Around the League 19: And Down the Stretch They Come...OK, Who Hit the Pause Button?

[CandyCanes]

I find this freak out somewhat funny. Like what was the NHL expecting? For no one to catch Corona during this? I could of told them that this exact situation would happen.

 

[tarheelhockey]

There will be no NHL hockey until there's a vaccine.

And no beer league hockey, for that matter.

I have beer league games scheduled in July.

The only thing stopping them is if the state goes back to Phase 1.

 

[Navin R Slavin]

I have beer league games scheduled in July.

The only thing stopping them is if the state goes back to Phase 1.

All right, let me rephrase:

There's no way in hell I'm playing beer league games in July. Because right now that's insane. Indoor sports are basically a guarantee of spread.

 

[bleedgreen]

One ice rink started their leagues last week, the in-line team I play with sometimes has its first game this Wednesday. The ice rink I play at is planning a summer league that starts next month.

I played at an outdoor rink this past week with a bunch of guys who say they’ve been doing it for months.

 

[GIN ANTONIC]

Anyone not in the ‘Shut it down’ camp at this point is basically just doing this...

It’s over guys and girls... and if it isn’t then it’s based on completely asinine reasoning. I know we all want hockey to come back but come on. Enough is enough. Wait it out and come back when it’s safe. What player in their right mind is willingly going to play these games???

 

[Nikishin Go Boom]

What player in their right mind is willingly going to play these games???

we understand that the players have just as much riding on finishing the season as the owners do?

 

[Canes]

Anyone not in the ‘Shut it down’ camp at this point is basically just doing this...

It’s over guys and girls... and if it isn’t then it’s based on completely asinine reasoning. I know we all want hockey to come back but come on. Enough is enough. Wait and out and come back when it’s safe. What player in their right mind is willingly going to play these games???

What if a vaccine takes years? What if one never comes? The virus is here to stay for quite awhile barring a martial law style lockdown which will never ever happen. Shutting down sports leagues that are closed to fans is going to do very little in the grand scheme of things. Players testing positive should be expected and it's not a death sentence for the vast majority. But if they or any other business wants to shutdown for potentially years while waiting for cases to come down to zero, they should be fine with not getting paid for the duration.

 

[GIN ANTONIC]

we understand that the players have just as much riding on finishing the season as the owners do?

No... they have waaaay more at stake than the owners. If a player gets COVID-19 depending on how it affects them it could literally end their career and absolutely decimate their quality of life moving forward. Yes, these are healthy young guys but extreme cases in some survivors have reduced their lung capacity by up to 80% and that’s not just for the pension cashing seniors.

Owners will always have next year and the year after and the year after. Players are always one bad play away from their career ending and that’s at the best of times. Why would someone knowingly risk their long term health by entering into a situation where the chance of catching COVID is extra heightened?

Maybe early on when it was unknown how long this would affect everyone but here we are 3 months later and things are still super f***ed.

Moving forward at this time is a disaster waiting to happen and all the warning signs are staring us in the face.

 

[GIN ANTONIC]

What if a vaccine takes years? What if one never comes? The virus is here to stay for quite awhile barring a martial law style lockdown which will never ever happen. Shutting down sports leagues that are closed to fans is going to do very little in the grand scheme of things. Players testing positive should be expected and it's not a death sentence for the vast majority. But if they or any other business wants to shutdown for potentially years while waiting for cases to come down to zero, they should be fine with not getting paid for the duration.

There’s a difference between not playing hockey for years and years and waiting a few months until things become somewhat clearer and situations in certain areas get better.

 

[Navin R Slavin]

What if a vaccine takes years? What if one never comes? The virus is here to stay for quite awhile barring a martial law style lockdown which will never ever happen. Shutting down sports leagues that are closed to fans is going to do very little in the grand scheme of things. Players testing positive should be expected and it's not a death sentence for the vast majority. But if they or any other business wants to shutdown for potentially years while waiting for cases to come down to zero, they should be fine with not getting paid for the duration.

I think that's for the players to decide -- and the players aren't too happy about this stuff right now.

Fine for us to say "just live with it," and if there will little chance of a vaccine, you'd probably be right. But the chances of a vaccine are overwhelmingly high. Naturally developed immunity is already a demonstrated fact, and there are, what, 8 vaccines already in Stage II? And a couple already on the doorstep of Stage III. The chances of a vaccine by end of year continue to be very high -- whatever you want to say about Trump (and you can say plenty) he's highly incentivized to remove every possible roadblock for Big Pharma to have a vaccine before the election.

