Bruins Goalie Jaroslav Halak Tests Positive For COVID-19
BOSTON (CBS) -- The Boston Bruins are down another goalie. Jaroslav Halak returned a positive test and has been put in the NHL's COVID-19 protocols, head coach Bruce Cassidy announced Monday.
"We have to follow up with more testing for him," Cassidy said of Halak Monday afternoon.
With Tuukka Rask also on the shelf with an upper-body injury, Halak's positive test leaves the Bruins pretty shorthanded between the pipes. Boston will now rely on a pair of rookie netminders for the foreseeable future in Dan Vladar and Jeremy Swayman.
Vladar was already scheduled to start in net Monday night against the Philadelphia Flyers in Boston, but now he'll have Swayman backing him up instead of Halak. That duo may will likely make up Boston's goaltending tandem for the week, with three games against the Flyers (one in Boston and two in Philadelphia) and a road game against the Capitals.
Vladar, 23, has started three games for the Bruins this season, going 2-1 with a .929 save percentage and 2.03 goals against average. He allowed just one goal in each of his first two starts, notching wins over the Pittsburgh Penguins and Buffalo Sabres. He allowed three goals on 22 shots his last time out, a 4-1 loss to the Penguins on April 1. For the season, Vladar has stopped 78 of the 84 shots that have come his way.
Cassidy said Monday that Rask will travel with the team to Philadelphia on Tuesday night, but that the veteran will not play in either game against the Flyers. With the Bruins playing a back-to-back Monday and Tuesday, Swayman will likely make his pro debut Tuesday night in Philly.
"We'll worry about [Tuesday] when we get more info," Cassidy said of Halak's follow-up testing.
Swayman has been great for the Providence Bruins this season, sporting an 8-1-0 record to go with a .933 save percentage and 1.89 goals against average.
Halak has appeared in 17 games for Boston this season, making 16 starts, and is 9-5-3 with a .910 save percentage and 2.44 GAA.
