VANCOUVER -- The NHL has postponed Wednesday night's game between the Vancouver Canucks and the Calgary Flames, citing COVID-19 protocols.
The last-minute delay follows one day after Canucks forward Adam Gaudette was pulled from practice.
Coach Travis Green said Tuesday that Gaudette had tested positive for COVID-19, a result that came midway through the practice session.
In a brief statement on Wednesday, the NHL said two Canucks players and one member of the coaching staff are entering its COVID protocols.
The NHL requires players and staff be tested for the disease daily, and any time an initial test comes back positive, a second test is conducted.
If that test is negative, another sample is collected, and if that second sample is positive, the player or staff member is considered by the league to have the disease.
Anyone diagnosed must then self-isolate for 10 days, and their close contacts are required to isolate two weeks.
The NHL has not said whether all three involved tested positive, or if they may just be close contacts of Gaudette.
Gaudette's is the only Vancouver name that appears on the March 31 protocol list. The NHL said in its statement the second player, who was not identified by the league, was added after the list was issued at 5 p.m. EDT.
Vancouver forward J.T. Miller and defenceman Jordie Benn both missed games earlier this year due to the league's protocol.
It is not yet known whether the decision made Wednesday will impact the rest of the Canucks' schedule. Montreal had four games postponed last week when two Canadiens players were added to the protocol list.
On Wednesday night, the Western Hockey League also announced the suspension of team activities for the Kelowna Rockets for a minimum of 14 days after six more players and staff tested positive for COVID-19.
Another person in the team's cohort tested positive on Tuesday.
The Vancouver Giants also postponed their Wednesday night game against the Prince George Cougars out of "an abundance of caution" following the confirmation of COVID cases on the Rockets.
With files from The Canadian Press
