OJHL worried about how pause due to COVID-19 restrictions could affect players’ futures

The pausing of the Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL) could affect players’ ability to get scholarships, attend university or play at a higher level, according to commissioner Marty Savoy.

The league has been forced to pause all games and practices under new COVID-19 restrictions.

Under the modified Step 2 the province is currently in, all indoor sport and recreational fitness facilities have been forced to close except for athletes training for the Olympics and Paralympics and select professional and elite amateur sports leagues. The OJHL was not included in the exceptions.

They were forced to cancel the playoffs in 2020 and the season in 2021 before it ended due to the COVID-19 pandemic as well.

Savoy said they have also reached out to the government to find out why they have not been classified as “elite.” “We still don’t understand why at the clarification of elite as opposed to what others are doing,” said Savoy. So, we’re not sure how they make that determination. But we would like to have our voice heard.”

But if the pause continues, the impact on the players could be high. “We have players in our league that get drafted into the National Hockey League. These players are fighting for scholarships in the US. They’re trying to get into U.S. sports clubs, they’re trying to move to the OHL.”

Without the added games to showcase their skills, it makes it difficult for them to move to those higher levels.

Dalton Bancroft plays for the Trenton Golden Hawks and as a 20-year-old, is in the last season of his OJHL career. “It’s a tough situation to be put in and without hockey for another three weeks, so [we are] just kind of going day-by-day here and see what kind of stuff they figure out to put us back into play here, but it’s definitely been a tough pill to swallow the past couple days for me and my teammates.”

Bancroft is headed to Cornell University in the U.S. next year to play hockey, so he feels like one of the lucky ones. “At the same time, it’s really unfair to a lot of the other players who are just as capable as I am playing at the next level and might not get the opportunity if we continue to push off our season.”

“There’s a lot of guys that have missed out on opportunities to play at the next level and continue their hockey career because of these pauses affecting schools, OHL teams … so it’s definitely been difficult just seeing some guys that deserve to play at the next level and not get the chance because we can’t play hockey,” Bancroft said.

He adds he hopes it is just a three week pause, “but the last time we told we’re on a two week pause, we ended up getting shut down for two years so.”

Savoy adds they are pretty confident they will be able to play their full season. “I think we have about eight or nine various plans of what we have to do with our season.”

“This is the time that we have to step up for these kids. What we don’t want to have happen if we start up and all of a sudden have to take three or four days to administratively get together. That’s not going to happen with our league,” added Savoy, “We’re going to be ready to go and get the athletes back in the ice the second we can.”

“All we want to do is play for a championship and a lot of us feel that’s in jeopardy yet again, because you haven’t been able to play for a championship the past two years,” explained Bancroft.