BANFF – The Canadian national junior hockey team is shooting to be at a camp in Banff in December ahead of the IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship in Red Deer and Edmonton.
At a council meeting on Monday (July 13), Hockey Canada officials asked the Town of Banff to reduce fees for ice rentals and waive fees for meeting room space at the Fenlands arena, citing their budget has taken a big hit due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ben Shutron, manager of the men’s national team for Hockey Canada, said they want to finalize arrangements with the municipality for the planned on-ice practices in Banff Dec. 14-18.
“In reviewing the present rates of ice times and meeting space, we would like to ask the Town of Banff to visit reducing the amounts and costs for ice times, for each of our ice sessions and more closely reflect the rates of minor hockey,” he said.
“Going through this pandemic, much like everybody is, we’re seeing a reduction in our budget and our finances … and a reduction in the rates would help us extremely with hosting the camp.”
The 2021 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship returns to Canadian ice Dec. 26, 2020 through Jan. 5, 2021, with Edmonton and Red Deer set to co-host the annual holiday tradition.
Games will be played at Rogers Place, the home of the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers and the WHL’s Edmonton Oil Kings, and at the Westerner Park Centrium, home of the WHL’s Red Deer Rebels.
While in Banff for the pre-camp, Shutron said Hockey Canada plans to reach out to local minor hockey organizations to be part of the camp and attend practices.
“Hockey Canada sees ourselves as an extension of minor hockey, but we also see this as an opportunity to involve the entire community of the town of Banff,” he said.
“TSN will also be in tow with us, so we would look at exposure of the town of Banff of broadcasting nationally across the country.”
Councillor Peter Poole expressed concern about COVID-19, wanting to know what sort of precautions would be in place to protect the community of Banff, which currently has two active and five recovered coronavirus cases.
He also wanted to make sure the municipality could get out of its contract with the hockey organization and cancel the pre-camp should the pandemic worsen come fall and winter.
Coun. Poole said the issue of reducing fees, or not, is simply a matter of deal-making, but the bigger issue is one of COVID-19.
“The big issue is actually a threshold question of whether we would be hosting them or not – and if we have flexibility in our contracts to turn away an entity once we’ve already booked them,” he said.
Shutron said Hockey Canada is preparing for the event under the assumption that hockey will return as normal by then.
“With that being said, we want to be realistic and we do anticipate some form of restrictions. What those look like presently, we are unsure,” he said, noting many groups within Hockey Canada are working on a safe return-to-play policy.
“We would not look to travel to your community or bring all of our athletes and staff together, in short, if there was an extenuating threat not only to the community of Banff, but to athletes and staff and the province of Alberta."
Alison Gerrits, the Town of Banff’s director of community services, said administration has tentatively booked the space for Hockey Canada to use the Fenlands, but can’t make further arrangements until, or if, council makes a decision on the fee request.
She said there is the ability through the contract to make any changes as necessary as the COVID-19 situation evolves.
“We have just put a placeholder in the system … obviously with caveats that protocols must be followed and any COVID-19 regulations would need to be adhered to,” Gerrits said.
After the Hockey Canada’s presentation, Banff town council voted 4-1 to direct administration to return with details on reducing fees and waiving meeting room rental costs.
Coun. Poole was opposed, while Coun. Ted Christensen and Mayor Karen Sorensen were absent from the meeting.
