NHLers will likely be getting COVID-19 vaccine sooner than most
It is being reported that NHL players will be among the first in line for the COVID-19 vaccine.
"Source confirms that the NHL is planning the private purchase of a COVID vaccine for all constituents involved in the potential upcoming season," said NHL Insider John Shannon on Twitter.
This will raise some interesting debates among analysts and fans. Is it fair that professional athletes and team staff get access to the coveted vaccine before members of the general public, many of whom could be waiting until the latter part of 2021 to receive the injection? It's a matter of personal opinion, of course, but it's bound to be raised.
"The Public Health Agency of Canada tells me it can't stop Pharma companies from selling their vaccines to a 'private enterprise,'" said TSN's Rick Westhead.
Many professional sports leagues such as the NHL, NFL, NBA, etc., may even be willing to pay more for the Corona virus vaccine in order to get it faster. They are obviously hoping to avoid as many disruptions to games as possible and the vaccine would be huge in helping that effort.
“You could easily wind up with the public perception being that athletes are queue-jumping and that's happened before,” Dr. Juliet Guichon, a University of Calgary professor and medical ethics expert, told Westhead.
"In 2009, when vaccines for the swine flu were made available, the public in Calgary were told to wait in lineups for hours at a time outside Alberta Health Services offices," Westhead wrote. "While requests to set up private vaccination clinics in seniors homes were denied, 150 Calgary Flames staff, players and their family members were given priority, secretly vaccinated before many members of the public at their NHL arena, a provincial inquiry reported."
| POLL | ||
DÉCEMBRE 10 | 119 ANSWERS NHLers will likely be getting COVID-19 vaccine sooner than most Are you ok with professional athletes "jumping the queue" for vaccines? | ||
| Yes | 53 | 44.5 % |
| No | 66 | 55.5 % |
| LIST OF POLLS | ||
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4 JUIN 2026
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| B | P | PTS | ||
| Brett Howden | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Shayne Gostisbehere | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Mitch Marner | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Mark Jankowski | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Seth Jarvis | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Jordan Staal | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Logan Stankoven | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Mark Stone | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Sebastian Aho | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Ivan Barbashev | - | 1 | 1 | |
| William Carrier | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Noah Hanifin | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Tomas Hertl | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Eric Robinson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Andrei Svechnikov | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Frederik Andersen | - | - | - | |
| Rasmus Andersson | - | - | - | |
| Jackson Blake | - | - | - | |
| Jalen Chatfield | - | - | - | |
| Dylan Coghlan | - | - | - | |
| STATS COMPLÈTES | ||||