One day after announcing that the 2021-22 season would continue on as scheduled while postponing select games due to COVID-19 positives, the NHL and the NHL Players’ Association are reportedly instituting a league-wide shutdown starting Wednesday, according to Sportsnet.

When the initial statement was made on Sunday, the league had already suspended the schedules of six teams due to COVID-19 positives. Since then, an additional five teams joined the list ― the Toronto Maple Leafs, Columbus Blue Jackets, Montréal Canadiens, Edmonton Oilers and Ottawa Senators.

Now, games that were scheduled to be played on Wednesday and Thursday before the holiday break are reportedly postponed and will be rescheduled. In total, the league will be forced to find new dates for over 60 games that have been postponed over the course of the season, the majority of which have come in the past week.

This decision to reportedly institute a shutdown beginning Wednesday impacts the Flyers, who were slated to play the Pittsburgh Penguins on the road on Thursday.

However, as of Monday night, the Flyers are still scheduled to face off against the Washington Capitals on Tuesday night at the Wells Fargo Center. The game is one of two to be played on Tuesday. Prior to COVID-19-related postponements, the game was one of 10 scheduled across the league.

» READ MORE: Report: NHL to institute a league-wide pause from Dec. 22-26 due to spike in positive COVID-19 tests

— Olivia Reiner

The Drexel University men’s basketball team announced Monday evening that its scheduled Tuesday afternoon game with La Salle University’s team has been posted because of COVID-19 protocols within the Drexel program.

The game was to be played at Gola Arena on La Salle’s campus on Tuesday at 4 p.m.

No further information, including when the game will be rescheduled, was made available.

— Robert Moran

Omicron has raced ahead of other variants and is now the dominant version of the coronavirus in the U.S., accounting for 73% of new infections last week, federal health officials said Monday.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention numbers showed nearly a six-fold increase in omicron’s share of infections in only one week.

In much of the country, omicron’s prevalence is even higher. It’s responsible for an estimated 90% of new infections in the New York area, the Southeast, the industrial Midwest and the Pacific Northwest.

Since the end of June, the delta variant has been the main version causing U.S. infections. As recently as the end of November, more than 99.5% of coronaviruses were delta, according to CDC data.

Scientists in Africa first sounded the alarm about omicron less than a month ago and on Nov. 26 the World Health Organization designated it as a “variant of concern.” The mutant has since shown up in about 90 countries.

Much about the omicron variant remains unknown, including whether it causes more or less severe illness. Early studies suggest the vaccinated will need a booster shot for the best chance at preventing omicron infection but even without the extra dose, vaccination still should offer strong protection against severe illness and death.

— Associated Press

Harriton High School in Lower Merion has suspended extracurriculars this week after the school district identified three COVID-19 outbreaks among participants in the activities.

District officials said the suspension was recommended by the Montgomery County Office of Public Health to allow time to complete contact tracing.

The county did not recommend a shift to virtual learning in light of the outbreaks, which the district defined as two or more cases linked by transmission in school or school activities.

However, “failure to practice mitigation efforts over Winter Break will likely lead to additional cases once students return,” Superintendent Khalid Mumin said in a letter to parents Monday — urging everyone who is eligible to get vaccinated and boosted, and to continue masking and social distancing. “Additional outbreaks could jeopardize our ability to continue in-person instruction and activities.”

— Maddie Hanna

The Washington Football Team announced that seven coaches will miss Tuesday’s game against the Eagles because of COVID-19 protocols as the team’s outbreak continues to grow.

A handful of positions coaches and other assistants will miss the game at Lincoln Financial Field, which was moved from Sunday to Tuesday after Washington lost roughly a third of its active roster to COVID protocols last week.

Washington recouped a few key players over the weekend, but they added All-Pro right guard Brandon Schreff to the COVID-19/reserve list Monday, likely knocking him out for the game.

Washington activated defensive tackle Matt Ionnadis, a former Temple standout, off the list Monday and the team should also have defensive linemen Jonathan Allen and Montez Sweat back as well.

Washington is still waiting to find out if starting quarterback Taylor Heinicke or his backup, Kyle Allen, will be able to test out of COVID-19 protocols in time for the 7 p.m. kickoff. If not, Washington will likely go with Garrett Gilbert, whom the team signed off the Patriots practice squad last Friday once Heinicke entered the protocol.

The Washington coaches who are expected to miss the game are: Defensive line coach Sam Mills, wide receiver coach Drew Terrell, running backs coach Randy Jordan, defensive backs coach Chris Harris, assistant defensive backs coach Brent Vieselmeyer, defensive assistant Vincent Rivera, and defensive intern Christian Garcia.

