With the Covid-19 strain Omicron, many sports organizations have had troubles. The NHL could have it the worst, with star players being out for weeks and games even being postponed or cancelled. The only good thing that has happened for the NHL is that they stated the season would not be cancelled, merely postponed when necessary.

Star players like Jared McCann, Jake Middleton, Patrick Brown, Ryan Strome, and Patrick Kane were out for weeks at a time. Teams suffer big loses when star players are out.  For instance the Chicago Blackhawks have had a hard time playing without Patrick Kane. On the other hand, The Las Vegas Golden Knights have had a great season so far considering that they have had several players out with the virus.

It’s been a tough break for new team Seattle Krakens, who’ve had countless players out with Covid-19 and as of 7 days ago their next two games were postponed. Unfortunately, the Krakens have fallen to last place in their division and have played 7 less games then the Golden Knights, who are leading the division.

Despite a long break, the NHL postponed a total of 14 games as of December 27th. To no one’s surprise, The NHL and NHLPA announced that players will not be able to participate in the 2022 Winter Olympics. The United States were favorites to win gold; with their absence Russia is the new favorite.

According to James O’Brien it been dizzying to try to keep up with every single NHL player currently in COVID protocol. Hockey fans had high hopes for an exciting season, with the new team in the league and notable players on new teams as well. Unfortunately, it has been far from exciting, but the NHL has high hopes for a good second half to the season with fewer players entering the COVID protocol and fewer games being postponed.