PATS CAMPAIGN IS OVER
WHL cancels what’s left of season
The season is officially over for the Regina Pats.
As expected, it was announced on Wednesday that the remainder of the WHL’S regular season has been cancelled due to the COVID -19 pandemic.
There were a total of 54 games remaining to be played on the WHL’S 2019-20 schedule when the season was paused on March 12.
“The WHL takes the safety of our players, officials, staff, fans, and everyone associated with the WHL very seriously,” commissioner Ron Robison said in a prepared statement. “Given the ongoing public health developments regarding COVID -19, we deemed it necessary to cancel the remaining games on the 2019-20 WHL regular-season schedule.”
The Pats will finish 18th in the 22-team standings with a 21-346-2 record. They were eliminated from playoff contention on Feb. 28.
When the WHL paused its season last week, Regina had five games left on the slate. That included one final home contest that would have been played Friday night against the Moose Jaw Warriors.
Instead, the Pats’ season will end after 63 games.
“I wouldn’t call it disappointment (that the season is now officially over),” Pats GM John Paddock said on Wednesday.
“We’re not in the playoffs. We’re not in first place. What did we lose? We lost a home game. That’s important and it’s a good drawing game, but that’s life. You just have to take 30 seconds and recognize (the larger picture) — that we’re in a situation that we never want to see again.”
The Pats’ immediate priority is to continue preparing for the WHL bantam draft that’s scheduled for May 7.
The league’s first-ever U.S. draft is slated for next Wednesday. It’s to be conducted via conference call.
“The players are sent home and we’re moving on, albeit slowly, and we’re just wondering what the next steps are,” Paddock added.
“We have some things that are going to happen this spring, regardless, so we have to be more normal (in planning for those things).”
The WHL is still hoping to salvage at least a portion of the playoffs, which were to begin on March 27. The start of the post-season will certainly be delayed, assuming it happens at all.
Major League Baseball announced this week that opening day won’t happen until mid-may at the earliest.
That’s after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended that gatherings of 50 or more people be postponed or cancelled for at least eight weeks.
Meanwhile, various media reports suggest the NBA is targeting a mid-june return as a best-case scenario. A similar timeline would presumably wipe out the WHL post-season, which is slated to conclude with the Memorial Cup in Kelowna from May 22-31.
“We will continue to monitor ongoing public health developments regarding COVID-19,” Robison added.
“We will make every effort possible to conduct the 2020 WHL playoffs at a later date. We thank WHL fans and partners for your patience and understanding during these challenging times.”
NOTE: The Pats announced Wednesday that information will be available in the coming days for people who bought tickets to Friday ’s home ice finale. The team has closed its business office as well as the team store until further notice. The early bird season ticket renewal deadline for 2020-21 has been extended until April 30. More information can be found online at reginapats.com.