVID-19, we know that health and safety are and will continue to be our priorities. We know that all of our fans are excited about our return to the ice next month and that has been our goal since we paused our season on March 12.”

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