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Colorado Avalanche Player Tested Positive For COVID-19

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Another NHL organization has been hit with the coronavirus (COVID-19). The Colorado Avalanche have announced that one of their players tested positive, though after isolating since his first symptoms appeared, he has subsequently recovered. The team has notified anyone that came in close contact with the player, who once again was left unnamed.

Previously, only the Ottawa Senators had announced that players—two, in that case—had tested positive for the virus. This is the third case in the NHL so far. Of note, the Senators and Avalanche played in San Jose on consecutive nights after the county of Santa Clara recommended against large gatherings.

The Avalanche also played in the Staples Center the night before the Brooklyn Nets—who had multiple players test positive—and two nights before the Senators. Obviously there is no way of telling exactly how or when the virus was transmitted to the Avalanche player.

NHL Postpones Combine, Awards & 2020 Draft

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Due to the uncertainty surrounding the current coronavirus pandemic, the NHL has decided to postpone the 2020 NHL Scouting Combine, the 2020 NHL Awards and the 2020 NHL Entry Draft, which were scheduled throughout June. The league is still looking at options for when these events can be held down the road but without a full understanding of when (or if) the season will resume it is obviously impossible to announce a reschedule date at this point.

The league expects to return to Las Vegas for the award show, but “the location, timing and format of the 2020 NHL Draft (and Draft Lottery) will be announced when details are finalized.” That likely means Montreal, who was due to host the event this year, will not be the destination at all. France Margaret Belanger, executive vice-president for Groupe CH, owners of the Canadiens, released a statement on the news:

While today’s news is disappointing for fans of hockey in general and those here in Montreal in particular, this is the right decision to make under the circumstances. I’m confident that the League will propose an alternative that will be in the best interest of all hockey fans.

It comes with little surprise that the league was forced to move these events back or to different venues altogether, given that the season’s fate is still completely up in the air. Players were recently asked to self-isolate for another ten days, but there is still no timeline for resuming play.

CHL Cancels Playoffs, Memorial Cup

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The Memorial Cup, a junior hockey trophy that has been awarded every year for more than century, will be dormant this season. The CHL has decided to cancel the rest of their playoffs and championship tournament in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak. The tournament was scheduled for May in Kelowna, British Columbia but will not be possible.

The CHL, made up of the Ontario Hockey League, Quebec Major Junior Hockey League and the Western Hockey League, had canceled the rest of the regular season recently but held out hope until today that a playoff would be possible. This new update means that for many NHL prospects, the season is over. For many others who won’t be transitioning to the professional ranks, their competitive hockey careers will end without a chance to hoist the trophy or even compete for their various league championships.

In terms of NHL impact, it also means that scouting staffs will not get a chance to see draft-eligible players in the high stress atmosphere of the playoffs. Those best-on-best tournaments are often where final decisions are made about a player’s upside, and draft rankings are solidified. Without the U18 World Championship, CHL or USHL playoffs, scouts will be armed with much less information this time around.

It also obviously comes as an ominous sign for the future of the 2019-20 NHL season, which still seemingly hangs in the balance. The league today issued an updated FAQ that suggested they are still hoping to restart a training period after 45 of the CDC’s recommended 60 days with no gatherings of more than 50 people, but things are still changing rapidly as more information comes out.

A Second Senators Player Tests Positive For COVID-19

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For the second time this week, the Senators have announced that one of their players has tested positive for the coronavirus (COVID-19).  The announcement did not name the player but noted that he took part in their recent California road trip through San Jose, Anaheim, and Los Angeles.

A total of 52 people were on that trip including players, coaches, support staff, and broadcasters.  Of those, 44 are currently showing no symptoms.  On top of the two players that have tested positive, there are six other people that have been tested between Wednesday and Friday after showing symptoms and the team is waiting for the results.

At the time, these are the only two known NHL players that have tested positive for the virus.  The Kings and Ducks announced earlier in the week that no one was exhibiting symptoms just yet while the Sharks had a part-time SAP Center employee test positive.

Everyone that was on that trip was told to go into self-isolation on March 13th and the announcement indicated that those people continue to be quarantined.

IIHF Officially Cancels Men’s World Hockey Championship

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It’s a decision that has been expected for a while and is now official.  The IIHF announced that they have cancelled the upcoming Men’s World Hockey Championship that was slated to take place in Switzerland in May due to the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.  IIHF President Rene Fasel released the following statement:

This is a harsh reality to face for the international ice hockey family, but one that we must accept.  The coronavirus is a global problem and requires major efforts by government bodies to combat its spread. The IIHF must do all it can to support this fight. We have to set sport aside for now and support both the government bodies and the ice hockey family.

The annual tournament featured numerous NHL players whose teams were eliminated from the playoffs early as well as a mixture of the some of the top international talents around the world that haven’t made it to the NHL yet.  16 countries had been slated to participate including Belarus and Kazakhstan who were promoted from Division 1-A following the 2019 event.

