CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. — The resumption of the NHL’s 2019-20 schedule remains uncertain in the face of the coronavirus (COVID-19 strain) pandemic.
However, the league is reportedly considering all options to complete the regular season and stage the Stanley Cup playoffs.
NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said Friday the current local coronavirus precautions in 25 of its 31 markets makes it difficult to reopen team facilities in those cities. He also acknowledged government and health authorities control the timetable for a resumption of the schedule. Nevertheless, Daly felt the league has some time to work with. It has already asked for arena availability through August and could push back the start of next season.
Among the alternatives is holding neutral-site games televised live without fans in the stands. Daly indicated it wasn’t the league’s preferred option, but it was under consideration.
Some pundits speculate the NHL would require between four and eight locations with suitable facilities to hold its games. Daly claimed several cities and venues across North America have contacted the league offering themselves as neutral-site locations. He didn’t elaborate, but recent reports suggested Grand Forks, N.D., Manchester, N.H., and Saskatoon, Sask., could be among the destinations. Daly also dismissed the possibility of holding neutral-site games in Europe.
Finding appropriate venues in non-NHL cities is one thing. The logistics of staging the remainder of the schedule and the playoffs in a compressed summer schedule would be daunting.
The players, teams’ staff, league officials, arena workers, security and broadcast crews would have to be isolated from the general public for the duration to avoid COVID-19 contamination.
Each team would also require a number of its minor-league players to be available to draw upon in case of injuries. Should an injured player require hospitalization, his absence could be longer than normal because he’d likely have to self-isolate for 14 days once released from the hospital.
Suitable accommodation, meal service, transportation and training facilities would also be necessary. All personnel involved in those services must also be isolated from the public and compensated for their efforts.
Proper COVID-19 testing would have to be done for everyone involved on a daily basis. Depending on the location, there could be insufficient medical staff and facilities available to reach this requirement.
Attempts to introduce a measure of social distancing into the game would be impossible for a physical team sport like hockey. The players and coaches also cannot sit or stand two metres apart on the cramped benches and in their dressing rooms.
All of this would require a herculean effort by the NHL. Even then, it won’t be foolproof. It’ll only take one person to contract the coronavirus and everything would be immediately shut down for at least 14 days to contain the spread. That would blow apart a shortened schedule already lacking room for error.
Neutral-site games sound easy in theory. The cost in manpower and dollars, however, could prove too complicated for the NHL to pull off.
Lyle Richardson is a freelance writer with the Sporting News and runs the website Spector’s Hockey. His column will appear in The Guardian throughout the NHL hockey season.
