With a stay at home order now extended to the middle of May in Ontario, the province's premier junior hockey league has decided to cancel plans for any kind of spring season.
The Ontario Hockey League announced on Tuesday morning that, with the stay at home order and the growing number of COVID-19 in the province, that it is impossible for the league to have a season.
“We have worked tirelessly with the Province and the Chief Medical Officer of Health for the past year on different scenarios and different windows of opportunity but the reality is the conditions in Ontario have never been right to start and complete an uninterrupted, safe opportunity for players to showcase their skills,” said OHL Commissioner David Branch. “We owe it to our players and their families to be definitive. We were committed to return and play this season, but our hopes and desires have been dashed by the cruel realities of COVID-19.”
According to the league, it reached an agreement with the provincial government earlier this month on how it could return to action. It would have involved a shortened season in so-called "hub cities" and strict COVID-19 safety protocols. However, the third wave of the pandemic and the spread of COVID-19 variants of concern rendered that plan moot.
“Ontario has the strongest health restrictions of any jurisdiction in North America and we understood that this would make a return to play scenario extremely difficult,” added Commissioner Branch. “The openness the Premier, Minister Lisa MacLeod, the Office of the Chief Medical Officer and key staff have afforded us has not gone unnoticed and is greatly appreciated. We all agree that providing certainty for our players and families, even if it is not the answer they would want to hear, is the right thing for everyone’s health and safety and for the mental health challenges faced by many of our young players.”
The Ontario Hockey League expects to have a full season in 2021-2022.