Players hesitant to get vaccinated risking jobs

Let the public shaming begin.

On the first day of NHL training camp, William Nylander stood at the podium, a blue mask covering his nostrils and mouth. On one hand, it was a sign of the times we're living in. And yet, considering he was the only Toronto Maple Leafs player whose face had to be hidden behind a piece of medical-grade cloth, it was also a sign that something with him was amiss.

Unlike his teammates, Nylander isn't fully vaccinated against COVID -19. At least, not yet.

“I had a couple of medical things I needed to take care of and I'll be fully vaccinated by the beginning of the season,” said the 25-year-old. “I just want to do the right thing. I think being vaccinated is going to help everybody — I mean, help the team and achieve our end goal. So, it was a pretty easy choice.”

It was a choice, mind you, that Nylander delayed making until the very start of training camp — and which was likely motivated by the fact that, according to the NHL'S COVID protocol, unvaccinated players who can't cross the border into Canada or the United States will be suspended and will have to forfeit the equivalent of a day's pay for every day missed.

For someone earning close to US$7 million this season, it's a lot of money to potentially leave on the table. Even still, the decision to get jabbed wasn't as easy for every player.

While NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly boasted last week that 98 per cent of the league's players are expected to be fully vaccinated — a number that the other major sports leagues must be envious of — there are still some notable holdouts.

Detroit Red Wings forward Tyler Bertuzzi isn't vaccinated yet. Neither is Calgary Flames goalie Tyler Parsons. New Jersey Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald said the team has an unvaccinated player who “we're trying to help (get) through this.” The Edmonton Oilers, meanwhile, have one player who is unvaccinated, another in Duncan Keith who will have to quarantine throughout training camp because he waited too long to get the vaccine, and a third player in goalie Alex Stalock, who is likely out for the season because of a COVID -related heart condition.

The Columbus Blue Jackets fired assistant coach Sylvain Lefebvre when he refused to get vaccinated, while forward Zac Rinaldo, who told The Hamilton Spectator that “I'm not anti-vax, I'm not anti-mask — I'm pro choice,” was assigned to the minors.

One of the reasons why the Vancouver Canucks missed the playoffs last season was an outbreak of COVID-19 in March, that saw at least 21 players and four members of the coaching staff test positive. The team was forced to sit out for 24 days.

“I got vaccinated,” Vancouver forward J.T. Miller said on Wednesday. “I did what I had to do to be here and do my job.”