15 players test positive for COVID-19 after reporting to training camp

The NHL has released a statement reporting that 15 players tested positive for COVID-19 after reporting to training camp. More than 1,450 total tests were administered to the 250+ players in camp. These tests have all been administered following the start of Phase 2 of the return to play initiative, which began on June 8.

What’s more, 11 additional players have tested positive for coronavirus outside of NHL training camps. All players who tested positive have been quarantined.

It’s hard to know exactly what to make of these test results. It’s not entirely clear right now how many of these players were asymptomatic at the time, nor is it clear if there was any additional spread to staff or families. Assuming the best, a 6% rate of infection doesn’t sound like it would threaten the season’s reboot — especially if some of these positive tests prove to be asymptomatic. Positive tests, after all, are an inevitability. As with much of the news surrounding coronavirus, however, there’s still much more that we don’t know than what we do know.