It may be a while before Switzerland gets another opportunity to host the tournament as host cities for the Worlds have already been named through 2025.

Seattle Delays The Reveal Of Team Name And Logo

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Hockey fans desperate for news amidst the Coronavirus shutdown would have been ecstatic to find out the name of the new NHL expansion team in Seattle, which had been planned for release this month. However, they will have to wait a while longer. Seattle CEO Tod Leiweke released a statement today which included that the group has decided to relay the reveal of their name and brand. Those eager to see the logo and colors of the NHL’s 2021-22 entry will have to continue to be patient.

Leiweke did not detail why the ownership group opted to push back their planned reveal, but it is easy to formulate some possibilities. The Vegas Golden Knights held a massive reveal party when their name and logo became public, which was televised and drew much attention to the rookie club. A similar event would be impossible – or at least irresponsible – right now, especially given the severity of COVID-19 cases in the state of Washington. Secondly, the Knights also had merchandise online and in sporting good stores around North America the day after their reveal, which would have been another hurdle for Seattle if they had stuck to their reveal date. With many retail and shipping companies operating under state and federal limitations, merchandise would not be as readily available and could again harm the new team’s initial exposure. Finally, it seems from Leiweke’s statement that the group also did not want to draw attention away from what is really important right now and wanted to hold off on their big day until “the right time”.

There are thought to be as many as a dozen possible names for the expansion franchise, with Kraken emerging as a fan favorite. Other possibilities include Sockeyes, Totems, Rainiers, Emeralds, Evergreens, Sea Lions, and Seals. Whatever the choice is, the group has kept it close to the chest as there has been nothing concrete to point toward any of those possible monikers nor a potential color scheme.

While fans may be disappointed in a continued wait on Seattle’s reveal, Leiweke’s statement contained numerous other reasons to be supportive of the team. Given the current state of things, both locally and globally, Leiweke announced that the team will defer payments from season ticket purchases through June to allow those fans to focus their funds toward more important means. In another generous move, the team pledged $100K toward youth homelessness in Seattle, a cause made even more important by the current health crisis. Seattle may not have an NHL team yet, or even a name or logo, but they are already winning over their city and hockey fans around the world.

Could Coronavirus Lead To The Return Of Compliance Buyouts?

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Just two weeks after the NHL announced a projected 2020-21 salary cap range that would have represented a major boost in teams’ spending power, things could not have gone in a worse direction in terms of meeting that estimation. The Coronavirus outbreak has shut the league down and there is no way to know when or if games will return this season. The league hopes to resume play and even maintains that they would like to avoid missing any games, but with each passing day that reality grows less and less likely. COVID-19 fears seem almost certain to cost games if not the entirety of the remaining regular season schedule and, in the worst-case scenario, possibly the playoffs as well. Missed games are missed revenue opportunities and the board of governors would be highly unlikely to approve a cap increase, especially of the magnitude initially projected, if they continue to suffer losses.

The last time that the NHL was forced to cancel games was in the 2012-13 lockout-shortened season. As the league and players’ association battled over collective bargaining terms, the NHL missed the first half of their season. A 48-game schedule began on January 19th, which for all involved was better than nothing but was certainly a hit to owners’ bottom lines. The 2012-13 campaign was expected to carry a $70.2MM cap hit, but that instead was a pro-rated number that in reality was just $60MM. The following season, given the lost revenue, the cap only meagerly returned to just $64.3MM, the same upper limit as in 2011-12.

Due to the unexpected stagnation of the salary cap for those two years, many teams were left under immense pressure to fit their rosters under the ceiling. In response, the NHL offered a solution: the “compliance buyout”. The compliance buyout follows the same rules as a standard buyout, allowing teams to cut ties with a player at the cost of two-thirds of the remaining value of their contract (one-third if under 26) over the course of double the length of the remaining term on the contract. The one defining difference is that compliance buyouts do not count against the salary cap. The NHL made this option available in the 2013 and 2014 off-seasons, with a limit of two per team over the two summers, and 18 teams took advantage. In fact, a number of teams are still paying off those buyouts – with a ways to go – with standouts including Christian Ehrhoff, Brad Richards, Ilya Bryzgalov, Vincent Lecavalier, and of course Rick DiPietro.

Could the compliance buyout make a return appearance should the Coronavirus outbreak continue to prevent NHL action from returning? If NHL teams end up losing revenue due to missed games, the 2020-21 salary cap limit will at best be the low end of the league’s projection, which is $84MM. And that would still be a $2.5MM increase. More likely in the case of canceled games would be the salary cap remaining at $81.5MM or only increasing marginally. Such a shift in the expected course of action would leave many teams in trouble. A report earlier today named the Chicago Blackhawks as one team that would have to make difficult roster decisions in the event of a stagnant cap, but they are far from alone. 13 teams already have $70MM+ in salary committed to 2020-21, while many of the 12 more  teams in the $60-70MM range either have key free agents to re-sign or are working with a small number of signed players. The Arizona Coyotes, who lead the pack with $79.99MM committed to just 18 players, were already hard-pressed to deal with an $84MM salary cap, nevertheless a continuation of the current $81.5MM. They would be left in a nearly impossible situation, unless offered a way out.

