A back-and-forth first round playoff series has stretched the competition beyond the ice.
For Game 6 at the Bell Centre, the Montreal Canadiens opened their arena to 2,500 fans who were willing to pay the price. Now for Game 7, the Toronto Maple Leafs are allowing a total of 550 fully vaccinated health-care workers to attend the series-clinching game at Scotiabank Arena.
“This is well below the arena’s capacity,” Ontario Premier Doug Ford said in a statement. “With these health-care workers having received both doses of a COVID-19 vaccine at least two weeks ago, and with precautionary measures in place like screening, masking, distancing, enhanced cleaning and crowd control, public health officials are confident we can put these special fans in the stands safely and with minimal risk.