The Maple Leafs’ (nearly) full roster is back together again after the COVID-19 outbreak that swept through the team prior to the holiday break.

15 Leafs players have been in the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol: John Tavares, Alex Kerfoot, Wayne Simmonds, Jason Spezza, TJ Brodie, Jack Campbell, Travis Dermott, David Kampf, Petr Mrazek, Rasmus Sandin, Ilya Mikheyev, Morgan Rielly, William Nylander, Jake Muzzin, and Timothy Liljegren. Most recently, on December 29, the Leafs placed Liljegren, who participated in the team’s three consecutive practice days between December 26-28, in the protocol.

Among the above list of players, Tavares was cleared to return to practice on December 26 followed by Spezza, Simmonds, and Kerfoot on December 27. Dermott, Brodie, and Campbell returned to practice on December 28 followed by Mikheyev, Kampf, Mrazek, and Sandin on December 30.

The most recent group to return to practice included Nylander, Muzzin, and Rielly on December 31. As of December 30, the provincial health guidelines in Ontario now allow vaccinated people to leave isolation five days after the onset of symptoms.

That leaves only Liljegren on the list of Leafs players still in the protocol.

The following coaches and staff have been in the COVID-19 protocol: head coach Sheldon Keefe, assistant coach Spencer Carbery, goaltending coach Steve Briere, and four additional unnamed staff members. Keefe and Carbery returned to practice on December 28 followed by Briere on December 30.

After six consecutive game postponements, the Leafs‘ next scheduled game is at 7 p.m. EST on January 1 vs. the Ottawa Senators. Less to do with the Leafs‘ specific COVID-19 situation and more to do with revenue-loss mitigation related to the attendance-limiting regulations in Canada, the NHL has also postponed the Leafs’ Jan. 3 game at home versus Carolina and the January 6 game in Montreal.

While the NHL’s calculation in regards to gate revenues is clear, just how soon provincial regulations allow for full capacity in arenas remains to be seen.

For up-to-date information on upcoming games, see our Leafs schedule page.

Past Updates

Update (December 16): No shocker here, but the weekend games are a no-go and the Leafs are on their way back to Toronto.

Update (December 19): All games are postponed and all of the Leafs’ team activities are paused through the holiday break.

The news comes on the heels of a couple of Edmonton Oilers staff and players being placed in Covid protocol either before or after the Tuesday, December 14 game vs. Toronto, including head coach Dave Tippett and forwards Devin Shore and Ryan McLeod.

Update (December 20): All players and staff currently in COVID-19 protocol were returned home on a separate flight from the rest of the group and are currently isolating back in Toronto.

From the Marlies:

This number is said to be up to 24 Marlies players and five staff as of December 26.

Update (December 26): A sixth consecutive game has been postponed as Pittsburgh vs. Toronto will not go ahead as planned on the 29th.

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