Ontario cuts attendance at sporting events way down

Bad news for fans of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators. In an attempt to curb the spread of COVID-19 in the province, the Ontario government announced new rules for crowd limits at sporting events.

Hockey arenas were previously allowed 50 percent capacity. Thursday, the province reduced that to 50 percent capacity with a maximum of one thousand fans. At the same time, Ontario announced a change to its isolation rules, with fully vaccinated people now required to isolate for only five days instead of 10 if their symptoms have improved for at least 24 hours and all public health and safety measures are followed.

What remains to be seen is whether the NHL will decide to postpone upcoming Toronto and Ottawa games due to attendance restrictions. It has already done so for the Montreal Canadiens and Winnipeg Jets, who currently aren't allowed to have any fans at their arenas.

Ontario's decision also will impact the 17 OHL teams in the province, along with the AHL's Toronto Marlies and Belleville Senators. The new rules take effect on Friday. It's not yet known how long they'll last.

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