EDMONTON — Caleb Jones sat down in front of the laptop, looked right into the camera lens, and Zoom!
“Ya, hey guys,” he began. “So, about a couple of weeks ago I, uh, came into Edmonton actually early, and I was going to do my seven-day isolation. And, actually, I had a positive test for COVID.
“I had no symptoms — I was asymptomatic. I did my two-week isolation and tried to stay away from everyone. My first day back at the rink was actually Monday, the start of training camp. So, I was just the first few days getting back into it, and I was glad to be back full with the team (on Friday).
“So, that’s kinda the story there.”
Put it all out there, and move on. Let a story linger behind cover, and it never goes away.
Jones had likely heard the speculation that he’s contracted COVID-19. He knew he had been listed as “unfit to practice” when camp opened on Monday, like so many others across the NHL.
So instead of letting the rumours hang around, Jones laid it all down after Friday’s practice, opening his Zoom call with the media with an impromptu, ad-libbed statement.
For a 23-year-old with not a lot of NHL time under his belt, it took courage. I say, bravo.
“You have to respect Caleb. He came out, and he was very upfront,” said Edmonton Oilers head coach Dave Tippett. “When I first talked to him he said, ‘Hey, I’ve tested positive but I have no symptoms whatsoever. And I think there have been a lot of asymptomatic cases like that.”
Since Phase 3 began, the only other NHL player to publicly admit to having had the virus is Auston Matthews, after having been outed in a media article by the Toronto Sun. The article was factually correct and represented excellent journalism as we’ve always known it. But in the year 2020, the debate rages on over whether it is the media’s right to announce to the world that a player has COVID-19, the same way we would have reported on Connor McDavid’s knee injury last summer, had we been able to properly source the story.
We were not able to nail down the facts of McDavid’s torn posterior cruciate ligament last summer, and as such, rumours of his injury never turned into a solid, bylined report. But in case you are wondering, Sportsnet’s policy on reporting the Coronavirus is different.
Sportsnet will not announce a positive test for a player unless he reveals the news himself, or releases the news through his team or agent.
While Matthews admitted he had contracted the virus upon his first media session when Toronto Maple Leafs camp opened, Jones knew his status as “unfit to practice” had created an environment where people were wondering. He chose to tell the world. Others may not.
“It’s obviously a very weird (virus), and a weird time in the world right now,” said Jones, 23, who spent the pause at the Jones’ family home in Dallas. “Some people get really affected by it and it can deadly, and other people will never know they had it. I was lucky enough to be in that group. You know, if I never got tested I would have never realized I had it.”
Not long after NHL training camps opened on Monday, we learned that “unfit to practice” is as nebulous a term as the NHL could come up with for a player being away from practice. They do that so an injury list does not inadvertently “out” everyone who gets the virus by process of elimination, when all the other guys who miss practice have defined upper and lower body injuries.
I would warn you to get used to an NHL playoffs where injuries will be entirely vague, but isn’t it like that in every NHL post-season?
This injury, however, will play more on a player’s mind than, say, a pulled hamstring.
The quarantine. The “what ifs?” about contact tracing. The fears of long-term lung damage that simply don’t exist with traditional hockey injuries.
Jones has thought about all those things. But the fact he never really felt ill abated the worries.
“I couldn’t tell you where I got it. I know Texas was having a lot of cases,” said Seth Jones’ little brother, and Popeye Jones’ son. “My Mom, she was a little bit nervous for a second. But when I told her I felt completely fine she kind of just settled down.
“It’s one of those things. The world has to find a way to get through it right now.”
The world. The hockey world. The hockey media world.
TORONTO – Reigning PWHL MVP and scoring champ Natalie Spooner will miss the start of the regular season for the Toronto Sceptres, general manager Gina Kingsbury announced Tuesday on the first day of training camp.
The 33-year-old Spooner had knee surgery on her left anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) after she was checked into the boards by Minnesota’s Grace Zumwinkle in Game 3 of their best-of-five semifinal series on May 13.
She had a goal and an assist in three playoff games but did not finish the series. Toronto was up 2-1 in the semifinal at that time and eventually fell 3-2 in the series.
Spooner led the PWHL with 27 points in 24 games. Her 20 goals, including five game-winners, were nine more than the closest skater.
Kingsbury said there is no timeline, as the team wants the Toronto native at 100 per cent, but added that “she is doing really well” in her recovery.
The Sceptres open the PWHL season on Nov. 30 when they host the Boston Fleet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A top official of the Pakistan Cricket Board declined Friday to confirm media reports that India has decided against playing any games in host Pakistan during next year’s Champions Trophy.
“My view is if there’s any problems, they (India) should tell us in writing,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi told reporters in Lahore. “I’ll share that with the media as well as with the government as soon as I get such a letter.”
Indian media reported Friday that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has communicated its concerns to all the Champions Trophy stakeholders, including the PCB, over the Feb. 19-March 9 tournament and would not play in arch-rival Pakistan.
The Times of India said that “Dubai is a strong candidate to host the fixtures involving the Men in Blue” for the 50-over tournament.
Such a solution would see Pakistan having to travel to a neutral venue to play India in a group match, with another potential meeting later in the tournament if both teams advanced from their group. The final is scheduled for March 9 in Pakistan with the specific venue not yet decided.
“Our stance is clear,” Naqvi said. “They need to give us in writing any objections they may have. Until now, no discussion of the hybrid model has happened, nor are we prepared to accept one.”
Political tensions have stopped bilateral cricket between the two nations since 2008 and they have competed in only multi-nation tournaments, including ICC World Cups.
“Cricket should be free of politics,” Naqvi said. “Any sport should not be entangled with politics. Our preparations for the Champions Trophy will continue unabated, and this will be a successful event.”
The PCB has already spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of stadiums in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi which are due to host 15 Champions Trophy games. Naqvi hoped all the three stadiums will be ready over the next two months.
“Almost every country wants the Champions Trophy to be played here (in Pakistan),” Naqvi said. “I don’t think anyone should make this a political matter, and I don’t expect they will. I expect the tournament will be held at the home of the official hosts.”
Eight countries – Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, England, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Afghanistan – are due to compete in the tournament, the schedule of which is yet to be announced by the International Cricket Council.
“Normally the ICC announces the schedule of any major tournament 100 days before the event, and I hope they will announce it very soon,” Naqvi said.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Ottawa‘s Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe of New Zealand are through to the doubles final at the WTA Finals after a 7-6 (7), 6-1 victory over Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the United States and Australia’s Ellen Perez in semifinal action Friday.
Dabrowski and Routliffe won a hard-fought first set against serve when Routliffe’s quick reaction at the net to defend a Perez shot gave the duo set point, causing Perez to throw down her racket in frustration.
The second seeds then cruised through the second set, winning match point on serve when Melichar-Martinez couldn’t handle Routliffe’s shot.
The showdown was a rematch of last year’s semifinal, which Melichar-Martinez and Perez won in a super tiebreak.
Dabrowski and Routliffe will face the winner of a match between Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend, and Hao-Ching Chan and Veronika Kudermetova in the final on Saturday.
Dabrowski is aiming to become the first Canadian to win a WTA Finals title.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
