By CKPG Today

BCHL

BCHL announces tentative Dec.1 start date to season

Jul 17, 2020 | 9:18 AM

BURNABY — The COVID-19 pandemic has forced the BC Hockey League to push back the start of its season to Dec. 1.

The league says the Dec. 1 start is pending approval from the Provincial Health Office (PHO).

The BCHL says a full schedule with a December start date will be announced at a later date. The league says the pushback to Dec.1 aligns with the NHL’s plans to start their 2020-2021 season.

“The reality is that, for us to be able to operate, we need to have fans in our buildings,” said Chairman of the BCHL Board of Directors Graham Fraser. “It became clear from our discussions with the PHO that the best way to accomplish this would be to delay the start of our season to give them time to assess the effects of a potential second wave of COVID-19 during flu season.”

Teams will have the option to hold an extended training camp from September to November, which will include on-ice training. Once the province moves into Phase 3 of viaSport BC’s Return to Play model, exhibition competition with other BCHL teams will be expanded in-region.

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Training camps will be permitted to begin as early as Sept.8 under current mass gathering restrictions which only allow up to 50 people on the ice and in the stands. Teams may also run continue to run summer invite camps up until that date.