 

[MinJaBen]

I think the NHL’s plan is a good one with the creation of the bubbles. The hard part is getting them to the bubbles healthy.

But as Navin said, it’s up to the players as far as I’m concerned. If they don’t want it, then that should be that.

 

[Nikishin Go Boom]

No... they have waaaay more at stake than the owners. If a player gets COVID-19 depending on how it affects them it could literally end their career and absolutely decimate their quality of life moving forward. Yes, these are healthy young guys but extreme cases in some survivors have reduced their lung capacity by up to 80% and that’s not just for the pension cashing seniors.

Owners will always have next year and the year after and the year after. Players are always one bad play away from their career ending and that’s at the best of times. Why would someone knowingly risk their long term health by entering into a situation where the chance of catching COVID is extra heightened?

Maybe early on when it was unknown how long this would affect everyone but here we are 3 months later and things are still super f***ed.

Moving forward at this time is a disaster waiting to happen and all the warning signs are staring us in the face.

Not exactly what I was referring to. Players have just as much interest in finishing the season as the owners. It isn’t just pay this season or winning a cup.

players can change their mind if the risk is too severe. Coaches and support staff just as much risk with leas pay incentive.

 

[GIN ANTONIC]

Not exactly what I was referring to. Players have just as much interest in finishing the season as the owners. It isn’t just pay this season or winning a cup.

players can change their mind if the risk is too severe. Coaches and support staff just as much risk with leas pay incentive.

I understand the pay incentive. My point is that the players have way more on the line than owners because they are the guinea pigs here and there could be severe health implications if there is an outbreak. Everyone wants to get paid but owners and stakeholders aren’t the ones exposing themselves to the situation. Reverse the situation and I imagine many would be singing a different tune. Look at what’s happening in the mlb with training camps... and that’s playing a game where everyone on the field is physically distanced as much as possible already.

 

[Nikishin Go Boom]

I understand the pay incentive. My point is that the players have way more on the line than owners because they are the guinea pigs here and there could be severe health implications if there is an outbreak. Everyone wants to get paid but owners and stakeholders aren’t the ones exposing themselves to the situation. Reverse the situation and I imagine many would be singing a different tune. Look at what’s happening in the mlb with training camps... and that’s playing a game where everyone on the field is physically distanced as much as possible already.

They agreed to playing.

guinea pigs, not necessarily. KBL, Bundesliga, etc were the worlds guinea pigs

 

[GIN ANTONIC]

They agreed to playing.

guinea pigs, not necessarily. KBL, Bundesliga, etc were the worlds guinea pigs

Like I said, a few months ago the comprehension of the scope of this whole thing was not what it is today. Now that confirmed cases are coming out Let’s just see how many players are eager to lace up the skates. There were already lots of players who were hesitant about the idea of coming back before, I can only imagine how many are thinking the same thing now

 

[Canes]

I think that's for the players to decide -- and the players aren't too happy about this stuff right now.

Fine for us to say "just live with it," and if there will little chance of a vaccine, you'd probably be right. But the chances of a vaccine are overwhelmingly high. Naturally developed immunity is already a demonstrated fact, and there are, what, 8 vaccines already in Stage II? And a couple already on the doorstep of Stage III. The chances of a vaccine by end of year continue to be very high -- whatever you want to say about Trump (and you can say plenty) he's highly incentivized to remove every possible roadblock for Big Pharma to have a vaccine before the election.

As far as I know there has never been a vaccine found for any type of coronavirus so I'd say you're overestimating the chances and/or timetable at this point. Granted there wasn't the same urgency to find one in the previous cases but as far as I know it's still quite premature to say there will be one any time soon. As far as developed immunity and the possibility for re-infection, there are conflicting reports/studies coming out seemingly every month. It takes researchers years to study viruses and for research to be peer-reviewed so I'm not surprised there. Literally all we can do right now is "just live with it" and make our own decisions accordingly.

There’s a difference between not playing hockey for years and years and waiting a few months until things become somewhat clearer and situations in certain areas get better.

We've already waited a few months. The picture is only going become slightly more clear in another few months. I just think with this type of logic we could be waiting for quite a long time.

I have no problem waiting things out though, or if players want to do the same. We just have to be realistic about what that means.

