Why Buffalo is frustrated
Sabers beat writer John Vogl: When NHL players agreed to a season, they knew there would be risks. The Sabers believe they were forced to take unnecessary risks. Their radar went off when Zajac was added to the protocol list on Friday. When Palmieri played on Saturday and entered the list on Sunday, the Sabers wanted answers from the league and the Devils. They achieved nothing and had to play. It turns out that they played against 10 Devils who are now out.
Buffalo feels he has taken adequate precautions this season, but was forced into a dangerous situation when playing on Sunday. Now Hall, Ristolainen and anyone in contact with them must be concerned about their health. As the Demons’ situation has shown, more Sabers may end up on the list in the coming days. Buffalo is closed at least until next Tuesday, so there will be a lot of uncertainty. One thing the organization is sure of is that this situation may have been avoided.
How it affects demons
Devils beat writer Corey Masisak: The new Devils names on the COVID-19 protocol list are significant, including the center of the Hughes franchise, linemate Bratt, and top defenders Severson and Smith. There was good news for New Jersey, with the name of Blackwood being removed from the list, but now there are 10 players who played on Saturday and nine who played on Sunday on the COVID-19 protocol.
This should be considered a complete break, and all members of the group traveling to Buffalo and Pittsburgh need to be monitored closely in the coming days.
What’s next for demons?
Masisak: The team was still in Pittsburgh on Tuesday afternoon and the club’s facilities will be closed to everyone on the active roster until at least Saturday. Binghamton, the AHL affiliate, is sharing the facilities and may continue to practice before the season opens on Friday in Newark, a team spokesman said. Devils have three players, including center-back Nico Hischier, who is injured or quarantined waiting to join the squad. This means that they will lose less games.
The biggest concern for the team in the immediate future will be to isolate anyone with a positive result and try to ensure that more players and members of the team’s travel group are not exposed.
Is this a scenario that the league planned?
Scott Burnside, senior editor at NHL: It is hard to imagine that the NHL anticipated so much chaos at the start of the season. Less than three weeks into the season and there is a huge disparity in the number of games due to the outbreaks of COVID-19. As of Monday, 11 of 31 teams had at least one player on the league’s protocol list, meaning they cannot play. But the NHL built more than a week at the end of the season to accommodate such situations.
The crucial question is whether this is the climax with vaccines increasingly available and the warmer climate is approaching or will it plague the NHL until they have to rethink the entire schedule?
(Photo: Timothy T. Ludwig / USA Today)