Avalanche training camp starts July 13*

* Provided, there are no disruptions because of the coronavirus.

That asterisk will apply to pretty much everything in the NHL’s Phase 3 and Phase 4 Return to Play dystopian initiative.

Avalanche training camp for Phase 3, however, is slated to start next Monday at the Pepsi Center. There are a myriad of rules and regulations for Phase 3, too, which can largely be boiled down to: a gazillion coronavirus tests, everything swabbed down with disinfectant, masks and more tests.

Here’s just a sampling of the Major Major Major Catch-22 bureaucratic rules and regulations for this thing, with regard to persons in “close contact” with each other:

PERSONS WITH CLOSE CONTACT
In the event of an initial positive finding for COVID-19 for a person covered by this Protocol (“Index Person”): • Club Medical, with their ID expert, shall conduct a contact tracing immediately upon receiving the Index Person’s first positive test, which shall be done in conjunction with, and pursuant to, regulations from local health authorities (if any), to determine whether other Players or any other person that had access to the training facility had “close contact” with the Index Person.
o The team physician or infectious disease expert may also seek to identify other people, not
covered by this Protocol, who have been in contact with the Index Person, including family
and other household members, as appropriate and consistent with, regulations of local
health authorities.
• Any such person shall be considered to be a “Close Contact” if they have been in contact for 15 minutes or longer at 6 feet or less with the Index Person (regardless of whether facial protection is worn) in the 48 hour period leading up to the time the Index Person’s test was taken (if asymptomatic), or 48 hours prior to the onset of symptoms in the Index Person.
Close Contacts shall be tested immediately through the administration of a RT-PCR test.
Close Contacts whose test results are positive for COVID-19 shall:
• be subject to the provisions of Section G(1) of this Protocol regarding test confirmation and isolation. Close Contacts who test negative for COVID-19 shall:
• be subject to daily symptom and temperature monitoring and daily PCR testing for 14 days; and
• shall not be subject to quarantine provided that the following conditions are satisfied for such 14 day
period:
i. The person remains asymptomatic and afebrile (free of fever), and
ii. The results of PCR testing are negative on each occasion.
NOTE: In the event that the Index Person is subsequently found to be negative on confirmatory
testing, the Close Contact measures no longer apply.
During the 14-day period described above, the Close Contact shall be reminded of their job.

Got that? A max of 30 players can be at camp, and we should get the full roster in the next couple days.  Bo Byram is one of the “extra” players, and I’m pretty sure you’ll see guys like Martin Kaut and T.J. Tynan, among others. The Western Conference playoffs are slated to start Aug. 1, in Edmonton.

A small number of media will be allowed into the building to watch camp, which, luckily, I’ll be one of them (asterisk).

I hope, in a week’s time, I’ll be writing about line combinations and power-play units, with quotes from Jared Bednar and Cale Makar and all that good stuff.