MILAN — The Finnish women’s hockey team’s opening game against Canada on Thursday has been postponed due to a gastritis virus depleting its roster.

The game was postponed to February 12th.

The decision to postpone the game was announced shortly after Finland finished an early afternoon practice with only eight skaters and two goalies. The remaining 13 players are in isolation or isolation due to the norovirus, which began affecting the team Tuesday night.

The postponement will give Finland two more days of rest before playing against the United States on Saturday. Finnish officials were considering a possible forfeiture if the game against Canada was not postponed.

Olympic officials said in a statement, “All parties recognize the regret that the games were not held as originally scheduled, but this was a responsible and necessary decision that reflects the Olympic spirit and the integrity of the competition.” “All parties would like to thank the teams, partners and fans for their cooperation and understanding and look forward to the rescheduled games being played under safe and suitable conditions.”

Officials with the Finnish team had been considering the possibility of not playing even before the match was postponed.

Coach Tero Lehtera said it might be unfair to ask the 10 currently healthy players to play the full game. He said teams also need to consider the possibility that their Canadian opponents may be infected.

“Most of our players are getting better, but they’re not healthy enough to play. And if we end up playing, it could affect Team Canada and their health as well,” Lehtera said after practice. “But we can’t risk players who were sick yesterday and play tonight because that would be the wrong thing to do individually.”

Lehtera said the first signs of the illness became apparent Tuesday night after the team held a full practice earlier in the day.

The postponed match will be the second day of a two-day weekend during the women’s tournament, and will be the day before the quarterfinals begin.

Letera, 53, who is in her first year coaching the women’s team, did her best to stay positive despite the circumstances. At one point, he joked that the last time he attended a game with 10 players was in a beer league game.

“That could be a strength. I started thinking more positively,” said Ratela, who played for the Finnish national team in the 1990s and previously coached the men’s team. “We may come out of this even stronger. You never know.”

He said the possibility of facing adversity was among his initial messages to the team last summer.

“Something could happen. We don’t know what will happen. The only thing we’re worried about is the things we could impact,” Lehtera said. “And there’s nothing we can do about it. We can’t say whether we’re going to play or not. It’s not up to us. If we’re told to come out, we’ll come out. Whether it’s 5 o’clock, 6 o’clock, 7 o’clock, 3 o’clock or 8 o’clock.” [players]. ”

Finland’s captain Jeni Hiilikoski, who will be competing in her fifth Olympics, said the players look to each other for support.

“It’s never good, but we’re trying to take it one day at a time,” said the 38-year-old defender. “The important thing is how we tolerate being different. I think we’re all trying to help each other, no matter what it is and how it happens. So we just have to stay calm and focus.”

Finland entered the tournament as medal favorites behind two world powerhouses, favorites the United States and defending Olympic champion Canada. Finland has won bronze medals at the Olympics four times, the last time they won a medal at the 2022 Beijing Games. And the team has won bronze medals at the past two world championships, both times defeating the Czech Republic, who are expected to win another medal in Milan.

The 2022 Beijing Games were held amid the coronavirus pandemic, but no matches were postponed during the tournament, which was held in front of a small number of fans and participants confined to a sealed bubble.

The closest a hockey game came to being postponed or forfeited occurred during a preliminary round meeting between Canada and Russia. The Canadian team refused to enter the ice for warm-ups, and the game was postponed because the Russian player’s coronavirus test results were not available.

Canada agreed to start the games as a compromise after authorities ruled all participants must wear masks.