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COVID Continues to Crush Vegas

January 31, 2021, 5:42 PM ET [6 Comments]
Jeff Paul
Vegas Golden Knights Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT


Ask anyone and they’ll tell you how crazy 2020 was. COVID-19 came and threw everything into a blender. Sports were cancelled, kids were held out of school, and unclosable businesses closed for long periods of time.

Unfortunately for the world, COVID remains a hot topic and could even be spreading. Without any reprieve on the horizon, the trick has become managing and navigating the COVID world, not returning back to normal. Until a week ago, it seemed to be going well.

What happened this past week? Glad “you” asked:

Tuesday, January 26: “Out of an abundance of caution,” the entire Golden Knights coaching staff was held out of their scheduled home game against the St. Louis Blues. The Henderson Silver Knights coaching staff, led by GM Kelly McCrimmon took over in their absence.

The Golden Knights battled back in the game after getting behind early and suffering multiple Too Many Men penalties. They took it to a shootout, eventually losing 5-4, to Jordan Binnington and Brayden Schenn’s game winner. Following the game, McCrimmon shared that there was an exposure on the coaching staff and that the easiest thing to do is isolate the whole staff.

Wednesday, January 27: Thursday’s game versus the Blues was postponed, “as a result of a player and another member of the Golden Knights coaching staff entering the NHL’s COVID protocols”. The player was unnamed at the time of postponement.

The Henderson Silver Knights practiced without their coaches. According to Sinbin.Vegas, Patrick Brown acted as Player-Coach. The Golden Knights did not practice.

Thursday, January 28: Defenseman Alex Pietrangelo was added to the NHL COVID list. The Golden Knights did not practice for the second straight day. There was no media availability.

The Henderson Silver Knights held practice with Deryk Engelland utilized as the Head Coach.

Friday, January 29: Games against the San Jose Sharks were postponed. The count for the Golden Knights COVID list was announced as four, including there coaches.

The Henderson Silver Knights won their first-ever preseason game with Engelland behind the bench. There was a scoring outburst, the game ending with a final score of 7-3.

Saturday, January 30: more inactivity for the Vegas Golden Knights.

The Henderson Silver Knights took the ice for game two against the San Jose Barracuda. The Silver Knights led 1-0 at the end of two periods. As quick as the teams returned to the ice for the third period, they turned around and left the surface.

After several minutes of silence, the PA system shared, “Following COVID protocols, today’s game has been suspended”. A source confirmed the deliverance of a positive COVID result from a test taken earlier.

Later in the evening, the team’s press release clarified that the “cancellation was not due to a positive COVID test result from Silver Knights players or staff”.

Sunday, January 31: No updates as you’re reading this article.

It was an intense week of cancellations, COVID tests, coaching changes, and two period games. Hopefully the Golden Knights will be able to return for their next scheduled game, a February 5 visit to the LA Kings. Until then, sit tight and remember to check back in. Changes and/or confirmations will be shared as more information becomes available.

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