NHL players acquired by a team in Canada from a United States-based team before the NHL Trade Deadline on April 12 will have to quarantine for seven days, down from 14, according to reports Friday.
The decision by the Canada government was made "under national interest grounds," according to The Canadian Press.
The 2020-21 NHL season started in January with a 14-day quarantine that applied to any traveler entering Canada due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
April 12 is the last day a player can be traded to an NHL team and be eligible for the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs. The regular season is scheduled to end May 10.
According to The Canadian Press, the Public Health Agency of Canada said the provinces with NHL teams -- British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec -- have "provided written commitment that they support the proposed risk mitigation measures from the NHL."
"The Public Health Agency of Canada was consulted on the NHL's plan and assessed it against public health criteria," the statement said, according to The Canadian Press. "With the support of provincial and local public health authorities, PHAC concluded that, if fully implemented, it offers robust measures to mitigate the risk of importation and spread of COVID-19 in Canada for the purposes of in-season additions."
Details of the exemption have not been made public.
The reduced quarantine time reportedly also applies to players from American Hockey League teams in the United States. Players would be tested daily for 14 days.
The first player who can take advantage of the policy would be center Eric Staal, who was traded to the Montreal Canadiens from the Buffalo Sabres on Friday.
With limitations on travel between Canada and the United States because of the coronavirus, the NHL realigned its four divisions for the 2020-21 season, creating the Scotia North Division, which consists of the seven teams based in Canada playing all of their games against each other in the country (Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, Montreal Canadiens, Ottawa Senators, Toronto Maple Leafs, Vancouver Canucks, Winnipeg Jets).
The three other divisions -- MassMutual East, Discover Central and Honda West -- consist of 24 teams in the United States.
Toronto general manager Kyle Dubas last week expressed concern what a 14-day quarantine would mean for activity at the trade deadline.
"The player is going to come in and sit for 14 days in their hotel," Dubas said March 16. "We're going to be in a tougher spot to get the most out of it that we can. To only be with the team for about six games and 10 days (prior to the playoffs after quarantining), it certainly provides incentives to make the moves earlier, but it takes two to make that happen though."
The United States does not have a national quarantine requirement, leaving it to the discretion of state governments. As a result, there have been disparities in the number of games missed by players when trades have been made between teams in the United States and in Canada.
Forward Pierre-Luc Dubois was traded from the Columbus Blue Jackets to Winnipeg for forwards Patrik Laine and Jack Roslovic on Jan. 23. Dubois traveled to Canada from Columbus that day and was not able to play for the Jets until Feb. 9, missing six games. Laine played his first game Feb. 2 after dealing with work-visa issues related to his relocation. He missed four games. Roslovic was in Columbus when the trade took place.
Any traveler coming into Canada from elsewhere has been subject to a mandatory 14-day quarantine which remains in effect. NHL staff and players arriving in Canada for training camps prior to the season were subject to a seven-day quarantine with additional testing.
The Canada-United States border has been closed to nonessential travel since March 21, 2020.