— EJ Smith

Hundreds of people stood in line outside libraries and rec centers Monday to get free, at-home COVID tests from Philadelphia’s health department.

At Widener Library in Strawberry Mansion, about 300 kits were distributed in an hour. At West Philadelphia’s Haverford Library, photos posted on Twitter showed lines around the block. Bill and Ellen Powell got in line at their neighborhood rec center 15 minutes after it began handing out tests — only to be told 15 minutes later that the center has already run out, after handing out 375 kits with two tests each.

The Powells, like many in line, had hoped to get rapid tests so they could feel safer seeing family for the holidays. It wasn’t likely those plans would change without the tests, Bill Powell said, but “it sort of puts a damper on things.”

Clarence Nelson, 63, of West Oak Lane, was one of the last to get test kits at the rec center in Frankford. He’s had COVID twice, he said, and was asymptomatic both times. But he believes he unknowingly infected a friend in October.

”Any time you can get a rapid test, that’s more tools you can use,” said Nelson, who wasn’t planning on attending holiday gatherings. “It’s not so much me I’m concerned about, as it is about everyone else.”

A health department worker told people in line at Strawberry Mansion that site expected to run out of tests soon

“We have requested more tests to get into this site,” he told the crowd, but added the department planned to stop giving tests out about an hour earlier than scheduled.

Matt Rankin, a spokesperson for the health department, said the department had handed out about 400 kits at Widener.

”Demand is very high,” he said.

He added that the city is also giving test kits to homeless residents through its outreach programs, and that on-site, walk-up testing with both PCR and antigen tests is still available at pop-up sites throughout the city. (Residents should expect PCR results within 24 to 48 hours, he said.)

Though the city has urged residents to not attend holiday gatherings outside their households, Rankin said that those who are still considering it should get tested beforehand, especially if they will see older or immunocompromised loved ones.

”We’ve been saying to start planning to get a test a couple weeks ahead of each holiday, and to keep gatherings as small as possible,” he said.

Pio Voluntad, 60, was one of the last to receive tests at Widener before the site ran out. Voluntad said he wanted to test himself before seeing his 88-year-old mother.

”I wasn’t going to go unless I got these [tests] — I tried to purchase them,” he said. “You can’t get them anywhere. It’s scary.”

Outside the library, Phong Duong and his wife Quin had decided to stay in line, waiting for the new shipment of tests. They’d already been waiting for about an hour.”We just want to make sure we have it on hand,” Duong, 55, of Mount Airy, said.

“Given the case increases, it sounds like they are going to get worse before it gets better.”

» READ MORE: Philadelphia is giving out free at-home coronavirus tests. Here’s where you can get them

— Aubrey Whelan

The more than 6,500 confirmed coronavirus cases reported in New Jersey Monday are likely a combination of the delta and omicron variants, health commissioner Judith Persichilli said. Cases are rising rapidly in the state, having increased about 66% from two weeks ago.

Meanwhile, more than 1,900 people are being treated for COVID-19 in the state’s hospitals, an increase of more than 200 patients in the past week. Hospitals have yet to be overwhelmed, she said, though officials are “planning for the worst” due to omicron’s extremely high transmissibility.

Most cases and the vast majority of hospitalizations and deaths in New Jersey continue to be in people who are unvaccinated, officials said. During the week of Nov. 29, preliminary data showed 98% of hospitalized COVID-19 patients there were unvaccinated, as were all 116 people who died of virus-related complications.

“The one thing we cannot allow to happen is our healthcare system’s capacities to be overrun,” Gov. Phil Murphy said, “and one of the indirect tragedies of folks refusing to get vaccinated is they’re the ones getting sick and hospitalized. And it’s putting enormous pressure on healthcare staffing.”

As a result of the latest case surge, and amid a national push to increase the availability and affordability of rapid testing, New Jersey will be opening more community testing sites this week and have partnered with a company to provide free at-home testing kits to any resident who wants one.

New Jerseyans can request the free test kits at learn.vaulthealth.com/nj and locate the nearest testing site at covid19.nj.gov/testing.

— Erin McCarthy

Philadelphia has had an average of 641 new cases of COVID-19 per day in the past two weeks as a surge of the virus continues.

The city announced Monday that 7.2% of coronavirus tests have been positive in the past two weeks.

Just before Thanksgiving, the city had an average of 254 new cases per day and a positivity rate of 2.6%. Cases have surged since then, and officials blame the cold weather and indoor gatherings.

