It is an unprecedented lose-lose scenario for the Sharks.
They could be the first professional sports team in North America to have their season severely altered as a precaution against COVID-19, commonly known as coronavirus.
And in the process, they’ll have to appeal to a spectrum of fans, players, politicians, local government, the NHL, its teams, its schedule, and even non-sports pundits.
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Not only that, but plans they make likely will need approvals at the highest of levels, well outside their own control.
On Monday night Santa Clara County (which has surpassed 40 cases of coronavirus) put a three-week ban on gatherings of 1,000 people or more, which begins on Wednesday. Within two hours the Sharks responded in a statement saying they would “adhere to the mandated guidelines."
The next NHL game at SAP Center is scheduled for March 19. Two additional games also fall into the three-week window, and only five in total remain before San Jose’s season ends April 4.
What’s important to realize at this early stage is that the Sharks are among the first, but highly unlikely to be the only/last entity affected by such direct orders. Other counties across the country could follow suit in the coming days and weeks, impacting all kinds of teams, leagues, and events far outside the context of sports.
San Jose Sharks
There’s an industry feeling that what we’re seeing right now in San Jose is only the beginning of similar widespread precautions. We truly have no idea yet of the scale and duration in prevention to combat coronavirus.
Sharks players understand the severity and context of what’s at stake. They would accept having to play home games in an empty arena, if it came to that. But sentiments would be far less welcoming if additional travel was part of all their remaining home games.
On that note, the logistical options remaining for San Jose are few, but distinct.
Canceling games, or indefinitely postponing them, probably won’t happen. Attended or not, the NHL and its teams want the rest of this season to play out for financial and logistical reasons. Plus, there are options to assure that happens.
Swapping home to road games often can be a quick fix in professional sports, but the logistics here make it a nightmare. The Sharks would have to put together a quick Montreal-Boston swing, then separate journeys to Arizona, Dallas and Anaheim. Plus, those arenas currently are booked for other events, and of course, they could see similar COVID-19 restrictions from now until then.
Using another local arena is a commonly suggested workaround option for the Sharks. But can instantly rule out San Francisco's Chase Center and Cow Palace for their lack of acceptable hockey infrastructure. Oakland Arena and Golden 1 Center would be bigger-scale options, yet less tested. But the most game-ready rink would be Stockton Arena, current home of the AHL’s Heat. However, it should be noted that any or all of these facilities could fall under similar capacity restrictions or closures by local governments.
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All of this likely means that playing in an empty SAP Center might be the most likely fix. It will look and feel weird. The team will lose out on revenue, and ticketed fans will lose out on the experience. Nobody will be thrilled, but rules will be followed, players will have their regular resources, and the season's timeline stays intact.