OHL must remove body contact if it wants to return in 2020-21
Ontario's Minister of Sport has made it official, saying all body contact must be removed if the Ontario Hockey League wants to return for the 2020-21 season.
"It would be safe to say that body contact, unless it's incremental, will not be permitted as a result of COVID-19," said Lisa MacLeod while speaking to the media Wednesday. "That would pose a challenge in terms of how they amend their play."
This includes hitting and fighting. The OHL has yet to make any comment regarding the statement, saying it would prefer not to do so while negotiating with the Minister on the return of the league. It had a target start date of December 1st, although this development may end up putting a wrench in those plans. MacLeod did say in her negotiations with the league, the OHL has stated it would not want to do the 2020-21 season in a self-contained bubble like the one used by the NHL for the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
"I know, right now, that those options are not the preferred route," said MacLeod.
Ontario is dealing with a second wave of COVID-19, with hundreds of new cases over the last couple of weeks. The provincial government has put a four-week pause on any new reopening plans, including sports organizations like the OHL.
The OHL faces further issues if it wants to return in 2020-21. Three of its teams are in the United States and having them cross the border would be a matter for Canada's federal government. Also, two of its teams — the Ottawa 67's and Mississauga Steelheads — are in "hot zone" parts of Ontario, where new cases of COVID-19 are the highest. On Wednesday, there were 173 new cases in Toronto, 121 in Ottawa, 75 in York Region, and 70 in Peel Region.
| G | A | PTS | ||
| Bobby Brink | 1 | 3 | 4 | |
| Morgan Rielly | 1 | 3 | 4 | |
| Jonny Brodzinski | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Noah Cates | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Kirill Marchenko | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| David Pastrnak | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Tyson Foerster | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Cam Fowler | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Patrik Laine | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Oskar Sundqvist | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Nick Suzuki | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Urho Vaakanainen | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Dylan Cozens | - | 3 | 3 | |
| Zachary Bolduc | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Simon Edvinsson | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Mitch Marner | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Sam Bennett | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Adam Fantilli | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Brad Marchand | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Jake Neighbours | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Complete stats | ||||
| STANDINGS 2024-2025 | ||||||
TOP 10 | GP | W | L | OL | PTS | |
Jets | 58 | 41 | 14 | 3 | 85 | |
Capitals | 58 | 38 | 12 | 8 | 84 | |
Stars | 58 | 37 | 19 | 2 | 76 | |
Maple Leafs | 58 | 36 | 20 | 2 | 74 | |
Golden Knights | 58 | 34 | 18 | 6 | 74 | |
Panthers | 59 | 35 | 21 | 3 | 73 | |
Oilers | 58 | 34 | 20 | 4 | 72 | |
Wild | 58 | 34 | 20 | 4 | 72 | |
Lightning | 57 | 33 | 20 | 4 | 70 | |
Hurricanes | 58 | 33 | 21 | 4 | 70 | |
| Conference | Cumulative | ||||||