Kids take to ice and have fun… comfortably and very carefully

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 20/07/2020 (1922 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

There’s nothing like some hockey in the middle of July.

The North American Hockey Classic, which spanned across five Winnipeg-area rinks, wrapped up Monday evening at Bell MTS Iceplex.

The minor tournament, run by 50 Below, featured 64 male teams split into different groups with players ranging between seven and 13 years old.

While the majority of the youngsters were from Manitoba, there were seven teams from Northwestern Ontario and another three from Saskatchewan towns close to the provincial border. There were many rules in place for the tournament to be green-lighted such as a maximum of 15 skaters per roster, with the 10 players on the bench being split in half to force players to sit at opposite ends in smaller groups. Only three staff members were allowed behind the bench and backup goalies were forced to observe from the stands. There was also a rule where each player was only allowed two adult spectators, as well as their siblings, to attend the games.

Wayne Babych, who had a nine-year NHL career between 1978-87, coached his son Cole and the Shooting Stars to a gold medal in the 13-year-old Silver Division final with a 3-1 victory over the MJI Blizzard Monday. Babych said even though the tournament was the first of its kind since the pandemic began, his team felt safe throughout.

“Everybody is very comfortable with each other. The protocol of getting into the building and stuff… it’s a scary world right now, but I think everybody is pretty careful,” said Babych, who played the majority of his career for the St. Louis Blues.

“But there’s a trust factor, too. Just like in the early ’80s when AIDs showed up and you had to be very confident in your lover. There’s a big trust factor. But again, not everyone knows if they’re a carrier or who they’ve been with and stuff. It’s times like this when you appreciate the good times and hopefully, everyone plays as a team and we can get out of it.”

Before the event began, tournament organizers said the Iceplex, which screened visitors prior to entry, was the only facility that was going to require all spectators to wear masks, but that ended up not being the case. In a game Sunday morning between the Jawbreakers and Prairie Panthers, nearly 70 spectators were inside the Remax rink at the Iceplex and only one fan had a face mask. 

Rhys van Kemenade, director of teams and tournaments for 50 Below Sports + Entertainment, the same company that owns the MJHL’s Winnipeg Blues and the WHL’s Winnipeg Ice, believed organizers enforced the rules to the best of their abilities throughout the event.

“Masks were a guideline that was something we recommended, it wasn’t mandatory…. As far as socially distancing, we went around on a regular basis reminding people to social distance. If they choose not to do that, I don’t know what to say to that,” said van Kemenade.

“We did our due diligence to make sure people were socially distanced and follow our guidelines as closely as we could.”

taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @TaylorAllen31