CANUCKS’ LOCKER-ROOM FACES MUMPS OUTBREAK
Already hit by a suspected mumps outbreak, the Canucks are bracing for more.
The contagious — and sometimes dangerous — virus has seemingly swept through Vancouver’s locker-room and could prevent as many as five Canucks from playing tonight against the visiting San Jose Sharks.
One player, Troy Stecher, has a confirmed case and the team was still waiting Friday night for test results from Chris Tanev, Nikita Tryamkin, Markus Granlund and Michael Chaput.
The virus, however, has an incubation period of up to 25 days, said Dr. Reka Gustafson, a Vancouver Coastal Health medical officer, meaning none of the Canucks are out of the woods.
“You won’t know. The doctor just met with us and said it could take up to 15 days before the virus reacts,” Alex Burrows said. “The next couple of weeks might be really interesting.”
The five suspected cases showed symptoms within a few days of each other, suggesting they were all exposed to the same source.
Vancouver GM Jim Benning said the first player exhibited symp- toms on Monday and by Wednesday the team started examining a potential mumps outbreak.
Head coach Willie Desjardins said he learned that player was Tanev during a phone call Wednesday at 9 p.m.
The coach said there is a chance Tanev could play tonight because it will be past the five-day quarantine period.
“I think Tanev has had it the longest, so I think he may be through that stage,” Desjardins said. “But then it comes down to how do you feel? Who knows how he will be feeling or where he’s at.”
The five players who are the suspected cases were all in isolation Friday.
The Canucks have recalled defenceman Evan McEneny and forward Alex Grenier. They likely still have to recall one more forward to have enough to play tonight.
Tanev was on the Canucks in 2014 following an NHL outbreak when there was a leaguewide immunization program, meaning he likely had two full doses of the mumps, measles and rubella (MMR) vaccine.
Otherwise, Gustafson said, only Canadian players born after 1994 would have automatically had the recommended two doses. She explained the full two doses provide about 88 per cent protection against the virus.
“Even when everyone is immunized it is possible to have some outbreak,” Gustafson said. “Though, those outbreaks will be significantly smaller if the majority of people are immunized.”
Gustafson said in the past week there were two reported cases of the mumps outside of the Canucks.
“Normally we don’t see many mumps at all,” Gustafson said. “We haven’t seen any in quite some time. But we have had periodic outbreaks, including a number in Whistler a few years ago.”
She said it was confirmed one of the five suspected cases on the Canucks had the full vaccination, while it was unclear if the others had a full vaccination, or just one dose or none at all.
Burrows said he thought most of the veterans had the full vaccine during the NHL’s 2014 program, but the Canucks’ front office is still concerned there could be more cases.
“We’re sitting here with our fingers crossed,” Benning said.
“We don’t know if there will be more. If anyone else calls in with swollen glands, or they’re sick or they’re not feeling well, we will get going right away on the process and get their blood work done.”
Mumps is spread through saliva and respiratory droplets, making a hockey team a potential breeding ground, because players are constantly close to each other and sometimes share water bottles.
Tanev had symptoms the longest, but it has not been confirmed he had the mumps. The virus is most infectious from seven days before to five days after a person has symptoms.
“Knowing (Tanev), he probably felt the muscle aches and probably just felt it was the grind of the NHL season and he didn’t think too much of it,” Burrows said.
“But once your neck starts to swell up on you, obviously you have to call the doctor. Hopefully, he’s back sooner than later and can come and help us out down the stretch.” ICE CHIPS: The Canucks have called up Jordan Subban and Joe LaBate, but waited until the end of Friday’s Utica Comets AHL game to do so. The Comets won 2-1 against the Wilkes- Barre/Scranton Penguins.