The Minnesota Wild on Wednesday became the third team this week to postpone multiple games due to the NHL’s COVID-19 protocols, while adding five players to the league’s growing list of absent players.
Minnesota postponed Thursday night’s game at the Colorado Avalanche, two games at home against the Arizona Coyotes on Saturday and Sunday, and its home game against the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday.
In total, 22 games in the NHL have been postponed since the season started Jan. 13. About 90 players have appeared on the league’s COVID-19-protocol-related absences list during that time.
The Wild added five players to that list Wednesday, as centers Nick Bjugstad, Nick Bonino, Joel Eriksson Ek and Marcus Johansson, as well as defenseman Jared Spurgeon, joined forward Marcus Foligno, who was added to the list Jan. 30.
The Wild’s training facilities have been closed, effective immediately, and will remain so until further notice.
Minnesota joins the Buffalo Sabres and New Jersey Devils as teams that were forced to postpone multiple games because of COVID outbreaks this week.
The Devils, who have 17 players currently on the COVID-19-protocol-related absences list for everything from positive tests to travel quarantines, had their games postponed through Saturday.
The Sabres, who played the Devils in a series last weekend and have four players on the list, are out through Monday.