Hurricanes enter NHL’s bubble in Toronto, practice without Dougie Hamilton
The Carolina Hurricanes have entered the NHL’s “bubble” in Toronto. And first impressions?
“I kind of attribute it to kind of like when you go on vacation,” Canes forward Justin Williams said Monday in a media call. “You come to the hotel, you see the lay of the land and check it out and see what we’re going to be dealing with.”
For the Canes, the lay of the land is the Fairmont Royal York hotel. That’s home base for the team in the NHL’s protective bubble during the coronavirus pandemic for the league’s Return to Play postseason. That’s where the Canes hope their checkout time isn’t until late September or early October.
And no vacation. The Canes are in Toronto to first beat the New York Rangers in a qualifying round to begin the 2020 postseason, then move on to the Stanley Cup playoffs and win that, too. It’s a no-nonsense, single-minded approach.
The NHL wants to keep it a safe environment for the 24 teams in the postseason. The league announced Monday there had been no positive coronavirus tests reported during the Phase 3 training camps. More than 4,200 tests were conducted for more than 800 players and no COVID-19 positives, the league said.
The NHL report came with the backdrop of baseball’s Miami Marlins saying they now have had 14 players, coaches and staff members test positive for the coronavirus — a different sport and playing scenarios but the kind of outbreak and health calamity everyone fears.
“Definitely the way we’re doing it is the safest, so hopefully we keep it going in the right direction,” Canes forward Jordan Martinook said Monday in a media call.
The players arrived Sunday night to find a nice treat in their rooms: photos of their families, framed and well-placed. That’s a touch of home, Martinook said, and something to help ease the sting of being gone for who knows how long.
“Your team is your family for the foreseeable future,” Martinook said.
The Hurricanes also put in their first practice Monday in Toronto, which Williams said, “For us, that’s normalcy.”
Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour said defenseman Dougie Hamilton again was “unfit to play.” Hamilton missed the final two practices of training camp in Raleigh after leaving he ice in some pain on Wednesday, leaving his status in doubt heading to Toronto.
Brind’Amour addressed the media before the Monday practice but said he did not expect Hamilton to be able to participate.
“It would be great if I get there and I’m told otherwise, but I don’t think that’s going to happen,” Brind’Amour said.
Hamilton missed the last 21 games of the regular season before the league’s March 12 pause after suffering a broken left fibula, but no information has been released about his training-camp injury. A player is either on the ice and available or his absence described as “unfit to play,” which could indicate an injury or a positive test for the coronavirus.
Brind’Amour still has lineup decisions to make. He’ll use Wednesday’s exhibition game against the Washington Capitals to set the lines and defensive pairings, and pick a starting goaltender before the qualifier with the Rangers begins Saturday at Scotiabank Arena.
“You kind of want to look at everything and get guys reps at everything, and in all situations,” Brind’Amour said. “That would be ideal. Get the rust off and assess what you need to work on. In general I think the guys just want to get back on the ice and see where they’re at, where their game is at and feel confident they’ve got the rust off.”
Williams said it will be good to get in some contact work against an opponent, to throw the body around a little.
“I’m going to throw a few hits but I’m not going to hurt anybody,” he joked.
Nor, he said, did he expect anyone to be jumping in front of an Alex Ovechkin one-timer to block a shot.
“But we’re going to be out there playing hard, getting ourselves as close to ready as we can get,” Williams said.
CANES-RANGERS QUALIFYING ROUND
(best of five)
Game 1: Saturday, Aug. 1, Noon
Game 2: Monday, Aug. 3, Noon
Game 3: Tuesday, Aug. 4, Noon
*Game 4: Thursday, Aug. 6, TBD
*Game 5: Saturday, Aug. 8, TBD
* -- If necessary
This story was originally published July 27, 2020 at 1:07 PM.
