The Oakville Blades Jr A Hockey Club will have their season paused due to new restrictions put forward by the Provincial Government until at least Jan. 26, 2022.
The new restrictions call for the closing of indoor sporting and recreational facilities.
However, the province will allow "select professional and elite amateur sports leagues" to operate during the modified Stage 2.
The provincial leagues that are still able to operate are:
- Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
- Professional Women's Hockey Players Association (PWHPA)
- Elite Baseball League of Ontario U18
- League 1 Ontario (Soccer)
- Ontario Junior' A' Lacrosse (OJLL)
- Women's Field Lacrosse U19 A League
- Ontario Scholastic Basketball Association (OSBA)
Unfortunately, the Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL) does not make this list, along with many other leagues like U-Sports. Now, all sports associations, not mentioned above, will have to wait, hoping that they can come back at some point in the winter or early spring.
At this time, we are unaware of what OJHL's plan is moving forward regarding the number of games left in the season.
The league has a few options. If they come back in late January or early February, they may play the remaining games in a shorter amount of time by playing on weeknights which is uncommon. Or, if play resumes in March, they could reduce the number of games by 10 to15 to finish the season by April or May. Finally, if the league resumes later than expected, they may have no choice but to jump right into the playoffs.
This pause is extremely unfortunate for the Oakville Blades, who have been asserting themselves as a force in the OJHL west division.
To date, the Blades have played 30 games with a 17-12-0-1 record and are third in the OJHL's west division.
But this time off might be a blessing for the team. All year the Oakville Blades have been very inconsistent, and the break could give all of the players some time to reflect on the lapses they have had this year and figure out how they can improve.