St. Louis Blues: Pandemic Ruined Repeat Chances, One Way Or Another
By Todd Panula
Bubble life not what was promised
As regular people, we should not shed any tears for pro athletes who had to go through a quarantine life. Plenty of us did it when the entire pandemic began and we did not have big houses to quarantine in.
That said, apparently the bubble life was not really what was sold to the public or the players. In fact, it was quite different.
When the bubble environment was announced, many, including myself, took some jabs. It seemed disingenuous to be complaining about a setup that would include golf, movie theaters, multiple places to eat and various other activities available.
After the fact, that was not what actually came to be. We would later find out that quarantine actually was what it sounded like – a quarantine.
Players had no real freedom. There were food trucks around, but that was about it to the 24 teams to start and the 16 teams of the first round.
Players were not necessarily confined to their rooms. However, when your choice is your room or a common room, it’s not much of a choice.
The golf course situation never materialized. There are some that say the golf course and other things were always meant for the teams that advanced to later rounds, to minimize the amount of outside interaction. That was not implicitly stated from the start.
There were activity rooms on each floor, but they ended up amounting to little more than a community room you’d find at any college dorm. Sure, you can do things in there like play cards, but there’s only so much time you can spend in there.
Most players ended up staying in their own room or going to other teammate’s rooms. They would either watch TV or play video games.
When you’re busy and have little time, that always sounds like the life. When that’s really all you can do, not just want to do, it becomes a very different situation.
Think of your own life or your own quarantine situation. Maybe you had a lot of comforts of home.
The mental strain of not even having the option to do this or that can become taxing. Now, try to perform your best at work with that mental strain.
In a situation like the playoffs, where you need to be on your game the entire time and still need a few bounces to go your way, any distraction can go from a mole hill into a mountain.