The London Knights were due to return from their holiday break on December 29 in Sarnia, Ont., against the Sting but those plans have changed.
That game has been postponed. So has the second of what would have been a home-and-home between the teams to close out 2021 play on December 31 at Budweiser Gardens.
The Ontario Hockey League announced on Boxing Day that the changes were made, “due to COViD-19 protocols affecting the Sarnia Sting Hockey Club.”
The games will be rescheduled for a later date.
The Sting became the seventh OHL franchise to make use of COViD-19 protocols, joining Sudbury, Barrie, Owen Sound, Erie, Kingston and Flint.
The game between Sarnia and the Windsor Spitfires on January 2 will also be rescheduled.
The Sudbury Wolves have been hit the worst so far. Twelve players were diagnosed with COVID-19 in late November, which led to Sudbury missing six games between December 1 and December 12.
The Wolves were set to return against the Barrie Colts on Dec. 13, but an outbreak within the Colts organization led to that game being scrubbed.
The two contests between London and Sarnia will be the second and third Knights games to be rescheduled. A game set for Dec. 17 at home to the Owen Sound did not happen after the Attack suspended team activities.
London currently sits one point back of the Guelph Storm for first place in the OHL’s Western Conference.
As of Dec. 26, the latest changes bring the total number of total postponed games in the OHL to 21.
The Knights are set to play the Otters in Erie, Pa., on New Year’s Day.
Their next home game will now fall on Jan. 7 against Flint at 7:30 pm.
The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League has paused all league activities until Jan. 7.
The Western Hockey League has not announced any plans regarding a return from the holidays.
The National Hockey League stopped their schedule on Dec. 22 with the plan to return on Dec. 27. That plan was scrapped days later as the league announced that all 14 games on the 27th had been postponed. The NHL still hopes to play four games set for Dec. 28.
Note: Knights goaltender Brett Brochu will back up Dylan Garand in Team Canada’s first game at the 2022 World Junior Hockey Championship.
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