Stanley Cup winner won't be decided until end of September?

This could push the 2020 Stanley Cup Final to the end of September and result in the subsequent season beginning as late as January 2021: 

Much remains unknown about a schedule that must be agreed upon by owners and the players. Rumors continue to circulate that a round-robin format could precede a postseason tournament.

Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman and Larry Brooks of the New York Post have reported players are not keen on participating in any three-and-done series during the playoffs. 

During an appearance on "Hockey Central" earlier this week, Nashville Predators center Matt Duchene slammed the idea of a "COVID Cup":

"I just think you gotta keep as much integrity as possible. You don’t want to have a COVID Cup, and I’m worried that if we force this thing and try and it’s a little gimmicky and it’s not quite right, whoever wins the Cup is gonna have people try to take it away from them for their whole lives and guys don’t deserve that."

Update: On Friday evening, the NHLPA Executive Board announced that it has approved "further negotiations with the NHL on a 24-team return-to-play format": 

ESPN.com's Greg Wyshynski broke down the plan:

"Under the plan, the top four seeds in each conference, as determined by their standings points percentage when the regular season was paused on March 12, would receive byes through a round of best-of-five play-in series featuring seeds 5 through 12. Those play-in series would determine which teams advance to a traditional 16-team Stanley Cup playoff bracket, which would have seven-game series."

There are still many details to iron out, such as when and where the remainder of the season would occur, but it's an important step in returning to play.