Hawks haven't made big changes due to coronavirus, admit it would be hard to play without fans

Although the coronavirus continues to spread, Jonathan Toews, Connor Murphy, Dylan Strome and Jeremy Colliton have not made drastic lifestyle changes over the past few months.

The league in which they play in, however, joined the NBA, MLB and the NFL on Monday in implementing a new policy that prohibits media members from entering dressing rooms until further notice.

The three Blackhawks players and their coach took the move in stride Tuesday after practicing at Fifth Third Arena, with Toews and Murphy even delivering a couple of impressive one-liners.

"You guys in this room?" Toews asked of the rarely used space that about a dozen media members were seated in. "That's a great idea."

Murphy laughed about a memo that came out a few years ago when the mumps became a problem for several teams. Part of it asked players not to share their shower towels.

"I mean we were never sharing towels before - as if that was going to be something to be aware of," Murphy said, laughing.

The coronavirus, of course, is something everyone has become aware over the past couple of months. The number of known cases in the United States is approaching 1,000 and the number figures to grow in the coming weeks, months and possibly years.

"It's fair to say that as the trajectory of the outbreak continues, many people in the United States will ... either this year or next, be exposed to this virus, and there's a good chance many will become sick," said Dr. Nancy Messonnier, the director of the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases.

Toews, Murphy and Strome are all taking a few extra precautions, but nothing drastic. Toews wasn't about to shrug off what's going on across the globe, however, calling the situation a little bit "alarming."

"It's one of things you want to educate yourself on and makes you realize your health is pretty precious and take care of it - take care of yourself," he said. "Leave all the other stuff up to the professionals."

Each player stood in front of a podium and took several questions about the new procedures and, eventually, about the state of the team.

This figures to be the new normal for a while. If things get exponentially worse, though, it's possible that leagues will play games with no fans in the stands. That's already happening in Europe, Asia and the Middle East, and the NBA send a memo out last week warning its franchises to prepare for that possibility.

What if that happened in the NHL? What would it be like to play hockey games in an empty, nearly silent United Center?

"That would be hard, I'm sure, for players," Murphy said. "Obviously we play for the fans and they give us the biggest boost when we're playing. It would be crazy to hear an anthem at the United Center without the cheers. But that's out of our control."

"It's not ideal," said Colliton, who joked he'd seen some nearly empty arenas on Tuesday nights while paying in the AHL. "Obviously the fans are a huge part of what makes the game and the league special, particularly in Chicago.

"But obviously that's why we have experts who are educated and make those decisions."

Scouting report

Blackhawks vs. San Jose Sharks, 7 p.m. at United Center

TV: NBCSN; Radio: WGN 720-AM

The skinny: San Jose (29-35-5) has been on quite a roller-coaster ride, losing five in a row between Feb. 17-25, then winning three straight and then dropping its last three (one in OT). ... Logan Couture (16G, 23A) was hit in the face by a puck during the first period of the Sharks' 4-3 loss to Colorado on Sunday and did not return. ... Evander Kane (25G, 20A) and Timo Meier (21G, 26G) are the Sharks' leading scorers. Defenseman Brent Burns (12G) has double-digit goals in nine straight seasons (ignoring the 48-game campaign in 2013). ... Martin Jones allowed 4 goals to the Avs, but he is 4-4-0 with a .927 save percentage and 2.02 goals-against average in his last eight appearances. He shut out Minnesota (39 saves) on Feb. 15 and Pittsburgh (30 saves) on Feb. 29. ... The Hawks have lost both games to the Sharks - 5-4 on Oct. 10 and 4-2 on Nov. 5.

Next: Ottawa Senators, 7:30 p.m. Friday at United Center

- John Dietz