On Saturday, the Edmonton Oilers announced that defenseman Mike Green will be opting out of the NHL's Return To Play program and the league's 24-team NHL postseason.
The Oilers released the following statement from Green:
"Due to the uncertainties surrounding COVID-19 and after much consideration, I've decided for deeply personal family health reasons, not to participate in the return to play.
"This has been a hard decision knowing I'm going to miss the opportunity to compete in the playoffs with a Stanley Cup contender. I wish the best of luck to the guys and I appreciate the Edmonton Oilers support."
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The 34-year-old blueliner played in two games with Edmonton prior to March 12's NHL pause, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, before spraining his knee after being traded to the Oilers from the Detroit Red Wings in late February.
The Oilers are scheduled to play the Blackhawks in Edmonton, one of two hub cities for the postseason tournament, in a best-of-five play-in series beginning Aug. 1.
Green is the fifth player to opt out of the NHL's Return To Play program (Travis Hamonic, Sven Baertschi, Zach Trotman and Roman Polak).
Oilers defenseman Mike Green opts out of NHL's Return To Play program originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
