Players with the Surrey Eagles Junior A Hockey League have not received the H1N1 vaccine, but have so far avoided the pandemic – no player has fallen sick yet.

Eagles director of sales and marketing Kyle Bryan said the team had no immediate plans to have players get the shot.

"We might look into it when the vaccine becomes available to everybody else, but we'll have to decide later on," Bryan said.

"In the meantime, we're still playing the waiting game like everybody else."

BC Hockey members have been advised to take similar precautions to prevent the spread of the H1N1 virus.

"Anyone involved or participating with a sports team who develops flu-like symptoms should be separated from teammates and groups to avoid passing the virus on to others," BC Hockey advised its members in a memo sent Monday.

"If you are sick, you should stay home and get well before joining your team for a practice or game."

The team is also taking the usual health precautions, such as having plenty of hand sanitizer in the dressing room and around the rink, and not letting players share water bottles.

The Abbotsford Heat found themselves under scrutiny after news broke that players received H1N1 flu vaccination shots on Tuesday night.

Dave Sheldon, director of communications for the Heat, said that a number of Heat players had shown flu-like symptoms, and that the team was identified as a high-risk group due to its heavy travel schedule.

"Under the advice of our physicians, we were told to get the shots," said Sheldon. "We're just like any member of Joe Q. Public, in the sense like we went to the clinic just like anyone else did.

"We were advised that we could get the shot, and we got the shot."

The Calgary Flames, the NHL parent club of the Heat, faced a backlash in Alberta on Tuesday when it was reported that Flames players – along with some of their family members, coaching staff and management – had been injected with the H1N1 vaccine last Friday.

Sheldon emphasized that the Heat did not obtain their vaccinations in conjunction with the Flames, and that players received their vaccinations within the B.C. public health system. Sheldon added that it was only players who received the injection, not family members and coaches.

"We're not in this to try to jump the queue," he said. "There is no queue to jump. We've been assessed as a part of the community that is of a high risk to get this flu, therefore our club physician thought it was in our best interests to get the shots done."

Guidelines for the priority groups who should first receive the vaccine were issued when it first became available on Oct. 26.

Those who travel are not on the list.

The groups identified by Fraser Health as high priority to receive the shot this week are:

• People under 65 with chronic health conditions;

• Pregnant women in the second half of pregnancy;

• Children six months to less than five years old;

• Household members and care providers of infants under six months; and

• Household members and care providers of people with weakened immune systems.

Vaccinations aren’t expected to open up to the general public until sufficient supplies of vaccine are available. Provincial officials say production and shipment delays mean they are unlikely to make the vaccine available to all until the fourth week of November.