As of Monday there were 387 coronavirus patients in Philadelphia hospitals, with 44 of them on ventilators. That number has also grown; as of Nov. 22 there were 195 patients hospitalized.

— Laura McCrystal

Fewer than 38% of eligible New Jersey long-term care facility staff have received booster shots of a coronavirus vaccine, while about 78% of eligible residents have done so, New Jersey Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli said Monday.

”Both of these numbers are too low,” she said. “The staff number is especially concerning.”

The New Jersey Department of Health continues to do outreach with the facilities, urging them to increase their booster coverage, the commissioner said. The message is time-sensitive, too, as outbreaks are rising at these homes, she said, and boosters have been shown to provide more protection, especially against the omicron variant.

As of Monday, there were active coronavirus outbreaks at 205 of New Jersey’s long-term care homes, Persichilli said, where more than 90% of residents and 86.2% of staff have received the primary series of a vaccination, meaning two shots of Moderna or Pfizer or one shot of Johnson & Johnson.

— Erin McCarthy

Every eligible New Jerseyan should go and get their booster shots before Christmas, Gov. Phil Murphy said Monday, as the state’s daily new case count reached levels not seen since January.

“Quite frankly, with what we know now about the omicron variant, if it is time for your booster, get it now. Plain and simple,” the governor said, noting that just over 40% of eligible residents had gotten their boosters.

And if people are gathering with others outside their household for the holidays, they should consider getting a rapid test, he said, “even if you aren’t showing any symptoms … to give yourself that added level of knowledge that you are in the clear.”

Anyone who is feeling under the weather should also get tested and skip social events, even if they think they only have a cold, he said.

Murphy’s guidance comes amid rising concern about the omicron variant, which is spreading rapidly across the country and the world. He did not go as far as Philadelphia health officials, who last week told residents not to gather indoors with people from other households. Murphy said New Jersey’s hospitalization rates remain " just a fraction of what they were at this time last year,” even as some hospitals in central and western Pennsylvania are at capacity.

“I wish anybody out there who is celebrating this upcoming weekend a merry, merry Christmas. Please celebrate it safely,” Murphy said. “Get tested if you’re in doubt. Please keep your family circle close and if you’re at a crowded party, especially indoors, please wear a mask.”

— Erin McCarthy

Former President Donald Trump told a Dallas crowd on Sunday afternoon he has received a COVID-19 booster shot.

Trump had told the Wall Street Journal in September he wasn’t planning on getting a booster shot, telling the newspaper, “I’m not against it, but it’s probably not for me.”

Appearing on former Fox News host Bill O’Reilly’s “History Tour,” Trump didn’t elaborate on why he chose to receive a booster, but studies have shown they offer much wider protection against the omicron variant currently making its way across the United States.

“We saved tens of millions worldwide [by creating the vaccines],” Trump added. “I think this would have been like the Spanish flu [without it] … Take credit for it... You’re playing right into their hands [when you doubt the vaccine.]”

Trump revealed last month he had received Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine in January before he left the White House.

While the Trump administration is credited with speeding up the vaccine development process under Operation Warp Speed, Trump himself was booed at a rally in August after he encouraged his supporters to get vaccinated.

“I believe totally in your freedoms, I do, you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do,” Trump said to the crowd. “But I recommend that you take the vaccines.”

— Rob Tornoe

Teachers at the school attended by a 17-year-old who died of COVID-19 last week called out in large numbers Monday, forcing Olney Charter High School to go virtual — and the company that runs the school has threatened legal action, the teachers’ union says.

Alayna Thach, a senior at Olney, died Monday. Teachers at the school have asked ASPIRA of Pennsylvania for stepped-up health and safety protocols; the company says it has made changes, but teachers contend more are needed.

It was not immediately clear Monday how many faculty had called out, or what steps ASPIRA was preparing to take. A union spokesperson was not immediately available for comment.

“The union’s mass ‘call out’ has hindered and interrupted Olney’s ability to operate and provide in-person instruction tomorrow, leaving administrators with no choice but to conduct classes virtually,” the company said in a statement Sunday night.

» READ MORE: Teachers at Philadelphia school where a student died of COVID-19 have staged a ‘sick out,’ forcing students to go virtual

— Kristen A. Graham

Despite mounting cases of COVID-19 and several restaurant closures in Philadelphia, the city does not plan to implement any new restrictions, officials said.

As cases continue to increase across the country, many restaurants are making the difficult decision to shut down. Several Philadelphia restaurants closed their doors as employees tested positive for the virus, while others were closing as a precautionary measure.

