Good old hockey game acclaim

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This article was published 02/06/2021 (1303 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The mood surrounding Bell MTS Place almost felt pre-pandemic early Wednesday evening, as hundreds of health-care workers lined up to be the first Winnipeg Jets fans in the stands in more than a year.

The newest version of Manitoba’s public health orders includes provisions for future Jets playoff home games to allow up to 500 fully vaccinated health-care workers, and the immediate families of players, coaches, managers and administration, to attend in person.

There is no requirement from the province anyone from the latter category be vaccinated against COVID-19.

According to a statement from Jets and arena owner True North Sports and Entertainment Ltd., the fans in the stands were decided by a random lottery composed of physicians, nurses, health-care professionals and support staff. More than 6,000 people entered the draw.

One of the draw winners, Teresa Jensen, watched as cars filled with fans waving Jets flags honked and cheered outside the rink while she waited to witness the Jets face off against the Montreal Canadiens.

Jensen said she was “ecstatic and honoured” to attend and engage in a little self-care away from her front-line work as a nurse.

“It has its ups and downs, it’s certainly never something I thought I’d work through in my career or my lifetime, but it has also given me an opportunity to help a lot of people,” said Jensen, who works with Manitoba’s pandemic response team in First Nations communities.

Face coverings were required for fans for the entirety of the game, concessions were not sold, and all health-care workers entering the building had to provide proof they had received the two required vaccine doses.

During a news conference earlier in the day, medical lead for the COVID-19 task force, Dr. Joss Reimer, said careful planning had gone into the decision.

“The biggest message for Manitobans is that we want to thank the health-care workers who have been doing this (work) for a year-and-a-half,” she said. “And while we’re telling most Manitobans to stay home, that’s not the message we give to the health-care workers. We’re asking them to come in and to put themselves in front of this virus every single day.”

The Manitoba Nurses Union issued a mixed response through social media, noting the initiative “might just be the tactic (Premier Brian Pallister) was hoping for” and a diversion from the ongoing contract negotiations between the MNU and the province.

“We are thankful to be considered by True North, even though this puts nurses in a very uncomfortable position. What can we say, we don’t want to let anyone down,” the statement reads. “But this isn’t going to be one more knock against our members.”

The feeling was bittersweet for Jesse Garber and Mathieu Bourrier, two anesthesiologist resident physicians, who said their pre-game excitement was dampened by the reality of the province’s current COVID-19 situation.

“It’s been so long since we’ve done anything like this so, it’s really cool to see that things are moving in the right direction, but it’s also hard because things are still so bad in Winnipeg currently,” Bourrier said.

Bourrier, who said he had “mixed feelings” about the event, said he understood the concern from those saying the decision to bring in fans was unfair.

“I feel privileged, we’re very lucky to get this opportunity. We definitely understand some of the optics,” he said.

“But I think it’s a point of hope for some people — that if you get your two vaccines, that someday, hopefully soon, we can all try to get back together.”

— with files from Danielle Da Silva

malak.abas@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: malakabas_