Pictured top L-R: Battlefords North Stars coach Brayden Klimosko and staff; Nipawin Hawks coach Doug Johnson and staff. Bottom L-R: La Ronge Ice Wolves coach Kevin Kaminski and staff, Melfort Mustangs coach Trevor Blevins and staff. (Facebook/SJHL)

By Martin Martinson

Discussions for the season

SJHL coaches to meet next week in Nipawin

May 27, 2021 | 4:09 PM

The Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL) will be holding a coaches meeting featuring staff from each of the league’s 12 member teams next week.

Taking place June 3-5 in Nipawin, the meetings will involve discussions surrounding timelines for training camp and regular season start dates, as well as the potential number of games this season will feature, the status of the annual bantam draft, and potential of the yearly showcases, among other logistics ahead of the fall.

Head coach of the Battlefords North Stars, Brayden Klimosko said with so much to cover and discuss, he’s looking forward to getting to connect with his fellow coaches and managers for the first time in a long time to start to lay the foundation for what the 2021-22 campaign could look like.

“Everyone’s been saying just how nice it will be to finally do some face-to-face [communicating] again as basically it’s been two years since us coaches have all met together in a room,” Klimosko said. “Obviously Zoom calls are convenient, but they’re not the same, so it will be really important to have those good talks in person in Nipawin.”

Klimosko mentioned there’s real reason for optimism surrounding next season’s outlook, just watching the way things have begun to reopen again slowly of late, with outdoor sports such as baseball and soccer being given the green light from the province to begin playing games as early as Sunday (May 30).

Nasty weather continues

Snowfall to continue through Tuesday across northeast Sask.

30m ago

RPCN Artist

'Felt like a movie': Chris Chipak making waves in the art world

18h ago

Award Winner

Hawks netminder among SJHL weekly award winners

19h ago

“Looking at the progression in what the government’s giving us, everything’s trending in the right direction and everything’s looking like we’re going to be able to start on time,” Klimosko said.

“The goal is to try to keep the season as normal as possible with a 58-game schedule, [the showcases as usual] and playoffs with the top eight teams. I think it’s really important to get things back to as normal as we can.” – North Stars coach, Brayden Klimosko

A coaches meeting isn’t a new concept for the league, though usually it would be held within the same weekend as the draft and the annual general meeting (AGM), both of which have been put off for the time being. The AGM is expected to take place later in June, with the draft to happen at a yet-to-be-determined date sometime in the months to come.

Head coach of the Melfort Mustangs, Trevor Blevins said determining how and when they do go about having the draft this year is among the topics that stand out heading into next week’s meeting.

“There’s going to be many opinions and discussions about which direction we should go [with the draft],” he said. “All the governors of the league will have input on that also, so it’s going to be interesting to see what we do, but I would imagine it will all be well thought out and everyone will do a great job in making sure the process is good for everyone.”

While some things, such as the status of fan-capacity in the buildings/if people will be allowed to attend, will likely remain largely up in the air until closer to the season based on where public health restrictions are at the time, Blevins said just getting the players back on the ice is the most important thing, with the rest likely to work itself out in due time.

“All indications show we should be able to get together and get a season going, which I think is what’s most important for these young men,” Blevins said. “Their mental health and getting hockey back [is what matters], and just getting as close to normal as we can.” – Mustangs coach, Trevor Blevins

The SJHL has held a joint-showcase with the Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL) in the New Year each season since 2018, in addition to their usual league showcase which has been generally held in Warman in September or early October.

– With files from Mat Barrett, northeastNOW.

—

Martin.Martinson@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @MartyMartyPxP1