The 100 Mile House Wranglers are feeling “cautiously optimistic” about the upcoming hockey season, following the release of the province’s reopening plan last week.
Wranglers president Greg Aiken said the organization was excited to hear that the province’s restart plan, released May 25, is aiming to allow for indoor sport spectators by the fall.
“Things are definitely looking brighter,” Aiken said. “If everything goes well and the numbers stay down, we should be pretty well good to go, at least by October, if not September.”
The Wranglers haven’t hit the ice since their 2019/2020 season was cut short last March when COVID-19 restrictions were first put into place. The Wranglers, in the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League (KIJHL), announced in September that it would also sit out the 2020/2021 season, due to safety concerns with young players travelling to the South Cariboo from around the province and Western Canada.
READ MORE: The puck stops here: Wranglers skip season
The Wranglers have committed to the KIJHL to play this coming season, and Aiken said the team is awaiting guidance from the league to see what the season will look like.
They’ve booked ice time in different areas of the B.C. Interior to have a look at some prospective players and are hoping to host a training camp here in 100 Mile later in June or July.
Aiken said the Wranglers board is now planning to host its annual general meeting within the next month or so, and will begin work on a plan to safely welcome spectators back to the South Cariboo Rec Centre.
“I’m sure to start there will be some restrictions,” Aiken said. “We’re hoping that by before Christmas, we should be able to have full capacity crowds. Ticket sales are one of our major sources of revenue, and no one wants to play in front of empty rinks. But it’s too early to tell right now what that will look like.”
Aiken said the Wranglers’ organization is overwhelmed with the support they’ve received from the community over the past 14 months since COVID hit. The team raised more than $7,000 with two fundraisers in April, and Aiken said they’ve received a ton of supportive messages through social media, with fans anticipating the team’s return.
“We are so appreciative of the community and how they’ve supported us,” he said. “Once we get the guidance from the league as to what we’re allowed to do in terms of contact and training camps, then we will just be trying to recruit and put a competitive team on the ice.”
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