UPDATE: The Bruins officially announced around 6:30 p.m. that Charlie McAvoy has cleared COVID-19 protocol and can play Tuesday night.
On Sunday, Charlie McAvoy was a last-minute scratch for Game 4 after being placed in COVID-19 protocol.
It looks like he's going to be a last-minute addition to the lineup for Tuesday night.
In a surprising turn of events, McAvoy arrived at PNC Arena in Raleigh shortly before 5 p.m. and is reportedly expected to play in Game 5.
Matt Porter of the Boston Globe was the first to break the news of McAvoy's arrival. A short time later, Porter reported that McAvoy cleared COVID protocol and will play.
According to ESPN's Emily Kaplan, Bruins ownership arranged a private jet to get McAvoy from Boston to Raleigh. McAvoy did not travel with the team on Monday.
Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy had said earlier Tuesday that McAvoy, along with Hampus Lindholm, would not play Tuesday. Obviously, that changed at some point over the next few hours.
As of this post, it's unclear exactly how McAvoy was able to clear protocols so quickly. NHL rules state that a player who tests positive has to either isolate for five days from the onset of symptoms or test negative twice.
It could have been a false positive, or perhaps McAvoy never actually tested positive in the first place, but we're all just guessing for now. Regardless, McAvoy is out of protocol and in Raleigh.
UPDATE: According to The Athletic's Fluto Shinzawa, the NHL reviewed the case and considers McAvoy to be "non-symptomatic and five days out from symptom onset." Shinzawa adds that a Bruins source told him McAvoy tested out of protocol.
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