Dahlen game ready, Meier added to COVID Protocol

The San Jose Sharks have released an update on the players and staff on the NHL’s COVID Protocol list ahead of tonight’s game against the Buffalo Sabres, scheduled for puck drop at 7:30 p.m. PT.

The following players are on the NHL’s COVID protocol list:

• Kevin Labanc (F)
• Timo Meier (F)
• Matt Nieto (F)
• Erik Karlsson (D)
• Jake Middleton (D)
• Radim Simek (D)
• Marc-Edouard Vlasic (D)

The following staff are on the NHL’s COVID protocol list:

• Bob Boughner (Head Coach)
• Ray Tufts (Head Trainer)

The following player was removed from the COVID protocol list:

• Jonathan Dahlen (F)

To account for Ray Tufts’ absence, San Jose Barracuda head athletic trainer, Will Leonard, will supplement the Sharks staff behind the bench in tonight’s game.

Per assistant coach John Maclean, who is still filling in for Bob Boughner, Nick Merkley will be in the line up for tonight, but Jonah Gadjovich is out. The defensive pairings from Saturday’s game should remain the same for tonight, and Reimer will start in net.

Jonathan Dahlen will rejoin the roster, and reported feeling asymptomatic during his time on the COVID Protocol list.

Lines are still fluid for tonight’s game, but preliminary possibilities are:

• Couture with Dahlén
• Hertl with Barabanov
• Bonino with Cogliano
• Leonard, Balcers, Nick Merkley, Eklund, Weatherby and Pederson

The lines from Saturday’s overtime win over the Winnipeg Jets provide a rough outline for what we might see in tonight’s game with the COVID Protocol being as robust as it is.

Those forward lines were:

Eklund — Bonino — Balcers
Meier — Hertl — Barabanov
Leonard — Weatherby — Labanc
Gadjovich (out) — Pederson — N. Merkley

Defensive pairings were:

Burns — Ferraro
Megna — R. Merkley
Hatakka — Meloche