What do the positive cases mean for the Montreal Canadiens?

Montreal Canadiens players have tested positive for COVID-19, which could generate ripple effects for the organization, Max Domi and the rest of the NHL.

It was an exciting weekend for the NHL as teams began releasing their training camp rosters for the return of the 2019-20 season. However, the excitement on the Montreal Canadiens‘ end was met with concern that connected with the reality of what is going on in the world. Things started with Max Domi as the Habs announced he would be joining the team later on in Phase 3 (7-10 days to be exact).

There is a clause in the Return to Play Plan voted on by the NHL and NHLPA that states team doctors can deem a player unfit to play if it’s determined that they are at higher risk of developing worse symptoms via exposure to COVID-19. That put Domi on a lot of people’s lists as a player who may not be able to play.

Obviously, the Montreal Canadiens want to wait as long as possible and see if there’s even a sliver of a chance that it’s safe enough for Domi to play. And then comes Sunday’s news regarding positive tests amongst players in the organization.

This came from The Athletic’s Arpon Basu (paywall), who revealed at least three players on the Habs tested positive for the virus. Per the RTP, we won’t know who exactly tested positive and to be frank, it doesn’t necessarily matter who specifically did in this conversation. What does matter is the horrible timing of this occurrence.