Sixteen months after choosing Canada as the safest place to complete its season, the NHL now faces a series of hurdles north of the border that complicate its bid to power through the pandemic all over again.

The league postponed nine more games Tuesday — all of them in Canada, including the Pittsburgh Penguins’ game at Ottawa Friday — and cited attendance restrictions in Montreal, Winnipeg, Toronto, Ottawa and Calgary. It also moved a Jan. 12 game in Montreal between the Bruins and Canadiens to Boston.

With 80 games now postponed this season, the NHL hopes to shift the games in Canada to later in the season.