The Pittsburgh Penguins opened training camp Monday after voluntarily sidelining nine players who may have had secondary exposure to a person testing positive for COVID-19.

The Penguins did not reveal which players were held out as a precautionary measur. The NHL has barred teams from revealing injury or illness information as a way to protect player privacy.

The players in question were potentially exposed to an individual who had contact with a person who tested positive. The players will not be allowed to practice until they are deemed safe following further test results based on NHL protocols.

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The Minnesota Wild began training camp with a bang, formalizing Dean Evason's status as their full-time head coach and plans to bring prized Russian prospect Kirill Kaprizov to training camp.

Evason, who signed a two-year contract extension through the 2021-22 season, took the ice on Monday for the first full-team practice since the virus outbreak forced the NHL to shut down March 12. The 55-year-old Evason was made interim coach on Feb. 14, when Bruce Boudreau was fired by general manager Bill Guerin.

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Corey Crawford was absent Monday when the Chicago Blackhawks practiced for the first time since the NHL season was suspended, casting doubt on the goaltender's availability for their qualifying series against Edmonton.

The 35-year-old Crawford was "unfit to play or to participate," coach Jeremy Colliton said - sticking closely to the league's strict language for discussing missing players in the COVID-19 world. There was no further word on Crawford's situation.

The New York Rangers were playing some stellar hockey coming out of the All-Star break to move into playoff contention. After four months away during the NHL's stoppage due to the coronavirus pandemic, team president John Davidson liked what he saw in their first practice back.

"I feel strong about the way we played at the time of the pause, and after what I saw today ... I feel really good about things," Davidson said Monday on a video conference call with reporters.

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Collaboration or bust.

Given the gravity of the new coronavirus pandemic and the abrupt decision to place the NHL season on pause in March, it didn't take commissioner Gary Bettman and union chief Don Fehr long to realize they were going to have to work together if play was to resume any time soon.

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Lindy Ruff impressed the New Jersey Devils with his experience from decades of coaching. Tom Fitzgerald wowed ownership with his moves in a few short months as general manager.

The Devils on Thursday hired Ruff as coach and removed Fitzgerald's interim tag to give him the full-time GM job. Ruff, who coached the Sabres from 1997-2013 and took Buffalo to the Stanley Cup Final in 1999, got the job over interim coach Alain Nasreddine and fellow veteran coaches Gerard Gallant, Peter Laviolette and John Stevens.

FRISCO, Texas (AP) Longtime Dallas Stars executive Jim Lites is transitioning from his role as CEO to chairman, a move that will lessen his day-to-day duties with the team.

The Stars announced the move Friday. Brad Alberts, the Stars president since March 2018, will remain in that role while also adding the CEO title and responsibilities.