The NHL announced Thursday that all games wil be suspended indefinitely due to the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19)The announcementcomes a day after , with Utah Jazz players Rudy Gobertand Donovan Mitchellreportedly testing positive for the virus."In light of ongoing developments resulting from the coronavirus, and after consulting with medical experts and convening Milan Lucic Jersey a conference call of the Board of Governors, the National Hockey League is announcing today that it will pause the 201920 season beginning with tonights games," NHL commi sioner Gary Bettman said in a . "The NHL has been attempting to follow the mandates of health experts Mark Letestu Jersey and local authorities, while preparing for any po sible developments without taking premature or unnece sary measures."However, following last nights news that an NBA player has tested positive for coronavirus and given that our leagues share so many facilities and locker rooms and it now seems likely that some member of the NHL community would test positive at some point it is no longer appropriate to try to continue to play games at this time."CORONAVIRUS UPDATES: The NHLprogre sivelyhad been limiting acce s on gamedays as the spread of the virus increased. On March 7, dre sing rooms were closed to the media. This week, the Columbus Blue Jackets and San Jose Sharks announced that, in accordance with local government directives, their upcoming home games would be played without fans.On Thursday morning, the league told teams not to hold morning skates or meetings.Given the uncertainty regarding Bill Ranford Jersey next steps regarding the coronavirus, Clubs are advised not to conduct morning skates, practices or team meetings today. NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) All signs pointed toward the NHL following the lead of many leagues and competitions worldwide, and shortly after1:30 p.m. ET Thursday, Grant Fuhr Jersey word became official.We will continue to monitor all the appropriate medical advice, and we will encourage our players and other members of the NHL community to take all reasonable precautions including by self-quarantine, where appropriate," Bettman said. "Our goal is to resume play as soon as it is appropriate and prudent, so that we will Cam Talbot Jersey be able to complete the season and award the Stanley Cup. Until then, we thank NHL fans for your patience and hope you stay healthy.The NHL Players A sociation released a statement shortly after the league's announcement, calling the suspension of play "an appropriate course of action at this time."The decision to temporarily suspend play due to the COVID-19 pandemic is an appropriate course of action at this time. NHLPA (@NHLPA)