WHL, OHL continuing to push through COVID pauses and postponements

Despite a growing number of postponed games and teams put on pause, the Western Hockey League will continue to push forward with its regular season.

“The WHL and our member clubs remain fully committed to playing through the 68-game WHL regular season schedule and playoffs,” league commissioner Ron Robison said in a news release on Friday. “As we work through the challenges presented by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, our priority continues to be to deliver a world-class development experience for WHL players, staff, and officials, and to do so in a safe and healthy manner. On behalf of the entire WHL, I wish to thank WHL fans and WHL corporate partners everywhere for their patience as we work to reschedule games in the coming weeks.”

15 of the WHL's 22 teams are currently on pause "as a result of multiple players and staff being added to the WHL COVID-19 protocol list due to exhibiting symptoms or having tested positive for COVID-19."

Things aren't going much better in the Ontario Hockey League where game postponements have become a near daily occurrence. The league also has to deal with new government restrictions that ban spectators from attending games.

The OHL said in a news release Wednesday that it plans to continue to keep moving forward with its regular season.

It's a much different story in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League where the league has been on pause since the Christmas break. The QMJHL's last game played was on Dec. 18 and its next scheduled contest is for Jan. 19.

On Dec. 30, the league announced that it was further extending its holiday break. Players would report back to their clubs no later than Jan. 14 under this plan with games resuming the week of Jan. 17. That return to game action is certainly in question given, well, everything.

In Le Soleil on Friday, Mikael Lalancette reported that the QMJHL will not resume its schedule until all 18 clubs have clearance to fill their buildings to at least 50% capacity. "Protected environments," which were held throughout Quebec last season, are not on the table, Le Soleil reports.

Returning to at least 50% capacity in all markets will require a fairly drastic shift in current government restrictions. It's believed this COVID wave will get worse before it gets better - but it's also believed that when things start to get better, they're going to get better quick, a concept that is difficult to grasp after the past two years.

In today's briefing, no clear answer on projections of when the Omicron wave will crest, but in answering another question Shephard says the health care system is going to be in "a real crunch" for the next 4-6 weeks.

— Jacques Poitras (@poitrasCBC) January 7, 2022

Anyways, there are still plenty of questions about the QMJHL's return.

• Having every team play 68 games will be really, really challenging. It'll be even more challenging to have teams play their usual balanced schedule. It probably won't happen - so a solution/agreement/compromise is going to need to be figured out.
• How late can the regular season go? How will that impact the playoff schedule?
• Hopefully it's not even a concern come playoff time, but when happens if a team has to be put on pause during a playoff series?
• Could the Memorial Cup be pushed to a later date? It would probably be very difficult to do, but it would hardly be the craziest thing we've seen during COVID. These are unprecedented times after all. But at some point you just need to slap an end date to this season and squeeze as much as you can in.