NHL actually listens to reason, delays Canucks return to play after J.T. Miller calls out league

The Canucks have not played since March 24 due to a COVID outbreak.

J.T. Miller spoke out against the NHL, and the league listened. On Thursday, the NHL announced that the Vancouver Canucks return to play from a COVID-19 outbreak would be delayed from April 16 to allow the club “additional time for recovery and preparation.”

Since March 30, the Canucks have been dealing with a COVID outbreak — of the Brazilian strain variety — after forward Adam Gaudette tested positive. Over 25 players and coaches have tested positive, and while the numbers are lessening, the team overall does not feel ready to return to play, with their last game played on March 24.

The Canucks were set to return to play against the Edmonton Oilers on Friday, but intense backlash — which included current Vancouver forward Miller — have since caused the delay of the team’s return.

Miller’s comments surfaced late Wednesday after the team spoke to the media ahead of Thursday’s practice — the team’s first since the outbreak — despite seven players remaining on the COVID protocol list. The forward did not hold back his thoughts on the team’s current situation, stating that the return was “dangerous to a lot of our players.”

The comments prompted immense scrutiny from fans at the league, calling for the NHL to push back the Canucks return to play, or even suspend the team’s season entirely.

While Miller’s comments weren’t the only reason the NHL delayed the Canucks return to play, they likely played a major part in getting the league to listen to the concerns the players, coaches, and fans had.

Thankfully, the NHL listened to reason here, as delaying the Canucks restart was the least the league could do. However, it’s hard to give the NHL praise for doing so, especially when they claim to have the players and coaches best interests and safety at heart.

The Canucks should not have been pushed back to play this early. It’s clear that the team — mentally, emotionally, and physically — are not ready to step out onto the ice at this time. Vancouver’s COVID situation was very much the scariest outbreak the NHL has had this season, given the severity of the symptoms reported by outlets like ESPN, where at least one player required an IV drip while others struggled to breathe going up and down stairs.

It’s a ghoulish and callous move for the NHL to throw aside the Canucks health and safety in an attempt to get all 56 of the team’s games played. The North Division already has delayed the end of its season — from May 11 to May 16 — due to the Canucks COVID situation, a move that will likely push back the start of the playoffs, at least for the Canadian teams.

And yet, scheduling is still not a good enough reason to force a team back to play before its ready. It shouldn’t have taken Miller’s comments for the NHL to push back the Canucks restart date, the league should have been on top of this situation from the start by treating its players and coaches like human beings first and foremost, not assets to be managed.

This isn’t the first time the NHL has gotten in hot water over its shameful decision making. Less than a week ago, the league’s best player in Connor McDavid called out the NHL for forcing the Edmonton Oilers to play a game after the memorial service of Colby Cave, the hockey player who passed away suddenly at 25-years-old from a brain bleed.

All that, just because the NHL’s all-important schedule demanded it.

We’ll see how the NHL proceeds with the Canucks from here on out, as it seems the delay is likely only a small reprieve as Vancouver might still play its scheduled games against Toronto on Sunday and Monday. However, the Canucks should have never gotten to this point in the first place, and it’s clear once again where the NHL’s priorities lie.

[mm-video type=video id=01et5bds82q4w6sc4m playlist_id=none player_id=none image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01et5bds82q4w6sc4m/01et5bds82q4w6sc4m-9935fbf75632d8a2d2db0f12c6a90d01.jpg]