Bruins' McAvoy in COVID protocol, misses Game 4 vs. Hurricanes

Boston Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy entered COVID-19 protocol and was not in the lineup for Game 4 against the Carolina Hurricanes on Sunday.

After the Bruins' 5-2 win, Boston head coach Bruce Cassidy said he didn't have an update on when McAvoy would make his return but added the team learned of the situation Sunday morning, according to NHL.com's Amalie Benjamin.

McAvoy didn't practice Saturday. The NHL and NHLPA agreed to stop testing asymptomatic players after the All-Star break, which indicates the rearguard is showing symptoms.

The league's COVID policy dictates players who test positive must isolate for five days and can be cleared anytime after that if they retest negative and are asymptomatic. Game 5 of the series is scheduled for Tuesday, and Game 6, if necessary, would be played Thursday.

The talented blue-liner's absence leaves a gaping hole on the Bruins' back end. McAvoy is a fringe Norris Trophy candidate after piling up 56 points over 78 regular-season contests in 2021-22. The 24-year-old led all Bruins skaters in average ice time this season, outpacing his next-closest teammate by over two minutes.

McAvoy averaged 25:15 over the first three games of the first-round series - nearly six more minutes than Brad Marchand, who sat second on the club at 19:34 entering Sunday's game.

Copyright (C) 2022 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.