Vermont delays puck drop for the 2020-21 season until mid-December

Todd Woodcroft replaced Kevin Sneddon as UVM coach and is settling in at Gutterson Fieldhouse. (Brian Jenkins/Vermont Athletics)

Just days after Hockey East released its schedule for 2020-21, the University of Vermont has put a pause on all hockey-related activities until Dec. 18, the university said on Sunday.

Vermont, which has seen relatively low numbers of COVID-19 cases throughout the pandemic, has seen a bit of a spike in the past seven days with nearly 500 new positives arising in the Green Mountain State, according to the CDC Data Tracker.

“After discussions with President Garimella and the Vermont Department of Health, it became clear that delaying the start of our seasons was the most responsible course of action,” said UVM director of athletics Jeff Schulman.