The Chicago Blackhawks submitted their official 31-Man postseason roster on Sunday, which includes goaltender Corey Crawford but not defenseman Brent Seabrook. Barring extenuating circumstances, any player that was not listed on the team’s roster is ineligible for postseason play, which will begin August 1st in Edmonton.
Hey look, it’s the #Blackhawks Postseason Roster❗️#AllforOne pic.twitter.com/foFNOJ0nUw
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) July 26, 2020
Rumors swirled around Crawford’s availability after the veteran netminder was ruled “unfit to play” on July 15th. Under the NHL’s Return to Play policy, a player who misses time will be labeled “unfit to play,” whether he is injured or ill. Crawford confirmed to reporters that he had contracted Covid-19, squashing any rumors that his absence was injury-related.
“The first few days that I started feeling symptoms, that was the hardest,” Crawford said. “The last couple weeks, maybe a little bit more, was a little bit easier. But I still couldn’t really do much in case there was something wrong with my lungs or my heart, so we had to get that checked out first before I really started pushing in the gym or come on the ice.”
Although Crawford missed the majority of training camp, he did practice with the team on Saturday. Seabrook – who completed the entire training camp – announced that he would not be traveling with the team, since his injuries (right shoulder, hips) had yet to fully heal.
“I just don’t feel comfortable yet,” said Seabrook, who last played in mid-December. “(Training camp) was good for me to see where I’m at, see what I still have to work on and the things that I have to get better at, stronger with and continue to heal from, to be ready for camp next year.”
Brent Seabrook announces he will not be traveling to Edmonton for the Stanley Cup Qualifying Round.#Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/vjoAmqrCJH
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) July 24, 2020
In addition to Seabrook and Crawford, defensemen Calvin de Haan and Adam Boqvist – along with forwards Drake Caggiula, Zack Smith, and Andrew Shaw – were all question marks heading into training camp on July 13th. Boqvist, de Haan, and Caggiula have all seemingly recovered, at least enough to be included on the 31-man roster; whereas Shaw and Smith have yet to recover from concussion and back injuries, respectively.