Bettman said that the NHL is in regular communication with the other three major U.S. sports leaguesGETTY IMAGES
The NHL is "not allowing its employees to make work-related trips outside of North America in response to the global fears over the coronavirus, and if any of those employees go on their own to a country where the virus has been found they will be quarantined before being able to return to work," according to Tim Reynolds of the AP. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman, speaking at the conclusion of GM meetings in Boca Raton yesterday, said that the league has told its 31 teams they are "free to adopt a similar policy, though he stopped short of saying it would be a mandate as concerns of the virus continue to grow." Reynolds noted scouts who are in Europe are "staying in Europe, and if they return to North America they will be quarantined." Bettman said that the NHL is "in regular communication with the other three major North American sports leagues, as well as health experts in both the U.S. and Canada." Reynolds noted the NHL "hasn’t gone as far as the NBA did earlier this week," when it sent a memo to teams on Sunday suggesting that players "limit high-fives with fans and be hesitant to touch markers and items in autograph-seeking situations" (AP, 3/4).
BREAKDOWN: SPORTSNET.ca's Elliotte Friedman cited one NHL exec who "used the word 'spooked' to describe how teams and the league are reacting to the coronavirus." Meanwhile, others said that they are "trying not to jump to any conclusions." Friedman reported there is a team that "cancelled a scouting trip to Russia." However, another NHL exec said that his team "still planned to go because this is such a huge Draft for their organization" (SPORTSNET.ca, 3/4). In Toronto, Michael Traikos reports for now, the NHL is "not preparing for the possibility of hosting games without any fans in the arena." Bettman: "At this point, it would be premature to pick any one of the possibilities, especially because it may or may not become necessary in North America." He added, "We’ll deal with it if the time comes" (TORONTO SUN, 3/5).
