The National Hockey League will be cutting the pay of league office employees by 25 per cent starting April 1, the league confirmed to ESPN on Tuesday.

Emily Kaplan of ESPN reports the NHL is hoping the temporary pay cut will prevent layoffs during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The NHL announced a pause in play on March 12, with 189 games remaining on the league's schedule in the regular season.

The league said Monday that no decisions have been made regarding whether the remainder of the regular season will be played, or what form the playoffs might take. 

"The form and format of resumption of play scenarios will depend entirely on what transpires between now and when we are permitted and able to resume ­– and, ultimately, on timing and taking into account logistical constraints," the release read. "We are going to have to be flexible and react to events as they unfold as well as the best medical advice available."

The league also said it does not "anticipate a scenario in our resumption of play format that would endanger or interfere with the League’s ability to stage and execute the 2020-21 NHL season in its entirety."