There will be no national junior A champion crowned in 2020. For the first time in history, and because of the coronavirus pandemic, Hockey Canada and the Canadian Junior Hockey League have cancelled the remainder of the season.
There will also be no winner of the Fred Page Cup BCHL championship. The second round of the BCHL playoffs was set to begin on Friday night with four games on tap.
If the coronavirus situation improves, it won’t change the outcome as it relates to any teams, leagues or associations governed by Hockey Canada. The organization states that the 2019-20 season will not be restarted.
The #CJHLHockey officially announces the cancellation of the remainder of the 2019-20 season. Details: https://t.co/0BC9MB60gX @THEMHL – @LHJAAAQ – @TheCCHL – @OJHLOfficial – @NOJHL – @SIJHL – @mjhlhockey – @theSJHL – @TheAJHL – @GoBCHL pic.twitter.com/C58tR1VMJu
— CJHL (@cjhlhockey) March 13, 2020
One of the biggest impacts the decision might have is on recruiting because the cancellation includes tryouts and camps. The Nanaimo Clippers, Victoria Grizzlies, and Coquitlam Express are among the teams that had tryouts in February for U16 and U18 players to play in the BC Spring Hockey League. Although the tryouts have already happened, the Spring League itself is sanctioned by Hockey Canada and as such, is cancelled.
Most other BCHL teams had full-on spring camps scheduled for late March and into April and May. Today’s announcement indicates that those are cancelled too.
