USA forfeits vs. Switzerland after positive COVID-19 tests

Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

Team USA forfeits vs. Switzerland at World Juniors after positive COVID-19 tests, in 'mandated team quarantine'

By Victor Barbosa | Last updated 12/28/21

Following a 3-2 victory vs. Slovakia on Sunday at the World Junior Championship, Team USA was unable to get its second victory in a row on Tuesday, but it had nothing to do with what the Americans did on the ice.

News: Two USA Hockey players have tested positive for COVID-19 at #WorldJuniors, per @IIHFHockey statement. @usahockey has forfeited today's game against Switzerland and is now in a "mandated team quarantine." @NHLNetwork
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) December 28, 2021

According to Corey Pronman of The Athletic, the quarantine status for the defending gold medalists will be evaluated later to see if they can continue to play in the next preliminary round contest. The Americans are tentatively slated to play Sweden on Wednesday.

Group B includes USA, Russia, Slovakia, Sweden and Switzerland.

"Although the IIHF has Team USA in a 'bubble,' it is not as strict as measures taken by various sports in 2020; the team is sharing a hotel with several others teams at the tournament," Pronman wrote. "There will be another round of re-testing to check for false positives, sources confirmed to The Athletic."

Team USA and Russia are tied with three points in Group B, trailing Sweden, which has six points after winning its first two games.

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