Local minor hockey players happy just to be on the ice again
”Four-on-four is a very different game but in the long run it will be good for the kids. “STACEY MOORE PGHA PRESIDENT
It’s not the hockey everyone is used to but the COVID-19 Return to Play environment is working, say minor hockey leaders.
Players in the Peterborough Hockey Association and Peterborough Girls Hockey Association are almost a month into their season playing four-onfour games.
There are no faceoffs, no body contact and reduced roster sizes and players show up at the rink all dressed except for skates, helmets and gloves.
“We’re really, really happy with how things have come together and the fact our kids are on the ice,” PGHA president Stacey Moore said.
“I’ve been super impressed by the level of play, the pace of play. Four-on-four is a very different game but in the long run it will be good for the kids. It’s going to help with their fitness. They’re winded when they’re out there playing four-on-four with a lot more space to cover.
“It’s really fast and the referees don’t really touch the puck too much. It’s a different way they’ve set things up to avoid contact.”
“We’ve had no COVID cases hockey-related to speak of which is awesome,” said PHA president Peter Simon.
“The on-ice product has been really competitive and I think the kids are enjoying the experience for the most part. You always get the naysayers who don’t love everything about it but we’ve had way more positives than negatives.”
The PHA Tier 1, comprised mostly of AA and AE/A players, has been playing games for nearly a month. The Tier 2, mostly house league players, started after Thanksgiving.
It’s been an adjustment for players and parents to the strict protocols instituted by the city for arena users. Dressing room time is limited to 10 minutes and is accessible only to players and coaches.
Only one parent per player is permitted in spectator areas.
All users must enter the rink together and doors are locked until the next time slot.
“One thing you hear from people all the time is how stiff and rigid the protocols are,” Simon said. “I don’t know if they don’t get how serious this scenario is and why it needs to be that way but we’re pushing really hard to enforce the rules to make sure people get how serious an issue it is.”
Nobody can complain about a lack of ice time.
“My son is major bantam age and they’re flying out there,” said Simon.
“The action is really fast and they’re finding themselves dog tired come the middle of the second period. There’s lots of ice and lots of hockey,” he said.
“From the boys’ perspective they miss a lot of the camaraderie before and after games. My son said he missed that hour before and half-hour after but the on-ice piece has been a lot of fun. The mingling of skill levels has been awesome.”
Moore said the decision to play within Peterborough this season and not partner with an adjoining community has turned out for the best when you consider some areas, particularly in the GTA, have had to shut down activity.
“As an executive we’re really happy to see we’ve been able to continue to go when other communities have been shut down. We made the decision to stay in-house and come up with a program that allows for practising and playing in the levels
they should be in,” Moore said.
“The fact some areas have been shut down or haven’t even started at all shows we’re in really good shape. In the longterm it’s going to really benefit our girls,” Moore added.
“I know some of the OWHA centres did pair up with other centres and we looked at that. We’re glad now we didn’t considering some areas had to go into Stage 2 and roll back.”
So far, the PMHC’s AAA teams have focused solely on practice and skill development, said president Mike Martone.
Each team from U10 to U18 practises among themselves.
“Our plan is three phases,” Martone said.
Phase 1 was a development program using 2019-20 rosters and coaches in August.
Phase 2 from September through the end of December is further development utilizing
2020-21 coaches with some AA players called up to join rosters and any AAA players who returned after playing in other centres last season.
Martone said all registration was paid based on Phase 2. What Phase 3 from January through March will look like and what those costs will be is still to be determined, he said.
“Hopefully we progress into game play by then,” Martone said.
For the minor midget AAA players in their OHL draft year, Martone said there will be news to come from the Ontario Hockey Federation.
“There will be a draft and there will be an opportunity for these kids to showcase their talent,” he said. “What that opportunity will look like I don’t know.”