Ron Robison presents the WHL Scotty Munro Memorial Trophy to the Raiders earlier this season. (Jeff D'Andrea/paNOW Staff)

By Jeff D'Andrea

Robison wants a new rink in P.A.

WHL commissioner weighs in on P.A. arena funding rejection

Aug 22, 2019 | 5:00 PM

The Prince Albert Raiders may have been crowned as WHL champions this past year, but as of right now, they aren’t getting awarded a much-needed new rink.

Last week, a possible new rink was left out of federal funding allocations because federal Minister of Infrastructure and Communities, Francois-Philippe Champagne classified the Raiders as a “semi-pro sporting franchise,” which makes them ineligible for the funding under the Integrated Bilateral Agreement (IBA) .

That “semi-pro” distinction is one WHL commissioner Ron Robison took issue with, saying the WHL is an amateur league.

“Obviously, that’s not correct,” Robison told paNOW. “We are a registered amateur hockey league within Hockey Canada’s structure as the national governing body for amateur hockey in the country. The Canadian Hockey League, the Western Hockey League and all of the member clubs are all registered participants in the amateur hockey system.”

The ruling throws a wrench into the gears of Prince Albert getting a new rink—at least for now. But any delay for a new project in Prince Albert is unfortunate, as an upgrade to a new facility has been long overdue.

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The Art Hauser Centre opened up as the Prince Albert Communiplex back in 1971, which makes it the third-oldest rink currently being used by WHL teams. The only rink that’s older and that still serves as a full-time home for a team is the Credit Union iPlex. That’s the home of the 2018 WHL Champion Swift Current Broncos, which opened in 1967.

The Portland Winterhawks play a little more than half their regular season home games at the Veterans Memorial Coliseum, the league’s oldest rink which opened back in 1960. They also have access to the 1995-built Moda Centre and its 18,280 capacity for the other half of the season. The other 19 teams have newer rinks.

In recent years, WHL teams have moved into newer rinks, like the Moose Jaw Warriors did in 2011 to Mosaic Place. They received $16 million from the government, with half from the province and half from the federal government to go towards that project.

“The WHL has established arena facility standards which have been in place for many years. There’s been many improvements made and new facilities built throughout the league. As the City of Prince Albert is fully aware, the current facility does not meet WHL standards,” Robison said. “Consequently, we’ve been in discussions with them for several years. They are pursuing a new facility and certainly in the meantime, making some necessary renovations to comply with our standards.”

Robison said there isn’t a set timeframe or a cut-off that the league would impose on the city to get the project done.

“We’re working with the city. We haven’t set any deadlines. The city and the Raiders are fully aware of the standards that we have and respect that. We are, at the same time, looking for ways to make sure that the Raiders are viable on a long-term basis in the city of Prince Albert,” Robison said. “So our focus has been on that, not establishing any deadlines. So we’ll work with the city, and we’re hoping to hear soon when the new facility will be developed.”

In the meantime, upgrades have been made to the current rink facility at the Art Hauser Centre to keep up with the league’s requirement. The new lighting system has been installed, which has brightened up the rink substantially. The new scoreboard has been approved and is planned to be installed before the start of the WHL regular season.

“We’ve had the full cooperation from the Raiders and the city throughout the process. We’re very pleased with some of the upgrades that have been made,” Robison said. “The reality is a new facility is required to ensure the viability of the franchise long-term. Everyone understands that, the Raiders organization and the city. We’ll get to a point hopefully very soon where we can look forward to a new facility being developed in the community and suit the community’s needs first and foremost, and the Raiders’ long-term.”

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Jeff.dandrea@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @jeff_paNOW