[News] Flames have 20 players, 3 coaches, and 10 support staff in COVID protocol

[djsFlames]

Even if it's horribly played with each side shorthanded, the fans have never needed a BOA to happen so badly.

With all the disheartening off ice chatter sinking the holiday spirits, everybody could truly use some hockey medicine.

[Bingo]

Originally Posted by Goriders

And the people that get it spread to them have no symptoms and if they didn’t have daily testing wouldn’t even know they had it.

At some point you have to move forward. Viruses don’t disappear. It will be around go forward. Is the plan to lock down society every 3 to 6 months forever? That doesn’t sound like a sustainable plan.

The players are saying it’s overkill. They are probably the ones most at risk with all of the travel ect. That probably speaks volumes.

We have to see what it does to hospitalizations before we just let Connor Hellebucyk become our chief medical officer.

That's what's left.

I think it's very possible that a milder strain results in milder restrictions once they know what ICU and hospital counts look like.

I had a good friend who was told they'd have to wait four times over six weeks for his wife to get cancer surgery back in September. Needless to say he was going out of his mind wondering where the cancer was going in her body as they were told to wait.

[FormerPresJamesTaylor]

Originally Posted by Goriders

So if none of the players are actually sick. What are they being protected from?

Originally Posted by Bingo

Hasn't this been covered about 3 dozen times in this topic?

Yes, and when I pointed out to you that these guys aren't interested in facts and being nice doesn't work you called me silly.

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by 14Roman14

As someone who had a great uncle gunned down from the sky by nazis I am very offended that much of what he was fighting for is happening again while most, even those who lost ancestors like mine would rather let it happen than realize how wrong many of the things that are happening today are.

Interesting.

I always wonder what the Greatest Generation would think about our society now.

They were a generation that set aside their personal freedoms for the greater good. They understood the we over me mentality. They sacrificed for the collective good even if it was detrimental to their freedoms.

[ken0042]

I think UCB's post is a good way to end the off topic discussion in this thread.

[powderjunkie]

Originally Posted by Strange Brew

Well what I can’t wrap my head around is the different standards. Of course we don’t want Connor Hellebucyk as our Chief Medical Officer but I also don’t think he’s applying for the job. Isn’t the point the players are raising more about why testing standards are so different for hockey players than everyone else?

If all I knew about Covid came from the restrictions implemented by our political leaders I would conclude the following:

Covid is far more of a threat to society when transmitted by fully vaccinated asymptomatic athletes compared to uber drivers, Walmart clerks, health care workers, construction workers or any other profession that are not tested.

Covid is more dangerous when it travels a on plane crossing the 49th parallel than when it crosses the border in a car.

Covid is also more dangerous when it crosses the border on a plane than when it flies domestic.

Drinking beer or eating nachos significantly reduces the risk of transmission in a public setting.

I’m not arguing against restrictions but I understand the players perspective. I think the players just want to be able to do their job which is the same thing almost all of us want for ourselves.

If you work in a retirement home isn’t it strange you get tested far far less than an NHL player? We don’t have to be MD’s to wonder about this IMO.

I realize this is off topic but IMO it’s time for a holistic look at testing and restrictions to identify ways to actually reduce risk for the population at large. All the money pro sports are spending on testing could maybe be deployed to other efforts. Maybe randomly test fans, that would do more good IMO.

Frequent testing is probably the reason that some teams' outbreaks get no further than ~1-7 guys.

And if they were to go to only symptomatic testing...do you really think we can trust players to be completely honest about it? There could be a ton of conflicting thoughts/pressures that make a guy ignore that tickle in his throat...

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by powderjunkie

Frequent testing is probably the reason that some teams' outbreaks get no further than ~1-7 guys.

And if they were to go to only symptomatic testing...do you really think we can trust players to be completely honest about it? There could be a ton of conflicting thoughts/pressures that make a guy ignore that tickle in his throat...

NHL players never lie about their health.

[Toonage]

Obligatory Sidney Crosby "I don't have the mumps" reference goes here

[Strange Brew]

Originally Posted by powderjunkie

Frequent testing is probably the reason that some teams' outbreaks get no further than ~1-7 guys.

And if they were to go to only symptomatic testing...do you really think we can trust players to be completely honest about it? There could be a ton of conflicting thoughts/pressures that make a guy ignore that tickle in his throat...

It is great that testing has lessened the spread of Covid in the NHL and I 100% with you that it has. Kind of a weird place to focus attention though.

The fan attending the hockey game or showing up at their job probably ignores the tickle in their throat too. I don’t trust players any less than everyone else who are never tested.

[powderjunkie]

Originally Posted by Strange Brew

It is great that testing has lessened the spread of Covid in the NHL and I 100% with you that it has. Kind of a weird place to focus attention though.

The fan attending the hockey game or showing up at their job probably ignores the tickle in their throat too. I don’t trust players any less than everyone else who are never tested.

Seems like 2 very different problems.

