TORONTO – The Canadian government waived its mandatory 14-day quarantine period for players acquired by Canadian NHL teams from U.S. clubs “under national interest grounds” ahead of the league’s April 12 trade deadline.
Players will now observe a seven-day quarantine upon arrival in the country and be subject to daily testing for COVID-19. Players will then be eligible to suit up for their new teams while continuing to undergo daily testing the following week.
Players entering Canada during the season previously had to observe the standard two-week quarantine period with the border closed to non-essential travel due to the pandemic. That included Pierre-Luc Dubois when he was traded from Columbus to Winnipeg.
Eric Staal is the first beneficiary of the new agreement after being traded from Buffalo to Montreal on Friday.
The Public Health Agency of Canada said the five provinces with NHL teams have all “provided written commitment that they support the proposed risk mitigation measures from the NHL.”
The cut in quarantine time, which also applies to players called up from American Hockey League teams in the U.S., is a boost for Canada’s seven NHL franchises ahead of the trade deadline.
