Complicated travel plans for Leafs and Oilers ahead of Game 3

The Edmonton Oilers and Toronto Maple Leafs both travelled down south in the United States for Game 3 of their respective first-round series. However, they chose to make a detour to reach Los Angeles and Tampa Bay respectively.

Per TSN’s Darren Dreger, Canadian teams are taking alternative travel routes into the U.S. to avoid COVID testing. The Oilers and Maple Leafs elected o bus across the border instead of fly, before reaching their final destinations. As Dreger points out this is a creative way to plan the trip since that the USA still require mandatory COVID testing within 24 hours of a flight for anyone who is flying from Canada into the U.S.

Their opponents, the Kings and Lightning did not bus across the border when they went into Canada for the beginning of their first-round series against their Canadian opponents: tests are not required from USA to Canada. The Dallas Stars did not either, and many expects their opponents, the Calgary Flames, to bus across the border before making their way to Dallas for Game 3 on Saturday.

This way, all Canadian teams can avoid false positive tests and losing players for crucial games. 

This approach was used by NHL teams during the regular season. However, with the tight time frame in between games and the importance of those make these complicated travel plans a little more stressful.

On Friday, Maple Leafs veteran Jason Spezza was asked about the complicated plan to bus to Buffalo in order to fly out to Tampa, but the forward, who will enter the postseason tonight for Game 3, is just focused on playing.

“That’s above my pay grade. I get on the bus when they tell me to get on the bus. I get on the plane when they tell me to get on the plane. As long as it all leads to the arena I’m pretty happy.”