About a half an hour after hockey games at Capital One Arena, the long cinder block hallways at ice level are barren and quiet — except for a wood and flat-screen paneled room tucked in a corner next to an industrial elevator. It’s the Capitals’ family lounge and a communal gathering spot after games, where the players’ families and friends can head up to the lower seating bowl to watch.
When the 2020 National Hockey League playoffs begin, however, temperature checks and isolation will replace friendly waves and hugs. Instead of getting into their cars to drive down Constitution Avenue after games, players and team personnel must stay in the the NHL’s “Phase 4 Secure Zone” in one of the NHL’s hub cities, in the Capitals’ case Toronto.