Sixteen months after choosing Canada as the safest place to complete its season, the NHL now faces a series of hurdles north of the border that complicate its bid to power through the pandemic all over again.
The league postponed nine more games Tuesday – all of them in Canada – and cited attendance restrictions in Montreal, Winnipeg, Toronto, Ottawa and Calgary. It also moved a Jan. 12 game in Montreal between the Bruins and Canadiens to Boston.
With 80 games now postponed this season, the NHL hopes to shift the games in Canada to later in the season “when such restrictions may be eased or lifted.”
More than other leagues, the NHL heavily relies on ticket sales revenue.
Attendance limits are only one piece of the NHL’s Canada problem.
The NFL and NBA can swiftly move to adopt shorter isolation periods for those who test positive for the coronavirus in accordance with new guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the two leagues also can consider not testing asymptomatic, vaccinated players.
The NHL with seven teams north of the border must balance stricter COVID-19 regulations set by Canadian federal and provincial authorities.
“We have always had the issue of differing rules in different jurisdictions, so it’s not a new challenge,” Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said in an email to The Associated Press on Tuesday, hours before play resumed after an extended holiday break. “(We are) navigating choppy waters the best we can.”
The CDC recommendation to trim quarantine time from 10 to five days prompted an NHL review of its virus protocols. But there is little evidence Canada is ready to move like the U.S. toward looser rules as provinces clamp down on crowd sizes and impose additional restrictions.
The American Hockey League, which has 26 teams in the U.S. and five in Canada, is wrestling with the same issues. The AHL has so far postponed 61 games and is trying to play as many as possible without widespread disruption.
The NHL is testing players, coaches and staff daily through Jan. 7 as part of enhanced virus protocols, which include a return to mask-wearing and restrictions for road teams. Taxi squads are back until the All-Star break to try to keep the season going.
BLACKHAWKS: Forward Jujhar Khaira could return when the team visits Nashville on Saturday.
Khaira hasn’t played since he was stretchered off the ice following a big hit by New York Rangers defenseman Jacob Trouba on Dec. 7. Khaira spent the night in the hospital, and the team cited the NHL’s concussion protocol when it placed him on injured reserve.
The Blackhawks’ matchup with the Predators is their first game since Dec. 18.
Forward Tyler Johnson also is feeling better after he had neck surgery on Dec. 3. Johnson skated after the team practiced on Tuesday.
TUESDAY’S GAME
LIGHTNING 5, CANADIENS 4: Ondrej Palat scored 36 seconds into overtime after Corey Perry tied it late in the third period, and Tampa Bay beat visiting Montreal in the first NHL game following an extended holiday break.
Perry got the equalizer with 19.7 seconds left in regulation and the Lightning net empty before Palat won it off a pass from Victor Hedman.
It was the first NHL game since the Lightning won 4-3 at Vegas on Dec. 21 in the only game played that night. Dozens more were postponed over the past week-plus as the league turned a Christmas break scheduled to last three days into a six-day hiatus because of COVID-19 outbreaks and protocols.
Tampa Bay had six players and Coach Jon Cooper unavailable in COVID-19 protocols. Montreal had nine players in protocols, including starting goalie Jake Allen.