GPAC U18 AAA against Okotoks in 2020. Photo Credit: Shane Clausing

By Shane Clausing

Grande Prairie minor hockey

Grande Prairie Minor Hockey hopeful for brighter future following cancellation of season

Feb 3, 2021 | 1:18 PM

Grande Prairie Minor Hockey says it is hopeful for a brighter future after Hockey Alberta pulled the plug on all Tiered, AA and AAA hockey seasons.

According to Ryan Allen, the Technical Director of GPAC (which is under the same umbrella as Grande Prairie Minor Hockey) the decision to cancel the season was sped up after the province announced its new re-opening plan.

“I know Hockey Alberta has been trying their hardest in terms of providing different scenarios and working with AHS. In the last couple of weeks, it (the discussions) really picked up in terms of Hockey Alberta looking for a drop-dead date for the season.”

“When Premier Kenney spoke last week and was talking about the next four steps, I guess Hockey Alberta made a decision based on that.”

The decision doesn’t come as a surprise to some as the earliest children’s sports would be allowed to open up is in Step 2 of the province’s re-opening plan, which would be considered when the province has under 450 people in hospital with COVID-19.

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Even then, it is not clear what youth sport would look like during that time as the province hasn’t announced specific guidelines for Step 2.

With that, parents and players alike are disappointed with the decision. Allen tells EverythingGP he felt this decision from Hockey Alberta should’ve been made sooner, so parents and staff could have a better idea of what the future could look like.

As the province moves into Step 1 of their re-opening plan on February 8, Allen says discussions are underway as to how getting back on the ice can look in the near future.

Grande Prairie Minor Hockey has a meeting scheduled with Hockey Alberta on February 4 in regards to how hockey in Step 1 will look, which Allen thinks it’ll look more like what we saw in May and June when restrictions were initially eased.

“I’m hoping the meeting tomorrow gives us further clarification. I think it’ll be one-on-one, similar to the way it was during those first two weeks of (the first) restrictions.”

Allen says they’ll do everything they can to get players back on the ice in a safe environment.

“It certainly affects kids at various levels this year, but we’re going to do our best this year to open up different options for spring development and hopefully get kids back on the ice as soon as we can.”

Allen also mentioned that Grande Prairie Minor Hockey is working on a plan to help refund parents for the lost season. It is unknown at this time how that plan will work and more details will be released when they’re ready in the future.