The next home games for the Montreal Canadiens will likely be played in front of empty benches.
The Minister of Health and Social Services, Christian Dubé, announced on Monday new measures to curb the outbreak of new cases of COVID-19 in the province. In a long list which included in particular the advancement of the end of classes for the holiday break as well as the closure of bars, Mr. Dubé indicated that amateur and professional sports would again be presented behind closed doors, like last winter. . This measure comes into effect immediately and is in place for an indefinite period.
In the short term, this announcement does not change anything for the Canadian, the Rocket of Laval or the teams of the QMJHL, stopped until after Christmas. All three CH games scheduled for this week in the New York area have been postponed, and their next home match is not scheduled until January 4. The Rocket and the Quebec QMJHL teams will, however, play without an audience when they return to action on January 29 and 28, respectively – if the pandemic does not lead to more postponements or cancellations of matches, of course.
Last week, the Quebec government decreed that crowds would be reduced by 50% in stadiums and amphitheatres in the province. With little time to react, the Habs played a game behind closed doors on December 16 against the Philadelphia Flyers. His next game, scheduled against the Boston Bruins last Saturday, has been called off due to the large number of cases with the Bruins.
In a press release, the CH had indicated to have had “the assurance” that spectators would return to the Bell Center at the beginning of the year 2022. This insurance no longer holds up, we understand, while Quebec has established a sad record by listing more than 4,500 cases on Monday.