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The Dallas Stars will not start the regular season on time due to a COVID-19 outbreak involving six players and two staff members, the NHL announced Friday.

The Stars canceled Friday’s practice, and the affected players and staffers are self-isolating and following CDC and league protocols. The training facilities will remain closed for several days while further daily testing and contact tracing is conducted.



“The League is in the process of reviewing and revising the Stars’ regular season schedule with the expectation that the team will not open its 2020-21 season earlier than Tuesday, January 19,” the league said in a statement.

The Stars had been scheduled to open the season with a four-game Florida road trip: two games with the Panthers on Jan. 14-15 in Sunrise, Fla., and two games with the Lightning on Jan. 17 and 19 in Tampa.

Last season, the Stars lost in six games to the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2020 Stanley Cup Final.

“The Stars organization has, and will continue to follow, all recommended guidelines aimed at protecting the health and safety of its players, staff and community at large as set by the NHL, local, state and national agencies,” read the NHL statement.



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