(photo credit to Jeromy Corrigan)

By Jeromy Corrigan

NWJHL

Schedule, anniversary, and potential expansion all brought up at 2019 NWJHL AGM

Jun 18, 2019 | 11:59 AM

The North West Junior Hockey League held its annual general meeting a week-and-a-half ago and there were plenty of topics which were up for discussion by the league’s governors and teams.

One of the items which was approved at the meeting was the increase in games played during the regular season from 36 to 40.

NWJHL President Michael Mercredi shared to EverythingGP that the league has been receiving feedback from local players on how to improve moving forward.

“One of the things we were getting feedback from the local kids who play in the KIJHL (Kootenay International Junior Hockey League) was that there is more games and more practices. We toss around the idea of more games and practices and I think most of the people agreed that 40 games for a six-team league is pretty big.”

The 40 games will include the second-annual NWJHL Showcase, which will take place at the Crosslink County Sportsplex November 8-11.

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“It was a great success,” stated Mercredi.

“Hopefully we can make it bigger. One thought was to invite the North East Junior Hockey League over to play some games that weekend as well. One of the goals is to try and get some cross-over games with other teams because with our schedule and playing 40 games, you are going to be playing each team eight times.”

The 2019-2020 season will also be a special one for the North West Junior Hockey League as it celebrates its 25th anniversary.

Mercredi notes they don’t have anything official to announce just yet as part of the celebration, but it could include a trip to High Level for a pre-season tournament.

Finally, the topic of expansion came up at the AGM as the league has received an expansion application from the community of Whitehorse for the 2020-2021 season.

“The biggest thing is the whole logistics of it,” says Mercredi.

According to google maps, the drive from Whitehorse to Grande Prairie is just over 18 hours.

“Basically, the logistics of it is that Air North made a scheduled flight flying out of Grande Prairie. So, a couple of businessman see the possibility of getting on board and seeing if that would work,” shared Mercredi.

President Mercredi believes having Whitehorse in the league is doable, but the league needs to find a way for its teams to get up there that is cost effective.

“We want to make sure we have done our homework,” added Mercredi

“A lot of teams were throwing up the wall, but at the end of the conversation they think this could work.”

There have also been rumblings about High Level also putting in an application for an expansion team for the 2020-2021 season, but the league has yet to receive a formal application.

When it comes to the potential expansion of the league into Whitehorse, the league should have a better idea on the situation in January of 2020.

Mercredi concluded by saying the league is extremely excited for their 25th anniversary season and now the next big steps for the NWJHL will be getting everything lined up for the league showcase in November.