St. Louis Blues goalie Jordan Binnington is so accustomed to wearing a mask, he didnāt mind doing so for the past four months during the coronavirus pandemic.
āSometimes, I forgot Iām wearing it while driving,ā Binnington said Monday, when the Blues were among the NHLās 24 teams to open training camp for the upcoming playoffs. āYou make fun of those people who are driving by themselves with a mask on, but I sometimes forget.ā
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Goalies werenāt the only ones wearing masks as the NHL hit the ice, en masse, in the first full glimpse of hockeyās return since the regular season was placed on pause March 12.
Masked equipment managers patrolled the benches, clearing them of water bottles and towels following practices. In Nashville, general manager David Poile, 70, wore one while watching the Predators practice from a private suite.
And in Dallas, Stars interim coach Rick Bowness wore a mask while observing practice from an empty bench. At 65, he wasnāt taking any chances.
āI was going to err on the side of caution. Iām still very nervous about the COVID, and we havenāt tested our players since last Thursday,ā Bowness said. Once results come back, he intends to return to the ice, perhaps as early as Wednesday
Players and staff all have their eyes on resuming the season with an expanded 24-team playoff set to begin in two hub cities - Toronto and Edmonton, Alberta, -- on Aug. 1.
āOn the ice is normal,ā Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin said. āOn the ice is same rules what we have before. But soon as you step off the ice in the locker room, everybody have to wear a mask. Itās kind of weird, but Iām pretty sure weāre going to get used to it.ā
Players and everyone else who will be spending up to two months inside the ābubble" ā including hotel staff, bus drivers and arena workers ā will have no other choice but to get accustomed to the new reality if the NHL hopes to complete its most unique season. Once games resume, they will be played in empty arenas, with as many as three games played per day at each site, and with the Stanley Cup awarded in late September at the earliest.
There is no guarantee the league will be able to pull it off.
Though the familiar sound of pucks, skates and sticks echoed through arenas once again, the reminders of COVID-19 were also prevalent.
The NHL announced that 43 players had tested positive for the coronavirus from June 8 through the end of the leagueās optional workouts. In Toronto, star forward Auston Matthews confirmed he tested positive while spending the break at his home in Arizona last month.
āIt was the safest place to be,. And then obviously things flipped pretty quickly there,ā Matthews said. āI did my quarantine, and Iām feeling healthy now, so itās all good.ā
In Pittsburgh, the Penguins voluntarily sidelined nine players after learning they may have had secondary exposure to a person testing positive for COVID-19. NHL rules barred the Penguins from revealing who the players were, but the most notable player not on the ice was forward Patric Hornqvist.
Captain Sidney Crosby remained upbeat.
āItās a matter of everyone working together and doing our best to be safe,ā Crosby said. āWhether you are a player or a fan, you miss the game. You also have to understand the seriousness of whatās around you. Weāre trying to find a balance for that... Iām optimistic.ā
It was a far different story in Denver, where the Avalanche had nearly a fully complement of players practicing, which is a considerable turnaround. Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen, Nazem Kadri, Cale Makar and goalie Philipp Grubauer were among the formerly injured players back on the ice, with only center Colin Wilson deemed not fit to play.
āThe fun thing about returning now, after having some time off and jumping right into the most important time of year, is that youāre going to see everyoneās best players healthy, rested,ā coach Jared Bednar said. āWeāre all anxious and champing at the bit ready to go, which should be a lot of fun.ā
In St. Louis, the defending champion Blues welcomed back scoring star Vladimir Tarasenko, who sustained a major injury to his shoulder 10 games into the season and was projected to miss five months.
āItās a nice little secret weapon weāve had all year, waiting to come back,ā defenseman Alex Pietrangelo said of Tarasenko. āSeemed like a pretty seamless transition, jumping back in with the rest of us.ā
In Nashville, coach John Hynes drew out plays on a white board at the edge of the ice, with players gathered closely around him. Inside the arena, half the seats inside the lower bowl stayed stacked away, leaving concrete around much of the ice.
Nashville goalie Pekka Rinne said the unknowns and questions left him concerned during his return from his native Finland to the United States. Now, the 37-year-old goalie feels much more comfortable after seeing the protocols being used.
āWe come to the Bridgestone Arena and you could eat off the floor,ā Rinne said. āI mean, itās clean. Itās a safe place so far.ā
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AP Hockey Writers Stephen Whyno and Larry Lage, and AP Sports Writers Stephen Hawkins, Jay Cohen, Mitch Stacey and The Canadian Press contributed. Wawrow reported from Buffalo, N.Y., and Walker from Nashville, Tenn.
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