NHL ends February with only four players on COVID list

The NHL closed February with a season-low-matching four players on its COVID-19 list.

Detroit’s Patrik Nemeth entered the protocol on Sunday, while Ottawa’s Ryan Dzingel and Philadelphia’s Travis Konecny were cleared after spending two weeks on the list.

Konecny was the final Flyers player in the protocol after the team had as many as seven on the list on Feb. 17.

The overall NHL numbers have stayed in single digits since Feb. 22, when there were nine players in the protocol. Overall, that’s down from a season-high 59 players on the list Feb. 12.

Nemeth’s addition ups the total to 129 players having spent at least one day in the protocol. The New Jersey Devils top that list with 21 players affected and spending a combined 259 days on the COVID-19 list.

Montreal and Calgary are the only NHL teams that have not had a player placed in protocol since the season began Jan. 13. The St. Louis Blues have had only one, Sammy Blais in February, and he was removed from the list after it was determined that his test had been a false positive.