Vancouver Giants pause 'all team activities' due to COVID-19

Sunday's Vancouver Giants game has been postponed after multiple players or staff members were added to the Western Hockey League's COVID-19 protocol list.

The WHL announced the postponement in a statement Saturday, saying that "all team activities" have been paused as a result of the Giants' COVID-19 situation.

Players and staff are added to the WHL protocol list when they are either exhibiting symptoms or have tested positive for COVID-19.

The Giants were scheduled to host the Portland Winterhawks on Sunday. Previous games scheduled for Friday in Kelowna and Saturday in Kamloops were also postponed.

As many as 15 of the WHL's 22 teams have had their operations paused simultaneously in recent weeks as the Omicron variant of COVID-19 sweeps through communities across Western Canada.

The Giants were not the only Vancouver hockey team to have a home game cancelled this weekend. On Friday, the NHL announced that the Vancouver Canucks game against the Ottawa Senators, which was scheduled for Saturday, had been postponed due to ongoing capacity restrictions at Rogers Arena.

Current B.C. COVID-19 rules limit attendance at indoor sports events to 50 per cent capacity.