The National Hockey League was forced to postpone the Carolina Hurricanes’ game vs. the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday after four additional members of the team entered COVID-19 protocol.  The postponement comes a day after the league said Calgary Flames’ games through Dec. 16 would be rescheduled after six players and one staff member entered COVID-19 protocol in a 24-hour period.

The NHL said in a statement that the decision to postpone the Hurricanes game was made following consultation by the medical groups of the NHL, NHLPA and the club.  Tuesday’s postponed Hurricanes game brings the number of NHL games that will need to be rescheduled to nine, following outbreaks at the Flames, Ottawa Senators and New York Islanders.

Whether the NHL will follow through on its commitment to take part in the Feb. 4-20 Beijing Winter Olympics is now in jeopardy due to the additional postponements.  The NHL agreed to a break in its schedule to make way for players to compete in Beijing with the caveat that it could withdraw on its own if an abundance of COVID-19 disruptions forced games to be rescheduled during the Olympic window. NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said the league has until Jan. 10 to withdraw from the Beijing Games without financial penalty.

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