Opinion: The NHL should explore hardship deals to help teams ice a roster during COVID-19 outbreaks
The NHL loves getting everything wrong and their handling of COVID-19 outbreaks with multiple teams has been no different. Both this season and last, teams have had to play with less than 18 skaters because they did not have the cap space to call up a player from either the taxi-squad or the AHL.
The NHL is not the only league who is currently being affected by COVID-19. Both the NFL and NBA have seen many players sitting out of games because of Covid protocols. We saw the NFL change the requirements for testing fully vaccinated players, meanwhile the NBA has taken an approach that the NHL should look at.
The NBA implemented 10 day hardship exemption contracts in order for teams to be able to meet player requirements while fighting the omicron variant. Obviously, the NHL salary cap is different from the NBA's but that should not stop the league from getting creative. The NHL should allow for teams to sign 10 day exemption contracts once the league returns from the Covid pause. These deals should not count against the cap and it gives the league another route if they do not want to reimplement the taxi-squad.
In the NBA we have seen players like Isaiah Thomas get another shot. Joe Johnson came out of retirement by signing one of these exemptions with the Boston Celtics. It has also allowed for young players to get their opportunity at playing in the NBA.
We should get the opportunity to see the same thing in the NHL. Unrestricted free agents such as Bobby Ryan (who was going to play in the Spengler Cup) could sign a 10 hardship deal. Someone like Patrick Marleau could sign a 10 day contract and continue his games played record. Even a younger player like Josh Ho-Sang could sign a hardship contract with the Leafs and then not require waivers to return to the Marlies.
Even if having these players doesn't mean teams can ice their best roster every night it is a better solution than making teams play with less than 18 skaters. Unfortunately the NHL will is not likely to make exemptions like this for teams because of the salary cap, but in unprecedented times the league should look at what the NBA is doing to get through this season with all these COVID-19 cases and have teams ice a full roster.
