Pats, other WHL teams at a standstill
John Paddock has just about seen it all over a 45-year career in hockey, but he hasn’t seen anything like this.
Not even close.
The Regina Pats’ general manager found himself in an unthinkable situation on Thursday when he addressed the WHL’S decision to “pause all hockey activity until further notice” due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It’s uncharted territory for everybody,” he said during a media gathering at the Brandt Centre. “We’re just following what the best plan is to slow this down and eventually shut it off.”
Asked if it was an easy decision for the WHL or a difficult one, Paddock simply expressed his belief that it’s the right decision for everyone involved.
“The landscape for all of sports has changed dramatically in a short period of time,” he said, alluding to the fact that the NBA, NHL and MLB — in that order — all suspended their schedules within a period of less than 24 hours. The WHL followed suit shortly after.
“I don’t think it’s being a copy cat,” Paddock said. “But there is stuff going on that precautions have to be taken by every level, where there’s some sort of decent-sized crowd that’s going to be at an event and players being in close proximity to each other.
“It’s difficult because it’s very new, but it was actually pretty easy (to not take any chances).”
Paddock includes his own club in that assessment. That said, he was quick to point out that Regina is still considered a low-risk zone.
“We’re in an area where provincially there has been one case,” Paddock noted. “Again, it’s (about) precaution and safety for everybody involved. I’m sure there are other people who feel the same. It’s a needed thing. We’re doing what the rest of the population is supposed to be doing as far as some individual things. It’s not really any different but certainly we have a higher profile.”
The Pats, who’ve been eliminated from the WHL playoffs, have five games left in their season. They were scheduled for a Manitoba road trip this weekend against Brandon and Winnipeg. Regina has one remaining home game, which was slated for March 20 versus the Moose Jaw Warriors.
There’s no word on the WHL playoffs, which were expected to commence on March 26 or 27.
“I’m sure that everybody involved in all the leagues hopes — and maybe some expect — that there will be games played again (this season),”
Paddock said. “For us it is different ( because the Pats are out of the playoffs). But we don’t know that we’re not going to play games again. That’s all conjecture at this time.”
For his part, Paddock remains hopeful the remaining games of his team’s schedule can simply be pushed back instead of cancelled.
“I think that’s a possibility,” he said. “That’s why ‘suspended’ or ‘postponed’ is how it has been worded. It’s not ‘cancelled.’ Everything is possible within the safety of the general public and the people/players participating. That would be everybody’s wish and hope (but) there’s a lot of things that will come into play with that.”
Off the ice, the Pats are expected to continue taking necessary precautions in terms of hygiene. The players had already started using individual water bottles and towels instead of sharing them.
Paddock also said his players won’t be tested for COVID -19 unless they come down with symptoms associated with the virus. Forward Logan Nijhoff and defenceman Makai Mitchell both missed Wednesday’s game against Winnipeg due to illness but Paddock said: “They don’t have any symptoms like this.”
Although the team is now on hiatus, other aspects of the Pats’ hockey operations continue to run in a fairly normal fashion. That includes scouting tournaments in preparation for the bantam draft on May 7.
Teams in major pro leagues have started to restrict air travel for their scouts, but the Pats’ staffers typically travel across Western Canada by car.
“Right now it’s business as usual,” Paddock said. “The many guys who live in this area that scout for NHL teams are now very localized and driving. For us there’s a big academy tournament going on right now (in Penticton, B.C.). That is continuing. We’ll just have two people at it. Past that, I don’t know if the Alberta and B.C. and Manitoba (bantam championships) are going to go ahead. If they go ahead I see no reason why we won’t have representatives there. I’ll be going.”