All sporting events and competition throughout the province have been suspended because the recent COVID-19 health measures implemented by the Government of Saskatchewan.
That health measure has definitely affected minor hockey, as there was already a delayed start to the season because of the pandemic.
Teams have been very cautious during these uncertain times and because of the rising new COVID-19 cases each day, it was inevitable that sports activities would be suspended.
“I think everybody in the hockey community has been expecting something to happen for the last couple weeks,” said Warman Minor Hockey Association (WMHA) president Vance Heaney.
Even though teams would rather be playing games, athletes 18 years of age and under can still continue practicing, conditioning and skills training in groups of eight.
Hockey players within the WMHA are going to take advantage of that rule and still work on their skills while this health measure is in effect.
Each WMHA team has adapted its respective schedules to meet the new requirements.
“They can have up to eight kids on the ice at a time with their coaches during skill sessions while maintaining three metres distance. The kids while on the ice and coaches on the ice also have to where masks going forward,” Heaney said. “So that is the plan over the next three weeks, is eight kids will practice for half of the (scheduled) practice and then the other eight kids will come out in the second half of practice.”
The situation isn’t ideal but it’s the only way youth within the WMHA can participate in some kind of organized hockey activity while these guidelines are in place.
Even though the players can work on skills, certain drills can’t be done because of the three-metre distancing rule.
Heaney is just glad the youth can still see their teammates and be a part of the sport, albeit in a much smaller scale.
“It’s a compromise that’s in the best interest of the kids’ physical outlets, staying connected with peers and ultimately their mental health,” Heaney said.
Before these new measures were put in place Heaney thought they were already doing a good job of following the previous guidelines that still allowed the youth to play hockey games and practice as a full team.
“I think people in the hockey community have been working really hard to follow the precautions and do a good job to keep things safe, while still allowing the kids to be able to play hockey,” Heaney said.
Heaney hopes the overall health measures will bring the numbers down and when the government reviews the measures on December 17, that teams can start conducting a full practice and maybe start playing games again.
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected sports throughout the province, but respective organizations are still doing their best to offer some sort of activity while following these health measures.
Even though minor hockey in Warman can still have make-shift practices, other organizations are not so lucky.
The Twin Rivers Hockey league, which is a senior men’s league, doesn’t fall in to that 18-and-under category that allows athletes to practice and train in an eight-person group setting.
So those players won’t be participating in any hockey activity while the new health measures are in place.