On Friday around 1 PM, it was announced that there were new restrictions in British Columbia due to the spike of COVID-19 cases and the Omicron variant. It was announced the Vancouver Canucks would be reducing capacity for games at Rogers Arena to 50%.
NEW - Limiting venues of 1,000 individuals or more to 50% of the seated capacity with reinforced masking requirements and scanning of the BC Vaccine Card QR code. #bcpoli
— Richard Zussman (@richardzussman) December 17, 2021
It was first reported by Sportsnet 650’s Randip Janda on Friday morning. The capacity limit starts on Monday, December 20. That means the Canucks will have full capacity games for their weekend games against the Toronto Maple Leafs and Arizona Coyotes.
I'm told venues in BC with a 1,000 person capacity or more will be limited to 50% capacity as of Monday December 20th until the end of January. Meaning #Canucks games will be at half capacity after this weekend.
— Randip Janda (@RandipJanda) December 17, 2021
The Canucks made the announcement official shortly after three.
Canucks Sports & Entertainment (CSE) released the following statement today regarding COVID-19 capacity limits.
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) December 17, 2021
DETAILS | https://t.co/3bCawCj7OB pic.twitter.com/KV4Pg9jng6
The QR codes on vaccine passports will exactly be scanned upon entry as they were needed to be shown but not scanned before.
Dr. Bonnie Henry mentions the scanning of QR codes going forward, which would be a change for the #Canucks, who were not required to actually scan them before.
— Rob Williams (@RobTheHockeyGuy) December 17, 2021
Dr. Henry says they didn't see much transmission in these settings before, but Omicron is going to change that clearly
“With this highly transmissible variant, we need to have more space, more ventilation, and we need to ensure that we are enforcing the mask-wearing requirements that are in place for these events and ensuring that we’re scanning QR codes for these events,” said Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry per Rob Williams of Daily Hive.
The Montreal Canadiens played their game against the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday night without any fans at the Bell Centre. Their game against the Boston Bruins on Saturday has been postponed. Ontario also announced 50% capacity limits on sporting events and that included Maple Leafs and Senators games.
The Canucks have had Tucker Poolman, Brad Hunt, Juho Lammikko, Luke Schenn, and assistant coach Jason King test positive for COVID. The team also announced Friday that Tyler Motte has entered the COVID protocol.
Tyler Motte has entered the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol. Tucker Poolman, Luke Schenn, Brad Hunt, Juho Lammikko, and Assistant Coach Jason King all remain in COVID-19 protocol.
— Canucks PR (@CanucksPR) December 17, 2021
The Canucks also cancelled their Friday afternoon practice at 8 Rinks in Burnaby.
SCHEDULE UPDATE: Dec. 17 is now a team day off. No practice at Scotia Barn (8 Rinks).
— Canucks PR (@CanucksPR) December 17, 2021
COVID is really affecting the NHL and other sports such as the NFL. The Leafs who are in Vancouver announced that Alex Kerfoot and John Tavares have been placed into the COVID protocol. Players are required to quarantine for ten days.
Forwards Alexander Kerfoot and John Tavares have been placed into the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol.
— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) December 17, 2021
For precautionary reasons, today’s practice in Vancouver has been cancelled.https://t.co/rP27ClVJVN
The NHL announced that the Colorado Avalanche and Florida Panthers have their games postponed until after the Christmas Break.
The Calgary Flames also have their games postponed until after Christmas and have 19 players on COVID protocol. They also have three cases of the Omicron variant among them.
According to their medical director Dr. Ian Auld, as of right now, the Calgary Flames have had 3 cases of Omicron
— Salim Nadim Valji (@salimvalji) December 17, 2021
The NHL is looking to avoid a league-wide pause but things could change.
The NHL/NHLPA are in steady communication, basically it's a team by team, case by case approach trying to get through this wave while following medical counsel, and hoping to avoid a league-wide pause (that's a last resort).
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) December 17, 2021
Whether or not a pause can be avoided, we'll see...
Saturday’s game against the Leafs is the start of a five-game homestand for Vancouver.