Team USA forfeits World Junior game vs. Switzerland, enters quarantine

The IIHF announced that Team USA has been forced into a mandatory quarantine period at the World Juniors after two players tested positive for COVID-19. Because they are unable to participate in the scheduled game against Switzerland Tuesday, the U.S. forfeited the match. It will be recorded as a 1-0 Swiss victory. The team’s quarantine status will be evaluated later on to determine if it will be able to participate in the next preliminary round game, scheduled for Wednesday against Sweden. Bob McKenzie of TSN tweets that the positive test results could involve the team’s goaltending, though official word on player status has not been released.

Of note in a case like this, the IIHF decided not to include relegation for this year’s tournament because of the possibility of a series of forfeits should a team experience a COVID outbreak. The U.S. is not in danger of falling out of the top division, though this obviously puts the Americans' chances at a medal in jeopardy. Switzerland and Russia will now be tied with Team USA in the Group B standings with one win and one loss. Should the U.S. also be forced to forfeit Wednesday’s game against the Swedes, it would be a difficult path to the quarterfinals.

The U.S. played Slovakia on Dec. 26, who then played Sweden last night. Because of the condensed timeline of the event, it’s easy to see how an early outbreak could run rampant and end up putting the entire tournament in jeopardy.