NHL players weigh risks, look for information as Olympic decision looms
Global News
NHLers started to learn over the last number of days what a positive COVID-19 test could mean while they're away chasing gold in China.
NHL players had been expressing an overwhelming desire to take part in the Beijing Olympics.
After the league skipped the sporting showcase four years ago, it could be the last chance for some of the game’s current stars — including Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin — to compete under a unique, global spotlight.
And for others — like Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews — it’s their first opportunity.
It’s also seems less and less likely with each passing day.
NHLers started to learn over the last number of days what a positive COVID-19 test could mean while they’re away chasing gold in China.
And it isn’t pretty.
The International Olympic Committee’s playbook states an athlete that tests positive for COVID-19 in China will need to produce two negative results 24 hours apart. If they’re unable to do so, players have been told the quarantine period could last between 21 days and five weeks, which would be governed by Chinese law.
That would mean potentially missing most or all of March’s NHL schedule — while isolating on the other side of the world — when the majority of teams are ramping up for a playoff push.