Photo: Bill Wippert/Getty Images
According to The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta, the New Jersey Devils now have 14 players to the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol on Tuesday: forwards Jesper Bratt, Jack Hughes, Andreas Johnsson, Janne Kuokkanen, Michael McLeod, Kyle Palmeri, Pavel Zacha, and Travis Zajac; defensemen Ty Smith, Connor Carrick, Matt Tennyson, and Sami Vatanen; and goaltender Aaron Dell. Dell has been on COVID-19 protocol since the Devils claimed him off of waivers from the Toronto Maple Leafs on January 18.
The Buffalo Sabres, who played the Devils twice this past weekend, are “absolutely livid” at them after forward Taylor Hall and defensemen Rasmus Ristolainen were both added to the COVID-19 protocol list on Tuesday.
Multiple people have told me the Sabres were/are absolutely livid their games vs the Devils weren’t postponed. Now, they’re dealing with 2 players in Covid protocols with more test results to come.
— David Pagnotta (@TheFourthPeriod) February 2, 2021
The NHL postponed the Sabres’ next four games due to contact tracing. They are not scheduled to play again until Thursday, February 11, when the Washington Capitals visit KeyBank Center.
The Sabres still have more players that have not received their COVID-19 test results yet.
The Devils are currently not slated to play a game until next Tuesday when they are scheduled to host the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The Sabres, who have a 4-4-2 record this season, were scheduled to visit the New York Islanders on Tuesday while the Devils, who are 4-3-2, were originally set to take on the Penguins in Pittsburgh.
The two teams are currently tied for fifth in the East Division with 10 points. They trail the Penguins by one point for the fourth seed in the division with the Devils having played one fewer game than the Penguins and Sabres.
By Harrison Brown