City officials last Monday announced a mandate that will require proof of COVID-19 vaccination to anyone entering an establishment where food is served indoors. The mandate takes effect Jan. 3, but the city has no plans for additional restrictions at restaurants.

“At this time, we don’t have any further restrictions — beyond the vaccine mandate starting on Jan 3 — planned for food establishments at this time,” Philadelphia Health Department spokesperson James Garrow told The Inquirer.

Many restaurants are already asking for proof of vaccinations for employees and patrons, ahead of the Jan. 3 deadline.

» READ MORE: What you need to know about Philly’s vaccine mandate for indoor dining

— Rodrigo Torrejon

Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Cory Booker of New Jersey say they have tested positive for COVID-19, as the country deals with another surge in cases and the emergence of the omicron variant.

In separate statements Sunday, the Democrats said they had been fully vaccinated with two doses and a booster and their symptoms were mild. They also encouraged others to get the trio of shots if eligible.

Warren tweeted: “Thankfully, I am only experiencing mild symptoms & am grateful for the protection provided against serious illness that comes from being vaccinated & boosted.”

She didn’t elaborate on where she might have contracted the virus but said she’s regularly tested and turned up negative for COVID-19 earlier this past week. Spokespersons for her office didn’t respond to an email seeking comment Sunday.

Warren was at the U.S. Capitol this week along with other senators as Democrats seek to pass President Joe Biden’s $2 trillion Build Back Better social and environment bill.

In a statement from his office, Booker said: “I’m beyond grateful to have received two doses of vaccine and, more recently, a booster — I’m certain that without them I would be doing much worse.”

— Associated Press

Philadelphia restaurant and cafe owners spent the weekend wrestling with the decision to close because of rising cases of coronavirus infection.

Khyber Pass Pub in Old City, Middle Child Clubhouse in Fishtown, and Fitz & Starts in Queen Village were among those making the call to pause.

Philip Korshak of Korshak Bagels, a popular shop in South Philadelphia that closed Friday, is now weighing a return Wednesday, assuming the last tests among his workers comes back negative.

Even the Feast of the Seven Pickles, a whimsical holiday event by Fishtown Pickles scheduled for the Lunar Inn, was canceled “in light of recent COVID-19 case surges.”

For some restaurateurs, the voluntary shutdowns are a difficult decision, as many employees are vaccinated, boosted, and masked at work, exercising precautions as Philadelphia restaurants move into the height of the peak season. The shutdowns follow a spate of closings in New York City, among other places.

Many restaurants are insisting on proof of vaccinations for employees and patrons, ahead of new city rules that take effect Jan. 3.

» READ MORE: Philadelphia restaurants begin temporary closings as COVID-19 cases spread

— Michael Klein

Philadelphia residents looking to test themselves before attending holiday gatherings can pick up free at-home rapid COVID-19 test kits at pop-up clinics this week.

Supplies are limited, so each person is allowed to take home two free test kits. Residents are encouraged to show up early, as some locations ran out of tests Monday afternoon due to high demand for the at-home kits.

Here are nine COVID-19 vaccination events through the Department of Health where residents can pick up the kits through Thursday:

Monday, Dec. 20

Tuesday, Dec. 21

Wednesday, Dec. 22

Thursday, Dec. 23

— Rob Tornoe

Health officials are warning of a wave of new COVID-19 infections fueled by the highly transmissible omicron variant, but across the region the data is mixed.

In Pennsylvania, daily COVID-19 cases are up 97% since Nov. 1, but the average number of new infections has declined in recent days.

In New Jersey, cases are surging and close to seeing a new record, but so far the average number of daily COVID-19 deaths hasn’t increased dramatically.

Here are the latest COVID-19 numbers for Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware, according to data from the New York Times and the Department of Health and Human Services:

Pennsylvania

New Jersey

Delaware

United States

» READ MORE: COVID-19 numbers and charts for Pennsylvania and New Jersey

— Rob Tornoe

Vaccine manufacturer Moderna said Monday that a booster dose of its coronavirus vaccine significantly raised antibody levels against the omicron variant, amid growing concerns about its rapid spread in the United States.

A booster dose of Moderna’s vaccine — half the dose used in the original shots for adults — increased antibody levels against omicron by 37 times, the company said in a statement, citing preliminary data.

Those antibodies “should provide some good level of protection as we go into the holiday season,” Paul Burton, Moderna’s chief medical officer, said in an interview.

» READ MORE: Moderna booster shot should provide ‘good level of protection’ against omicron, vaccine-maker says

— Washington Post

Here’s a roundup of COVID-19 news from across the globe.