GCHSHL Response to COVID: Flexibility
50th Anniversary season will look different, but will move forward
Ryan Kelber, commissioner of the Greater Cleveland High School Hockey League, distributed a memo to coaches of the league’s 34 member teams Wednesday announcing changes to the 2020-21 regular season and Baron Cup formats in response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Teams are being encouraged to play as many of their scheduled leagues games as possible, but no league standings will be kept, and every team will qualify for the three 2021 Baron Cup tournaments.
It has become clear that crossing your fingers and hoping not many games get cancelled is not a viable option for commissioners around the state. Leagues must plan for more positive COVID tests and the game cancellations they will bring.
“What we are trying to avoid is having an imbalanced schedule in January when it comes time to do the seeding for the Baron Cup,” he said. “Some of these games are just not going to get made up.”
Kelber said he also did not want to put teams in a position where they had to cancel non-league games and try to re-schedule league contests.
"I think this year honestly is going to be very fluid," said Mentor head coach Paul McKito. "The GCHSHL is making the correct move."
For the first time in the 50-year history of the Baron Cup all members schools will be allowed to participate (Red Division/Baron Cup; White Division/Baron Cup II; Blue Division/Baron Cup III). That will mean a total of 31 games will be needed as opposed to the usual 21. The hope is that all games will still be able to take place at Brooklyn Rec Center by starting the tournament a week early.
“Brooklyn has been great,” noted Kelber.
There was no way to maintain the integrity of the league standings with teams playing varying numbers of games. Delaying the entire schedule was not an option either. High school hockey cannot be pushed to the spring since many athletes play spring sports in addition to hockey. Limited rink availability would make it even harder to squeeze in a compressed schedule.
Coaches will be asked to determine Baron Cup seeding by vote as they do now for the District tournaments.
"The ability to play games is crucial right now with the season ending abruptly last year," said Bay Rockets head coach Ian Skacan. "The ability to get games in this year will go along way for the mental health of our players and I look forward to the return of league play and hopefully the ability to compete in both the Baron Cup and state playoffs. "
Teams across the state have been forced to cancel or re-schedule games because of rink closures, schools shutting down their programs, or active programs having to quarantine because of positive COVID tests.
“It doesn’t have the same feeling as previous years,” said Avon bench boss Kyle Botos. “But it gives everyone opportunity to win the Baron Cup and it’s more important to get something for these student athletes and try to make something positive. I just don’t understand because our teams order masks for the players so they can wear those during game play and we’re following all the rules.”
--- Scott Harrington for Ohio Hockey Digest
Ryan Kelber will participate in next week’s Ohio Hockey Digest On Air podcast (scheduled to drop December 3) along with representatives from the Great Lakes Hockey League, Northwest Hockey Conference, Capital Hockey Conference and Southwest Ohio High School Hockey League. All five leagues will provide updates on the status of their league schedules and how they plan to manage the COVID crisis moving forward. Subscribe on Spotify or Apple Podcasts to make sure you don’t miss it! (click the microphone below to view episode archives)
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