MVCHA hopes to still start season in January despite COVID-19 restrictions
The Mississippi Valley Club Hockey Association is still planning on starting its 2020-21 season in January.
However, the decision by the Illinois Department of Public Health and Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s office in November to move hockey into the Tier-3 High Risk category of sports has put the chances of having a season in serious jeopardy due to the COVID-19 pandemic’s continuing fallout in 2020.
“Our problem is with the way the governor has hockey at high-risk, we can’t have games or anything, so we have to follow the (state COVID-19 ) guidelines,” MVCHA President John Criswell said. “We have to follow the governor’s orders because USA hockey and Missouri Hockey, who both govern over our league, have said you’ve got to follow the county and the state and the federal guidelines set forth by the CDC and all the different organizations.”
At present, the MVCHA plans to use the East Alton Ice Arena for games as well the as the McKendree Rec-Plex in O’Fallon this winter.
MCVHA was set to have the Granite City rink available for game use again this season, but that facility ran into an unforeseen problem.
“Among the other problems we have is that Granite City didn’t open this year because there wasn’t enough revenue for them,” Criswell said. “So, we were reduced from three rinks (to use) down to two rinks, so it’s just kind of been a real nightmare to try to figure everything out (logistically),” Criswell said.
Another big potential challenge the league faces is whether spectators will be allowed in the stands for games.
Criswell said having fans is critical to the league’s financial viability each season. This season would be no different.
“It’s going to be really hard to even have a season if they stipulate no fans in the stands because a lot of our revenue comes from the gate receipts,” Criswell said. “That’s how we pay for the all-star games, that’s how we pay for the varsity playoffs, and that’s how we reduce the costs to the teams is by the revenue generated from fans in the stands.”
According to Criswell, the state and county guidelines would determine the percentage of fans allowed into games.
The MVCHA plans to have a 12-game regular season schedule along with a nine-game playoff postseason. Teams are set to play in the league including Highland.
Some area teams have been practicing on their own since late October under the current COVID-19 restrictions set in Madison and St. Clair counties.
‘It’s been a nightmare’
The league did have a jamboree being held at East Alton that started in October and was set to end in December. The event had to end last week, however, due to the new COVID restrictions that forced Missouri Hockey Association referees to opt out of continuing to officiate those games.
“It’s been a nightmare,” Criswell said of the situation. “The board has been monitoring, we’ve been having virtual meetings, we tried to have a meeting with all the teams (recently) at O’Fallon Arena in the stands with the social distancing. It’s just the wildest season I’ve ever been a part of and I’ve been with the league since ’98.”
Furthermore, time to make a final decision on the season’s fate is running short.
Criswell said the MVCHA is setting Tuesday, Dec. 15, as its drop dead date to decide whether to continue on and have a season starting Jan. 2 or the cancel this season altogether.