COVID-19 uncertainty reminiscent of 2020
EDMONTON, Alberta — The last time the Blue Jackets played Vancouver in Canada, on March 8, 2020, the NHL shut down four days later as the COVID-19 pandemic took hold in full force. Twenty-one months later, the Jackets are back in Canada, and the COVID-19 situation around the league feels almost uncertain as it did then.
In recent days, escalating numbers of positive tests on numerous teams have seemed reminiscent of the early days of the pandemic, when the situation changed hourly and no one knew exactly what was going to happen.
"Every day, you just don't know," Jackets coach Brad Larsen said before Tuesday's 4-3 loss to the Vancouver Canucks. "You see it. The phone keeps popping up. Guys are getting sick, and it's going around. You just do what you can to manage it. You social distance.
We do the stuff we can on our end, and then we go from there."
At the time Larsen spoke, two Canucks were on the COVID-19 protocol lists with positive tests. By the time the puck dropped, the number was three, and a fourth player, defenseman Tucker Poolman, was pulled from the game after the first period when his test came back positive.
By Wednesday afternoon, as the Jackets traveled from Vancouver to Edmonton for Thursday's game against the Oilers, the ongoing outbreak on the Calgary Flames had worsened enough that the NHL extended their pause and postponed Saturday's scheduled game between Calgary and Columbus.
Per Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, the NHL notified teams Wednesday that enhanced
protocols, including daily testing and required masking in team facilities, will be in effect until at least Jan. 7.
"Obviously, you don't want to get stuck over Christmas in Canada," said Jakub Voracek. "I look at it that way. The family is back home. I want to get through that. … Tested today, hopefully we're all going to be negative and we go from there. There's not much you can do."
Chinakhov returns to lineup
When rookie forward Yegor Chinakhov was a healthy scratch for the season opener on Oct. 14, Larsen was adamant that the Jackets wouldn't ever sideline him for long.
"He's not going to sit here and not play,," Larsen said at the time. The next day, Chinakhov was sent to the AHL'S Cleveland Monsters, where he played one game before returning to the NHL club.
Chinakhov appeared in 18 of the Jackets' 20 games after being called back up, scoring one goal and adding three assists in that time. But after a loss to the Washington Capitals on Dec. 4, Chinakhov was a healthy scratch for the next five games.
After the Jackets gave up four unanswered goals to lose to 4-3 to the Canucks, Larsen's thinking changed. Gregory Hofmann came out of the lineup, opening the door for Chinakhov to return against the Oilers.