Cole Caufield has played in front of exactly zero fans in his young NHL career.

A packed-to-the-rafters Bell Centre would have exploded when the Canadiens rookie sniper buried his first NHL goal in overtime earlier this month. And Montreal’s home arena would have been equally loud some 48 hours later when Caufield again found the back of the net in the extra period.

COVID-19 restrictions made all of that impossible — Canada’s seven NHL rinks have been devoid of spectators throughout