–
National Hockey Leagues (NHL), only two cases of Covid-19 infection were detected during the first five days of the third phase of the return plan, NHL.
From July 13 to 17, 2,618 tests were performed on more than 800 players, two of whom became infected with Covid-19.
It has already been reported that in the second phase, the NHL tested 600 players on 4934 Covid-19 tests, 30 of which were positive. Outside the second phase protocol, another 13 cases of infection were detected in hockey players who had not joined the teams in individual training at that time.
A week ago, training camps were opened, followed by a 24-team tournament in two Canadian cities, Edmonton and Toronto.
The teams will travel to Edmonton and Toronto on July 26, where the qualifying round for the Stanley Cup playoffs will begin on August 1.
Club owners and players have already agreed on a format for 24 team elimination games. It envisages a series of up to three wins in the “play-off” qualifying round, followed by a switch to the traditional series format for up to four wins.
The league and the players’ union also agreed that the playoffs would not take place in the traditional grid, when each team knows with which pair the winner will play the next round, and the teams will be re-seeded after each round.
–
