Islanders Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Noah Dobson Placed on COVID Protocol List

Sunday’s New York Islanders showdown with the New Jersey Devils got off to an interesting start, to say the least.

Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Noah Dobson were placed on the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol list on Sunday. First Pageau was not listed on the game roster and just a few minutes after puck drop it was revealed he was on the protocol list.

Then Dobson was mysteriously scratched from the game even though he took part in warmups before the Islanders battled New Jersey in Newark. It wass until after the start of the third period that the Islanders announced that Dobson had also been placed on the COVID protocol list.

Sebastion Aho took Dobson’s spot on the blue line and had to rush to get his equipment on, which resulted in the Islanders starting the game a player short. Aho hadn’t played in an NHL game since March 18, 2018.

Pageau and Dobson were the first Islanders players to miss a game due to the league’s COVID-19 protocols. They were the first two Islanders players placed on the COVID protocol list since Josh Bailey.

Bailey was briefly placed on the protocol list in late January, but never missed a game because of it.

The Isles were going into Sunday’s game already down a player with Anders Lee out indefinitely with a lower-body injury. The team announced earlier in the day that they had placed Lee on LTIR.