TORONTO (AP) — The NHL is set to resume with a 24-team expanded playoff opening this weekend in Toronto and Edmonton, Alberta. Commissioner Gary Bettman hopes the crowning of a Stanley Cup winner can become a shared experience, given the magnitude of the task to get to this point following a four-and-a-half month break. Though there will be oddities with games played in empty arenas, some hope the restart of play can serve as one small step toward a return to normalcy during the coronavirus pandemic.

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