[UPDATE: The Penguins were 5-2 winners without their captain.]
The Penguins announced that Sidney Crosby will be added to the NHL’s COVID protocol list, and won’t play against the Flyers on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET, NBCSN). Mike Sullivan also notes that the team canceled their Tuesday morning skate due to COVID protocols.
While Crosby was placed on the COVID protocol list, it’s not a guarantee that he tested positive.
From the NHL:
Along with Tuesday’s game, the Penguins are also currently scheduled to face the Flyers on Thursday and Saturday. From there, the Penguins face the Rangers on Sunday and Tuesday (March 9).
It’s not immediately clear if Crosby will miss more games. Teams are not required to say exactly how long a player on the COVID list might be out.
As of Monday, there were four players on the NHL COVID protocol list: John Hayden (Coyotes), Patrik Nemeth (Red Wings), Kaapo Kakko (Rangers) and Tomas Hertl (Sharks).
We’ve seen other prominent NHL players reach the COVID protocol list, whether they tested positive or not. Alex Ovechkin and Connor McDavid rank among the most noteworthy, and now Sidney Crosby is included in that group.
Again, the specifics regarding Crosby landing on the COVID protocol list are not yet clear, though.
Reminders of NHL COVID protocol after Crosby lands on list
Back in December, the NHL detailed the procedure for players who tested positive for COVID -- from those who are symptomatic to those who are asymptomatic. Here’s how that procedure would work out.
• For symptomatic players that test positive. From the league protocol:
And the protocol for symptomatic players that test negative.
• For asymptomatic players that have an initial positive test the following procedure will be followed.
- Following the initial positive, the player will be isolated and contact tracing will begin.
- A confirmatory test will be conducted 24 hours later. If that test is negative, a second test will be conducted 24 hours after that. If that second test is negative, a third confirmatory test will be conducted 24 hours after that. If any of those tests come back positive the player will remain isolated and contact tracing will continue.
- If all three confirmatory tests come back negative the player will be allowed to exit isolation, resume training, while the contacts will also be released from isolation.
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James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.