The National Hockey League has postponed the Calgary Flames' next three games after six of the team's players and one staff member entered the league's COVID-19 protocol.
Elias Lindholm, Chris Tanev, Andrew Mangiapane, Brad Richardson, Adam Ružička, Nikita Zadorov and one member of the training staff entered the protocol within the same 24-hour window.
TSN analyst Craig Button says isn't surprised by the news.
"It would be hard to say you're surprised because I think what you're seeing here with the new variant and the spread of it," Button said.
"Despite you know the protocols being in place we're seeing outbreaks in different places around the National Hockey League."
The team expects the number of positive tests to increase over the next few days and says all of the club's training facilities have been closed.
The Flames next three games have been postponed including:
- Monday night against the Blackhawks in Chicago;
- Tuesday night against the Predators in Nashville; and,
- Thursday night's home tilt against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The earliest the Flames can return to action is on Saturday night and even then it's likely because of protocols they would be shorthanded.
Flames Nation writer Ryan Pike says the team would be affected by quarantine and isolation restrictions in the province.
"It's 10 days from your positive test," Pike said.
"If the positive test was on Sunday then those six players wouldn't be available until I'd say, just counting backward, Wednesday of next week."
Because of the Flames high salary cap situation they can't call anyone up from their American Hockey League affiliate, the Stockton Heat until after Saturday's game.
Meanwhile League officials have yet to announce new dates for the affected games.
The NHL is currently reviewing and revising the Flames' upcoming regular season schedule and additional game postponements are possible.
"The good news is with potentially everybody being vaccinated the risk of severe disease is decreased, so the risk of somebody requiring hospitalization becomes dramatically smaller," said Dr. Craig Jenne, an infectious disease expert from the University of Calgary's Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Infectious Diseases.
"But we also have to remember that these players are no longer in bubbles or cohorts, and although the individuals are vaccinated they do have frequent contact with people outside of the team bubble."
The Flames are the third team to have games postponed because of COVID-19 this season, including the Ottawa Senators and the New York Islanders.
Despite currently riding a four-game losing skid, the longest of the season for the Flames, the club is still off to its hottest start to a season since the team won the cup in 1989.
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMif2h0dHBzOi8vY2FsZ2FyeS5jdHZuZXdzLmNhL2ZsYW1lcy1uZXh0LTMtZ2FtZXMtcG9zdHBvbmVkLWFmdGVyLTYtcGxheWVycy0xLXN0YWZmLW1lbWJlci1lbnRlci1uaGwtcy1jb3ZpZC0xOS1wcm90b2NvbC0xLjU3MDUwNTnSAQA?oc=5
2021-12-13 22:23:07Z
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