Game on: NWHL to complete virus-disrupted playoffs in Boston

The National Women’s Hockey League will complete its abbreviated season with two nationally televised semifinals and a championship game some two months after the league suspended its playoffs following a COVID-19 breakout among numerous teams.

The league on Monday announced play will resume outside of Boston with the semifinals on March 26, followed by the Isobel Cup Final the next day. Fans will not be allowed to attend, and the NWHL said it will have “strict health protocols in place,” with daily testing provided to players and staff.

“What matters most for us is to finish this, raise the cup and have a championship and give these athletes a chance to make history and finish what they started,” NWHL Commissioner Tyler Tumminia told The Associated Press

“I wish it was happening tomorrow. The waiting part is the

hard part,” she added, noting last year’s championship game was canceled a day before the final was to be played due to the pandemic. “They haven’t raised the cup in two years, so this is a very emotional thing for them.”

Tumminia also placed an emphasis on the league, teams and players to be more accountable in adhering to safety protocols to prevent a repeat of the disruption, when play was stopped on the eve of the

four-team playoffs at Lake Placid, New York, on Feb. 3.

“We had a pretty tight protocol in place. It was the enforcement, in my mind,” she said. “It’s going to take a deeper collaborative effort from the team’s accountability and leadership, player accountability and league accountability.”

Players broke the protocols by leaving their hotels to tour the town. The NWHL was criticized for allowing teams to shuttle in replacement players after games began, for having teams stay in the same hotel, and allowing teams share the same training personnel.