(Reuters) – The National Hockey League (NHL) confirmed nine new cases of COVID-19 on Monday, including eight from players who reported to team facilities for “Phase Two activities.”
Under the league’s Phase Two plan, clubs that met safety criteria were allowed to reopen training facilities for voluntary workouts with groups of no more than six players at a time, as of June 8.
The NHL said it had administered over 2,900 tests to the group of 396 players who had reported to club facilities, with 23 positives.
The league said one player from “outside of the Phase Two protocol” also tested positive, bringing that total to 12.
“All players who have tested positive have been self-isolated… The league will not be providing information on the identity of the players or clubs,” the NHL said in a statement https://www.nhl.com/news/nhl-statement-on-phase-2-testing/c-317330350.
The league and the union representing its players last week reached a tentative agreement on protocols to resume the hockey season which has been suspended since March.
The playoffs, which will be held without fans, are to begin on Aug. 1 and the Stanley Cup awarded in October.
(Reporting by Arvind Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Chris Reese)
