NHL concerned about Canucks’ COVID-19 protocol situation

<p> VANCOUVER, British Columbia &mdash; The National Hockey League’s deputy commissioner says the Vancouver Canucks’ COVID-19 outbreak is concerning, but he remains confident the team will be able to complete its schedule.</p>
<p>In an email to The Canadian Press on Monday, Bill Daly says the Canucks’ numbers are “concerning from a health and safety standpoint, not necessarily from a scheduling standpoint.”</p>
<p>Daly says the league believes the Canucks will return and conclude their 56-game schedule. He also says the league will not change its COVID protocols in the aftermath of the Canucks’ situation. </p>
<p>After forward Adam Gaudette’s positive test came back last Tuesday, practice continued without him and last Wednesday morning’s skate went ahead.</p>
<p>Sixteen of the 22 players on the Canucks’ active roster were on the NHL’s protocol list as of Sunday. A player on the list has not necessarily tested positive, but any player who does test positive must self-isolate for 10 days. The list is updated every day.</p>
<p>The Canucks have had four games postponed because of the virus. Their next scheduled game is Thursday in Calgary against the Flames.</p>
<p>The Canucks and NHL have not commented publicly on results of tests since the Canucks confirmed Gaudette had tested positive last week.</p>
<p>The biggest previous COVID-19 outbreaks in the NHL were all in the U.S.</p>
<p>The Dallas Stars had their first four games postponed after 17 players tested positive, most of whom were asymptomatic.</p>
<p>The New Jersey Devils had 19 players on the COVID protocol list and seven games postponed, while the Buffalo Sabres had nine players on the list and six games postponed.</p>
<p>The Canucks’ outbreak comes with the vaccine rollout going slower in Canada than in many states in the U.S.</p>
<p>“There’s two different countries, different rules, different situations,” Calgary Flames center Mikael Backlund said. “There’s nothing we can do about it really. We’ve just got to wait for our turn.”</p>
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