NHL suspends 2019-20 season because of coronavirus threat
The National Hockey League has suspended the 2019-20 season because of the spread and threat of the coronavirus, a move that was necessary and many would say inevitable given all the unknowns of the pandemic.
The NHL is calling it a temporary pause to the season, with hopes of a restart “as soon as it is appropriate and prudent,” commissioner Gary Bettman said Thursday in a statement released by the league. Bettman said the goal would be to complete the season and hold the Stanley Cup playoffs.
“I think we did what was obvious that we had to do,” Carolina Hurricanes owner Tom Dundon said in an interview. “Now you just hope that over time we figure out a way to save as much of the season as possible.
“I’m hopeful but I don’t know there’s any way you can know. You just stay ready. We’re assuming at some point we’ll be back but you don’t know.”
The NHL announcement was made Thursday, a day after the NBA suspended its games indefinitely. The NBA decision came after Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert tested positive for the coronavirus.
The NHL, after the NBA announcement, said Wednesday night that the league was reviewing all its options, consulting with medical staff while also talking with teams and owners. The NHL Players Association also was in contact with the teams’ player representatives.
“The NHL has been attempting to follow the mandates of health experts and local authorities, while preparing for any possible developments without taking premature or unnecessary measures,” Bettman said in his statement. “However, following last night’s news that an NBA player had tested positive for coronavirus -- and given that our leagues share so many facilities and locker rooms and it now seems likely that some member of the NHL community would test positive at some point -- it is no longer appropriate to try and continue to play games at this time.”
The NHLPA also issued a statement calling the suspension an appropriate course of action, adding, “The players are looking forward to the opportunity to resume play in front of hockey fans everywhere.”
The NHL first announced Thursday morning that teams were not allowed to hold morning skates, practices or team meetings. The Carolina Hurricanes were in New Jersey for a Thursday game against the Devils but did not have a scheduled morning skate at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.
Dundon said he spoke with Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour and some of the players on Thursday.
“I’ve talked to some folks and obviously it’s disappointing,” he said. “They love to play, right? And we were doing pretty well. But they also understand there’s a lot bigger things going on here than hockey.”
The Hurricanes, who hold a wild-card playoff position in the NHL’s Eastern Conference, were to play the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday at PNC Arena in their first home game after six straight on the road. Their last home game was Feb. 28 against the Colorado Avalanche.
The NHL has 189 games remaining in its NHL schedule. The Canes had 14 games left, with the final game scheduled April 4 in Boston.
The American Hockey League also announced Thursday it was suspending its season, putting the Charlotte Checkers’ season on hold.
The Hurricanes, like other NHL teams, have followed a league directive and restricted media from entering their locker rooms. Players have refrained from autographing items presented to them and other precautions have been made.
The Canes played Tuesday in Detroit against the Red Wings. The team hotel was the Westin Book Cadillac, which had been used by the Jazz, who played the Pistons on Saturday,
It will be the NHL’s first stoppage since the 2012-13 season, when there was a lockout as a new collective bargaining agreement was being negotiated and finally approved. The start of the season was pushed back to January 2013 with a 48-game regular-season schedule and then the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Gov. Roy Cooper on Tuesday declared a state of emergency for North Carolina, with warnings to avoid “mass gatherings” to help slow the spread of COVID-19.
The ACC first decided to hold its men’s tournament in Greensboro, then announced it would continue without fans, then on Thursday canceled it a few minutes before the tipoff of the first quarterfinal game.
This story was originally published March 12, 2020 at 1:37 PM.