 

[Finlandia WOAT]

We're in NC. Our most urbanized areas are still literally 5 minutes from bumf*ck nowhere.

You know what we should do for schools? Temporary outdoor pavilions. The disease spreads less outdoors, and lets be reality: school is basically subsidized daycare for 5-12 year olds or however old you're comfortable leaving the little ones alone. If bars can make outdoor pavilions work in the winter with heaters, why not temporary outdoor pavilions? With social distancing erase boards will be hard to see- everyone gets a tablet that copies the teacher.

Is this crazy? Yes. Is sending kids to school in August also crazy? Yes. Is part of the problem we're in this mess because no one wants to propose a crazy, innovative solution and instead stall and hope it goes away? Yes.

EDIT: Why is this now the coronavirus thread??

 

[Navin R Slavin]

As far as I know there has never been a vaccine found for any type of coronavirus so I'd say you're overestimating the chances and/or timetable at this point. Granted there wasn't the same urgency to find one in the previous cases but as far as I know it's still quite premature to say there will be one any time soon. As far as developed immunity and the possibility for re-infection, there are conflicting reports/studies coming out seemingly every month. It takes researchers years to study viruses and for research to be peer-reviewed so I'm not surprised there. Literally all we can do right now is "just live with it" and make our own decisions accordingly.

We've already waited a few months. The picture is only going become slightly more clear in another few months. I just think with this type of logic we could be waiting for quite a long time.

I have no problem waiting things out though, or if players want to do the same. We just have to be realistic about what that means.

I'm just going by the analysis I've read. I'm not an immunologist, but everything I see indicates that this fall is possible, and next summer is probably the worst case.

 

[Lempo]

whatever you want to say about Trump (and you can say plenty) he's highly incentivized to remove every possible roadblock for Big Pharma to have a vaccine before the election.

... and thusly 2020 becomes a two-villain film, in one corner a corporation that holds the exclusive rights to the cure of a pandemic disease, and in the other... the other.

f*** you, 2020!

 

[A Star is Burns]

The players still seem to be negotiating this scenario right now. They will also have the chance to vote not to move forward or not participate. If they are willing to accept the risk, so be it. If this gets scrapped until later, so be it. I'm going to let it all play out.

In my opinion, the players are plenty capable of making this decision and the bubble seems like a good enough plan.

 

[hblueridgegal]

A Vegas bubble seems to be asking for trouble.

Aren’t there any remote Canadian spots with the necessary rinks and camera angles - available?

 

[Navin R Slavin]

A Vegas bubble seems to be asking for trouble.

Aren’t there any remote Canadian spots with the necessary rinks and camera angles - available?

They don't want any part of it, afaict.

EDIT: I'm wrong. Looks like they turned the corner on this one. I'd be delighted if Canada could step up to the plate here. Canada to allow NHL to play during pandemic

 

[MrazeksVengeance]

They agreed to playing.

guinea pigs, not necessarily. KBL, Bundesliga, etc were the worlds guinea pigs

Well, Germany is doing far better than US either way...

 

[GIN ANTONIC]

They don't want any part of it, afaict.

EDIT: I'm wrong. Looks like they turned the corner on this one. I'd be delighted if Canada could step up to the plate here. Canada to allow NHL to play during pandemic

The league would probably love for Toronto to be a bubble city as it makes a ton of logistical sense. Realistically though, Toronto is managing the COVID crisis much worse and slower than other parts of the country. We are still in phase 1, so like office buildings and restaurants are still not open to the public. You can’t get your hair cut at a barber shop or salon in the city. Gatherings of more than 10 people are still banned.

Vancouver and BC in general are crushing it so far. Right now they would be the safest option and also have Edmonton close by as a back up or secondary location.

 

[Cardiac Jerks]

The league would probably love for Toronto to be a bubble city as it makes a ton of logistical sense. Realistically though, Toronto is managing the COVID crisis much worse and slower than other parts of the country. We are still in phase 1, so like office buildings and restaurants are still not open to the public. You can’t get your hair cut at a barber shop or salon in the city. Gatherings of more than 10 people are still banned.

Vancouver and BC in general are crushing it so far. Right now they would be the safest option and also have Edmonton close by as a back up or secondary location.

I’ve been in Edmonton for the last month and everything is more or less back to normal already.

Lots of businesses don’t even have any protective measures in place.