(The Canadian Press)

By paNOW Staff

Hockey Canada lifts ban on activities, allowing member organizations to decide on return

Jun 4, 2020 | 5:33 PM

Hockey Canada has lifted its ban on sanctioned activities and is allowing the country’s 13 member organizations to individually determine when it’s safe to return to action.

The move is a first step toward resuming play after Hockey Canada cancelled all activities under its banner March 12 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hockey Canada said in a statement the best approach for a resumption plan was for each member to work with regional public health authorities to determine the appropriate steps to return in areas that fall under their jurisdiction.

“Obviously, Hockey Canada has to deal with the diversity of the whole country,” Prince Albert Minor Hockey Association technical director James Mays told paNOW. “What Hockey Canada’s done is turned everything back to each individual jurisdiction. So the Saskatchewan Hockey Association, Hockey Alberta, whoever it may be, now have the opportunity to regulate and working with the governments and the Saskatchewan Health Authority.

“But we’ll have the opportunity to gauge what is happening here in Saskatchewan. Depending on Phase three, Phase four, it will give us an opportunity to concentrate on and start to work on return to play scenarios.”

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Every province has had a different experience with dealing with outbreaks of COVID-19. As of Thursday, there are 29 active cases in Saskatchewan, compared to 29,922 active cases in Quebec. On the East Coast, there are none in Prince Edward Island and four combined in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador.

The sport’s national body said it expects the timing for a return to the ice will differ among its members. Certain regions of the country are further along with plans to reopen and roll back restrictions related to the novel coronavirus pandemic.

“Even if we’re going to start our season, we’re still 14 or 15 weeks away. Hopefully we can continue to do what we’re doing, and we can work out a scenario that satisfies everything and gets our kids up and playing. I’ve been chatting with a lot of people around town, at the Co-op or just over the phone and they’re anxious. They’re chomping at the bit to get back and get out on the ice, get back to the rink.”

Hockey Canada’s 13 members are: BC Hockey, Hockey Alberta, Saskatchewan Hockey Association, Hockey Manitoba, Hockey Northwestern Ontario, Ontario Hockey Federation, Hockey Eastern Ontario, Hockey Quebec, Hockey New Brunswick, Hockey PEI, Hockey Nova Scotia, Hockey Newfoundland and Labrador, and Hockey North.

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With files from the Canadian Press

panews@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @princealbertnow