While the NHL isn’t identifying who has tested positive for the coronavirus or which team(s) they play on, it appears that the Blues have been hit by the virus. Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic reports (subscription required) that multiple players have tested positive and their identities have not been disclosed. As a result, the team has closed their practice facility through the weekend with the hopes of reopening on Monday.
Rutherford notes that roughly two-thirds of the team is already in town as part of the second phase of the NHL’s Return to Play protocols. The remainder don’t have to be back in town until the third phase opens up; while that had been scheduled for July 10th, it may be pushed back a few days as a result of the ongoing CBA and return discussions.
The last announcement from the NHL came back on Monday with 15 players at various team facilities being noted as testing positive. Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports notes (Twitter link) that he has heard that the number has increased throughout the week. The NHL’s intention is to update on a weekly basis so it will be a few more days until we find out how many more positive tests there are.
I really hope a lot of those are false positives, and that the boys won’t infect each other or their families. If this keeps up, nobody will recognize the playoff rosters…
This is why I keep saying…Dallas Stars vs. Providence Bruins Stanley Cup Final.
Teams could be taken out of action by more than just their opponents.
Haha the Dallas Stars won’t make the finals. Silly
This is terrifying:(
I promise that everyone will live and even play in the upcoming 24 team extravaganza. Had these players not been tested, they likely wouldn’t even know they had the virus.