How To Save the NHL Season

According to ESPN, there are currently 70 NHL players - roughly 10 percent of the league - who are in Covid protocol. Given the way the new Omicron variant is spreading throughout both the U.S. and Canada, that number is expected to rise, if not double, within the next few days.

Breakout infections have forced the Calgary Flames, Nashville Predators, Boston Bruins, Colorado Avalanche and Florida Panthers to shutdown operations until after Christmas. There have been calls for a league-wide pause through the holidays. In some Canadian cities, attendance at arenas has been restricted to 50 percent capacity. Montreal went so far as to bar all fans from the Bell Centre during a recent game between the Canadiens and the Flyers.

In response to the situation, the league, in conjunction with the Player's Association, agreed to the following changes in its Covid protocol:

• All players will be subjected to daily testing.
• Masks will be worn by all players, coaches and trainers at club facilities.
• While on the road, social distancing must be maintained during team meals.
• There will be no indoor eating or drinking in restaurants or bars open to the public.

While all these measures are laudable, they are unlikely to be successful. Indeed, daily testing will all but guarantee that the number of positive results will rise precipitously. And as for a league-wide pause, this is the worst time of year to do something like that. Sending 700 players home for the holidays to mingle with family and friends would be like pouring lighter fluid on a fire.

So what should Gary Bettman, et al do?

Fortunately, the NHL doesn't have to look very far. The NFL has already provided them, and the NBA, with a template. Faced with their own outbreaks that have decimated teams and forced the postponement of several games this weekend, league officials came up with a solution they believe will save the season and the playoffs.

• All unvaccinated players will continue to get tested daily, and if they test positive will be quarantined.
• Vaccinated players who are symptomatic will be isolated and tested immediately, and if they test positive will be quarantined.
• Vaccinated players who are asymptomatic will not undergo mandatory testing.
• High-risk players may opt out of the rest of the season, including the playoffs.

I would also add the following to this list:

• The Beijing Olympics are off as far as player participation is concerned, and the All-star game will be canceled. The league will use the three weeks in February to make-up the games that were postponed.
• All players and team personnel who are eligible to receive booster shots will be required to get them.

Now before you accuse me of being part of the anti-vaxxer mob, let me just say up front that the reason we are in this predicament is because roughly one third of the country has refused to do the right thing. The simple truth is that had every single person who was able to get vaccinated done so, we'd be close to, if not at, herd immunity, and we would not now be seeing the rash of Covid infections that have forced every professional sports league to postpone games. When historians sit down to write this chapter in American history, there will be a lot of head scratching and references to Ripley's Believe It or Not.

But here's the thing: the overwhelming majority of players in pro sports are fully vaccinated; in the NHL, only one player - Tyler Bertuzzi - is unvaccinated. The majority of players who have tested positive are either asymptomatic or have mild symptoms. One player on the Maple Leafs reported having fever, chills and body aches. Compared to the population at large, the NHL is a virtual panacea. While eliminating mandatory testing would no doubt spread the virus even more than it is currently spreading, there are steps the league can take - such as mandatory masks and social distancing - to mitigate the risk to the players.

I seriously don't see anyway that sports as we know it can continue to move forward unless a sense of pragmatism is adopted. Daily testing and pausing the schedule simply will not cut it. Each variant that comes along appears to be more transmissible than the previous one, and while the jury's still out as to whether Omicron leads to milder or worse illness, what we do know is this: fully vaccinated people with booster shots fare much better.

Bottom line: protect the players as much as possible, but let them play. If the league needs to impose additional restrictions in order to protect its staff and the fans, it can do so while not compromising the integrity of the games. To require a team to play with as much as one third of its roster in Covid protocol is simply unacceptable, especially when, as stated above, the majority of those players are asymptomatic. And it's a slap in the face to the loyal fans who pay good money to attend the games.

P.S., the NHL announced on Sunday that all games involving cross-border travel have been suspended until after the Christmas break, including Wednesday's game between the Rangers and Canadiens at the Garden.