As such, it seems like a strong possibility that the compliance buyout could make its triumphant return. While the league does not want to address the “what if” of missed games at this point in time, should it reach the point where that result is inevitable, compliance buyouts will certainly become a hot topic. Whether the league would go about the process in a similar manner as they did last time around remains to be seen. They might instead offer a one-time shot this summer in light of NHL Expansion in 2021 that should get the salary cap back on track. It’s too early to tell, but as we all wait out the Coronavirus, it’s worth wondering whether the league could bring back an old device to mitigate the lasting effect of the pandemic.

Ottawa Senators Player Tests Positive For COVID-19

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The NHL could only escape for so long. Tonight the Ottawa Senators have announced that one of their players has tested positive for coronavirus (COVID-19) and is in isolation. The player is experiencing mild symptoms.

According to Hailey Salvian and James Mirtle of The Athletic (subscription required), several Senators players are dealing with symptoms and awaiting test results. The report notes that the Senators team played at the Staples Center in Los Angeles just before the NHL shutdown, which had just hosted the Brooklyn Nets of the NBA, who have had four players test positive for COVID-19 in recent days.

The Senators announced that the team is now notifying anyone who has had close contact with the player in question—whose identity has not yet been revealed—and that the rest of the team has been asked to stay isolated.

This is the first NHL player to test positive for the disease.

If it was contracted in the Staples Center facilities, it shows just how important it was for both leagues to quickly suspend play. After the Senators played on March 11th, there was due another team—be it NHL or NBA—in one of the visiting locker rooms for each of the next 11 days. The Nets, Houston Rockets, Anaheim Ducks, New Orleans Pelicans, Denver Nuggets, Dallas Mavericks, Montreal Canadiens, Utah Jazz, Boston Bruins, Phoenix Suns, Vancouver Canucks and Arizona Coyotes were all on the schedule from March 12th through 22nd, not to mention the Los Angeles Kings, Clippers and Lakers who would all be sharing the playing surface.

KHL Suspends Playoffs Until April

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Less than 24 hours after announcing it would shut down the playoffs for just one week, the KHL has been forced to take more drastic measures. In accordance with the recommendations of the Russian Minister of Sport, the KHL—along with the Russian Premier Football League and the VTB United Basketball League—has been suspended until April 10. That puts a hold on the league playoffs, which had already seen two teams drop out due to coronavirus directives from their respective countries.

The KHL had been the last professional hockey league to continue operating, but now has an uncertain future. In the press release, the league includes the possibility that the suspension will not be lifted as planned should Russia remain in a state of high alert.

ECHL Expected To Cancel Season

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The ECHL announced that the league will be shutting down for the rest of the season. The ECHL Board of Governors approved the cancelation of both their remaining regular season games as well as the playoffs due to the Coronavirus.

ECHL commissioner Ryan Crelin released a statement:

“The decision by the ECHL to cancel the remainder of the 2019-20 Season does not come lightly, as this is an emotional time for our Players, Coaches, Member Teams, Fans and Staff. At this point in the Season, there has been immense dedication and countless hours committed in moving towards what is traditionally the most exciting part of the hockey year.

With that said however, as each passing day raises additional concerns for the safety of those in the ECHL community and as we take precautionary measures in conjunction with our local authorities across the continent to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, it has become apparent that this is the prudent decision. Our game and our product are based on our Fans and their ability to cheer on their favorite ECHL team and Players at one of our many facilities around the continent. Without that social environment and game atmosphere, the ECHL simply isn’t the same.

“On behalf of the ECHL and our Board of Governors, we appreciate the Professional Hockey Players’ Association for their assistance during this unprecedented time and working as partners in hockey to reach this decision for the best interest of the ECHL and its Players. This decision allows our Players the opportunity to return to their homes and removes the uncertainty that currently exists.

“While we are hopeful that this period ceases and an opportunity to return to normalcy for the hockey calendar presents itself, in the interim, we ask all Fans, Players, Coaches, Officials, and Staff to continue to abide by the measures put in place by their local authorities and follow precautionary protocols for their safety, as we will begin preparations for the 2020-21 ECHL Hockey Season.”

While the AHL and NHL both currently have suspended their seasons, the ECHL is the first of the three to cancel their season. The ECHL announced on Thursday that they had suspended their season due to concerns about the COVID-19 epidemic. The ECHL is the first league in North America to have cancelled their season, although several leagues in Europe have already cancelled their seasons.

Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman was the first to report the news.

 

 

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