NHL tells players to go home
The NHL is pushing back the possibility of resuming its season for several weeks, if not a month or more.
The league and NHL Players' Association told players Monday they can go home – even out of North America – and must selfisolate through March 27 while the season is on hold amid the coronavirus pandemic. But the NHL also cautioned that it will not be able to even provide guidance on the potential reopening of team practices for another 45 days, which could make May the earliest possible restart date.
The new directives come on the heels of the CDC's recommendation against gatherings of 50 or more people in the U.S. for the next eight weeks because of the coronavirus pandemic. Under the NHL's new timeline, it would mean facilities would not be opened until late April at the earliest.
“I think in light of the CDC recommendations, it's hard to foresee that we're looking at much happening here in March or even April, in my opinion,” agent Jay Grossman said.
The league said “depending on world developments,” consideration will be given to reopening practice facilities after the selfquarantine period ends in late March.
Players previously were directed to stay in their team's city and wait.
The league and union had discussed the possibility of players returning to team training facilities within the next week or so, but that plan has similarly changed. Those facilities are currently closed to players.
The American Hockey League, which includes the Milwaukee Admirals, announced that the indefinite suspension of its regular season won't be lifted before May.
The league also announced it is recommending its teams work on returning players to their primary residences.
AUTO RACING
NASCAR has suspended its season until May as part of the CDC's recommendation to postpone gatherings for the next eight weeks because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The decision came after at least two Monday conference calls between the sanctioning body and its team owners. It affects seven total races – Atlanta and Homestead had already been postponed.
The series plans to return to the track at Martinsville Speedway in Virginia on May 9.
IndyCar and Formula One both canceled last weekend's seasonopening races, IndyCar has suspended the season through the end of April and F1 said upcoming races in Bahrain, Vietnam and China are postponed.
IndyCar's 17-race schedule has been hit hard by the coronavirus because street races in St. Petersburg, Florida, and Long Beach, California, have been canceled outright. Two road course events in Birmingham, Alabama, and Austin, Texas, could be rescheduled.
NHRA postponed the 51st annual Gatornationals last weekend. The next scheduled event was
April 3-5 at Las Vegas but the sanctioning body Monday suspended the season 30 days. NHRA said it intends to resume events April 1719 in Houston.
TRACK AND FIELD
The Penn Relays, one of the oldest and largest track meets in the nation, has been canceled in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
The Penn Relays were scheduled for April 23-25 and had been held uninterrupted since 1895.
The event celebrated its 125th consecutive running last year.
The Philadelphia-based University of Pennsylvania says it will attempt to host a substitute track meet at a later date in late May or early June. The new event wouldn't meet the standard Penn Relays format. The three-day event would shorten into a oneday event for youth, high school and open runners.
The Penn Relays has adapted to worldwide conditions in the past.
The meet was altered in 1917 and 1918 when several colleges, including most Ivy League institutions, curtailed their track programs during World War I.
During World War II, travel restrictions reduced participation and spectator attendance while gas rationing was in effect in 1943 and 1944.
TENNIS
The women's professional tour has suspended all competition until May 2 because of the coronavirus outbreak.
The WTA says it is calling off clay-court tournaments in Stuttgart, Istanbul and Prague, adding those to a list of events previously canceled.
Each of those three tournaments was scheduled to begin in April.
The tour says a decision will be made “in the week ahead” about the rest of the European clay-court circuit.