Could the NHL and other pro sports help their local markets by testing fans? Perhaps, but the benefits might be very marginal. Rapid tests aren't completely reliable, and could lead to some false sense of security. It's a nice tool to have, but like masks and vaccinations, imperfect.


I'd hope anyone whose job involves breathing heavily on 20 other guys (without any easy way to mitigate) every other night would be tested as rigorously

[Strange Brew]

Originally Posted by powderjunkie

Seems like 2 very different problems.

Could the NHL and other pro sports help their local markets by testing fans? Perhaps, but the benefits might be very marginal. Rapid tests aren't completely reliable, and could lead to some false sense of security. It's a nice tool to have, but like masks and vaccinations, imperfect.


I'd hope anyone whose job involves breathing heavily on 20 other guys (without any easy way to mitigate) every other night would be tested as rigorously

I can think of many many higher risk professions that aren’t tested as rigorously. Workers in senior homes comes to mind as an obvious one. They rely totally on vax status, masks and self diagnosis.

I hear you about the higher risk of transmission amongst the athletes. Are other athletes tested like this? You don’t have to be a pro to transmit Covid. Rec league sports would work just as well.

Personally I believe 50 random Covid tests would reduce risk to society at large than testing the entire hockey ops group of an NHL team. I guess it all comes back to whether testing NHL players is about protecting the players or protecting the community.

[Goriders]

Originally Posted by Strange Brew

I can think of many many higher risk professions that aren’t tested as rigorously. Workers in senior homes comes to mind as an obvious one. They rely totally on vax status, masks and self diagnosis.

I hear you about the higher risk of transmission amongst the athletes. Are other athletes tested like this? You don’t have to be a pro to transmit Covid. Rec league sports would work just as well.

Personally I believe 50 random Covid tests would reduce risk to society at large than testing the entire hockey ops group of an NHL team. I guess it all comes back to whether testing NHL players is about protecting the players or protecting the community.

It’s probably not about common sense anymore. Especially when the players are saying it’s overkill in the media. That’s the tip of the iceberg for their real opinions.

[KootenayFlamesFan]

Originally Posted by Goriders

It’s probably not about common sense anymore. Especially when the players are saying it’s overkill in the media. That’s the tip of the iceberg for their real opinions.

Wasn't that just one player that said that? I don't think he speaks for all the players.

[Strange Brew]

Originally Posted by KootenayFlamesFan

Wasn't that just one player that said that? I don't think he speaks for all the players.

Post 747 would imply it’s more than one person. As would the fact that other sports have now changed their protocols.

[KootenayFlamesFan]

That post said players, management, etc...........

I was talking about players. Besides Hellebuyck, what other players are saying it?

[Inferno]

Originally Posted by KootenayFlamesFan

That post said players, management, etc...........

I was talking about players. Besides Hellebuyck, what other players are saying it?

The only other player I can seem to find is O'Reilly. But he comes off as less whiney and more understanding than Hellebuyck.

"I agree with those guys. We've got guys vaccinated, double vaccinated. Some guys aren't showing any symptoms and they're popping in COVID protocol. I think I'd like to see testing if you have symptoms but it's not up to me. It's a league and players decision. Hopefully we can figure this out because it's frustrating. We want to keep this going, the season and playing it, but with the way things are working out, the safety's the concern. It would be nice to kind of figure it out."

https://nhl.nbcsports.com/2021/12/21...e-is-overkill/

[Strange Brew]

Originally Posted by KootenayFlamesFan

That post said players, management, etc...........

I was talking about players. Besides Hellebuyck, what other players are saying it?

Maybe I don't know exactly what you mean by saying "it". The noise is coming from somewhere and I would think it's the players.

O'Reilly's quote seems fairly balanced. He says he agrees with "those guys", not sure who he is referring to though.

[Goriders]

Originally Posted by KootenayFlamesFan

Wasn't that just one player that said that? I don't think he speaks for all the players.

Yzerman as well

[KootenayFlamesFan]

Originally Posted by Strange Brew

Maybe I don't know exactly what you mean by saying "it".

Goriders said 'players' were saying what was happening was 'overkill'.

Originally Posted by Goriders

Yzerman as well

Yzerman isn't a player. Sorry, but you made it sound like multiple players are saying what's happening is overkill. So far, it's one player from what I can tell.

So far the NHL has extended the Christmas break by a couple days, said no to the Olympics (good call) and there are restrictions in various arenas (made by provinces and states). They're still playing. If they cancelled the season I would probably agree with you more, but as of now this really doesn't seem like a big deal, imo.

[Goriders]

Originally Posted by KootenayFlamesFan

Goriders said 'players' were saying what was happening was 'overkill'.



Yzerman isn't a player. Sorry, but you made it sound like multiple players are saying what's happening is overkill. So far, it's one player from what I can tell.

So far the NHL has extended the Christmas break by a couple days, said no to the Olympics (good call) and there are restrictions in various arenas (made by provinces and states). They're still playing. If they cancelled the season I would probably agree with you more, but as of now this really doesn't seem like a big deal, imo.

Seems more like pure chaos.