Robison adds detail to WHL’s return

With a Jan. 8 start date, and a May 2 end date, the expectation is that a maximum of 50 regular season games can be played, all of them within divisions.

Previously, Robison stated play could not financially proceed unless local health authorities allowed fans in buildings at 50 per cent capacity. While that is still the goal, the situation continues to develop.

“That’s our objective, but we recognized that will ultimately be determined by the health authorities through our discussions with them. Those discussions are ongoing, and we’re looking forward to getting some clarification on that soon. The number may be significantly lower than 50 per cent given the health restrictions that apply in various provinces and states currently,” Robison noted.

If authorities do not allow fans in buildings at all in any particular locations, or if a viable level is not met, Robison said the league would be “asking for support.” Presumably, this means financial support from government, as has been done in Quebec with the provincial government providing $20 million in funding for the 12 Quebec-based teams.

For the Prince Albert Raiders, intra-divisional play will be expanded as the Swift Current Broncos will play out of the East Division, keeping all teams within Saskatchewan and Manitoba. This will form the biggest division in the league with seven teams, compared to five Alberta-based teams in the Central Division, five teams in the B.C. Division, and five teams in the U.S. Division.

The league has fully committed to playing the entire regular season within division, ruling out any further cross-border play if the situation allows for it.

As for playoffs, no decisions have been made at this point, although Robison would like nothing more than to see a full four-round playoff leading into the Memorial Cup, which has been pushed back to the middle of June this year.

“We haven’t even got to discussion of playoffs yet. That will depend on the staging of the Memorial Cup and the ability for us to have full inter-conference playoffs with the [U.S.-Canada] border opening, whether that will be in place by that time. We’re going to have to make that decision later on in the season, so we haven’t really determined what the playoff format would look like, if it would be a traditional four-round playoff or if it would be divisional play only,” Robison explained.

The league has hired Dr. Dhiren Naidu of Edmonton as chief medical advisor, who will oversee the return-to-play process and advise on best practices for managing player safety relating to the coronavirus. Naidu is an associate professor at the University of Alberta and head team physician for the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers and CFL’s Edmonton Football Team. He also served as the NHL medical director for the league’s successful hub in Edmonton.

Robison said there will be an extensive screening process for all individuals involved with the league, and there would certainly be testing for all players and staff upon arrival, although he said the full testing plan moving forward was not yet confirmed. If players were to develop symptoms once with their teams, they would be tested and isolated, and teams would have a protocol to follow.

More details are expected to come out in November as conversations with authorities are had to finalize scheduling options. Teams will hold short training camps after Christmas, and one or two exhibition games will be planned as well.

There is also the logistical issue of bringing import players from abroad back into Canada ahead of the season. In Prince Albert, veterans Aliaksei Protas and Ilya Usau, as well as this year’s import draft pick Uladzislau Shyla are all currently playing in Europe.

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Trevor.redden@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @Trevor_Redden

by Trevor Redden

Robison adds detail to WHL’s return

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