Montreal Canadiens head coach Dominique Ducharme was dealt a big blow yesterday when he tested positive for Covid-19.
Not only does he have to worry about the potential health impact and side effects of contracting a nasty virus, he was also sent home to isolate away from his hockey team in the middle of the biggest series in his coaching career.
Ducharme coached some big games in Junior as he won a Memorial Cup behind the bench of the Halifax Mooseheads in 2013. Winning championships in Junior is great, but nothing compares to being a couple of wins away from the Stanley Cup Final.
Though there was some initial confusion about whether he tested positive or not because they used the word “irregularity” to describe Ducharme’s Covid test. Later in the day it was confirmed that he had tested positive and would be sent home to stay away from the rest of the team as they prepared for Game 3.
The Canadiens played that game without their coach, and though they were thoroughly outplayed for 60 minutes, they came out flying in overtime and took a 2-1 series lead when Josh Anderson tapped in a perfect pass from Paul Byron on a 2-on-0 to end the game.
Today, Chris Johnston of Sportsnet tweeted that Ducharme would likely have to isolate for 14 days before he is eligible to return to the Canadiens bench. If yesterday was considered the first day of that two week quarantine period, that means Ducharme is not eligible to return to the Habs bench until July 2.
Hearing that #habs interim head coach Dominique Ducharme will need to isolate for 14 days before he's eligible to rejoin the team following his positive COVID-19 result.
— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) June 19, 2021
The Habs series with Vegas will be over on June 26th at the very latest, meaning Ducharme has no chance of being back behind the bench this round. Even if the Canadiens advance to the Stanley Cup Final, it’s doubtful that Ducharme will join them for Game 1. There are six days between the Habs scheduled Game 7 with Vegas and the day Ducharme is allowed to return to the team.
Before the Canadiens can worry about the Stanley Cup Final they will have to find a way to play better against Vegas. They were thoroughly outplayed for most of regulation and saved by Carey Price’s heroics.
Luke Richardson was thrust into the coaching spotlight yesterday and will have to find a way to have the team better prepared for Game 4. Of course, he will have a little more notice than just a few hours that he will be acting as head coach. Now he knows he’s at the helm for two weeks.