Photo Credit: County of Grande Prairie JDA Kings Facebook

By Shane Clausing

Junior 'B' Hockey

NWJHL clubs hopeful for return to ice in September

Jun 22, 2021 | 3:04 PM

The Northwest Junior Hockey League (NWJHL) and its teams are hoping to get back on the ice after their 2020 season was derailed by COVID-19 restrictions.

With all public health restrictions being lifted on Canada Day, the league says it will meet later in the summer to confirm details of its upcoming 2021-22 season.

Kyle Chapple, the Head Coach and General Manager of the County of Grande Prairie JDA Kings, says he is hopeful that with restrictions lifted, they’ll be able to get Junior ‘B’ hockey in the Peace Region back on track.

“The plan is to have a 40-game schedule for next season again and hopefully with everything going back to normal on July 1, we hope that stays in place and we can have our normal hockey season come September.”

While minor hockey across the province has essentially been put on hold for the last year and a half, Chapple says he’s still hearing lots of interest from players who would like to suit up for his club.

“There has been quite a bit of interest from players looking for an opportunity for next year. It’s nice to see that interest is still there from the players after a lot of them weren’t able to get any hockey this season,” he said.

“We’re going to try to come up with a plan moving forward and hopefully build a good team for next year.”

While there has been interest in playing for the Kings next year, Chapple adds it’s been a challenge when it comes to scouting some of the players.

“It’s been tough. Some of the players that you talk to, you didn’t get to see a whole lot of from last season, so that makes it a bit tougher. But with saying that, it’s the same for everybody,” said Chapple.

“It’s going to be difficult, but at this point, it’s something we’ll put up with, as long as we can try to get a hockey season back going for these kids. It was a tough year for them and, hopefully, we can move forward and have a nice, fresh year.”

According to Chapple, there has been some talk about extending training camps or adding extra camps to get players back into game shape and on the ice.

More details on training camps and other camps are expected to be announced in the middle of the summer.