Breaking: 3 more NHL games have been postponned.
3 games have been postponed.
The National Hockey League has now officially postponed 3 more games on the schedule bringing the total number that have already been delayed this season to a whopping 67 games.
On Sunday night the NHL and the National Hockey League Players Association released a joint statement in which they announced modifications to the collective bargaining agreement as well as additional delays in the schedule that will impact 6 different teams. The teams impacted are the Boston Bruins, Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Pittsburgh Penguins, Ottawa Senators and Toronto Maple Leafs.
The changes to the CBA will primarily be changes designed to help teams get through the season in spite of the current outbreak of Covid cases around the league, which means that as many predicted we will in fact see the return of Taxi Squads in the NHL.
Here is the league's statement on the matter, unedited and in full:
The National Hockey League Player’s Association and the National Hockey League today announced agreement on the temporary formation of “Taxi Squads” as well as temporary changes to the Collective Bargaining Agreement to address issues related to the ongoing COVID pandemic.
As well, three additional games have been postponed for COVID-related reasons: Columbus-Chicago on Dec. 28 and Pittsburgh-Toronto and Boston-Ottawa on Dec. 29. All other games currently scheduled, beginning with those on Dec. 28, remain slotted to be played on their scheduled dates.
The League and the NHLPA will continue to monitor test results and teams’ readiness to play over the coming days and weeks. A variety of factors will be considered when assessing whether a game should be postponed – including the number of players unavailable to a team due to COVID, the risk of further COVID transmission within a team, a Club’s access to Players from its minor league affiliate, and potential roster issues that may arise due to Player shortages, among other factors. The health and safety of all Players and Club Personnel remain the number one priority and games will continue to be postponed to the extent health and safety concerns warrant.
Not the news fans were hoping for, and hopefully the last announcement of its kind this season.
