With the new health constraints in place in Quebec, the Canadian from Montreal could go into exile for the entire month of January.
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At least that’s what the journalist of the TVA Sports network Louis Jean reported when he appeared on the airwaves of 91.9 FM on Wednesday.
Earlier this week, the Quebec government demanded that all sporting events be held behind closed doors. The National Hockey League (NHL) could therefore move the Canadiens home games until later in the year, in order to give the team a chance to welcome spectators.
If the plan of the Bettman circuit becomes concrete, that is to say that the men of Dominique Ducharme could “perhaps play on the road for a month or two”, according to Louis Jean.
Money at stake
The employment contract between the NHL and the Players’ Association is also likely to complicate the situation, since the income of the teams on the circuit has an influence in various respects, in particular the salary cap and the amount to be placed in trust by the players. .
“The NHL and the Players’ Association had planned that last season would be played behind closed doors. The owners therefore had the guarantee that they would find the money lost a little later in the collective agreement. But never, in all this planning, was there any question of the matches of the current season being held without the presence of spectators, ”said journalist Renaud Lavoie on Tuesday.
“If, for example, CH were to play all of January behind closed doors, we are talking about ten home games where significant income would be lost. It would be a catastrophic scenario for the team. ”
The Habs next home meeting is scheduled for January 4 against the Washington Capitals. Before the holiday break, CH played their game last Thursday against the Philadelphia Flyers behind closed doors, while that against the Boston Bruins on Saturday was postponed.