Hockey Canada, Alberta Prepares to Host Third Hockey Tournament in COVID-19 Pandemic | The Canadian News

Alberta is about to host a third International Ice Hockey Federation pandemic tournament armed with the experience of the first two, but with the ice still shifting underfoot.

The 2022 U-20 men’s world championships starting Sunday in Edmonton and Red Deer, Alta., You face the same challenge you did a year ago in Edmonton: how to gather hundreds of people for a sporting event without becoming a spreader of the COVID. 19 viruses?

Vaccines, rapid test advancements, knowledge and data gained from completing the 2021 U-20 world championships in Edmonton and the women’s world championships in Calgary are tools that Hockey Canada has now that it didn’t have a year ago.

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However, the virus continues to disrupt the sport, with the NHL taking an extended vacation break due to a number of vaccinated players and team personnel on the COVID protocol. The Calgary Flames, meanwhile, had 20 players and 13 employees in protocol heading into the break.

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Thursday’s pre-tournament exhibition game between the Czechs and the Swiss in Red Deer was canceled due to the COVID-19 protocol.

“We trust in what we have implemented to be able to carry out the event …

“But we live on the edge constantly looking at the Flames, looking at other teams in the NHL or professional sports in North America that have also had good protocols and had to take breaks,” said Dean McIntosh, vice president of events for Hockey Canada.

“We don’t want that, we don’t anticipate that, but on the other hand, we know it’s a possibility at any time.”

The number of active COVID cases, hospitalizations and people in ICUs in Alberta is less than a year back to the start of the 2021 championship that operated without spectators at Rogers Place.

However, the Omicron variant and allowing fans to enter the arenas for this tournament introduce new variables to the operation of the 10-country event.


Click to play video: 'New COVID Health Restrictions Now In Effect To Curb The Rise Of Omicron In Alberta'



New COVID Health Restrictions Now In Effect To Curb The Rise Of Omicron In Alberta


New COVID Health Restrictions Now In Effect To Curb The Rise Of Omicron In Alberta

About 90 percent of tickets for the 2022 tournament have already been sold as Alberta followed other provinces in limiting capacity at sporting events to 50 percent.

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There were 8,359 active COVID cases, 318 in the hospital and 64 in intensive care in the province on Saturday compared to 16,097 active cases, 836 in the hospital and 173 in the ICU a year earlier, according to statistics from the Alberta Health website.

Those who purchased tickets must show proof of complete vaccination (a negative test will not suffice) to enter Rogers Place and Peavey Mart Centrium.

The movement and management of players, coaches, team personnel and officials within the tournament will operate in a similar way to the 2021 edition, which in turn adopted the bubble model of the NHL 2020 playoffs in Edmonton.

They will not blend in with the public and will be limited to the hotel, ground transportation and event level at each venue, McIntosh said.

Periodic PCR testing augmented by rapid tests, the use of masks and wearable wristband technology for contact tracing are also among the protocols, he added.

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Pre-tournament world youth game between Czech Republic and Switzerland canceled due to COVID-19

There are two IIHF doctors on site and each host city has a medical director. University of Calgary infectious disease expert John Lam is a consultant to the tournament, McIntosh said.

Players and coaches who arrived in Canada under the federal government’s International Single Sport Exemption were tested for three days in a row and quarantined for two upon arrival last week.

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Most are vaccinated, McIntosh said.

“Those who compete in the event are subject to the international exemption,” he explained. “We know the status of all of these people and how the tests are done, but not all of them are fully vaccinated by Canadian standards.

“I would tell you that by Canadian standards we have more than 90% complete vaccines and by non-Canadian standards we are probably 98 or 99%, but we have a couple that are left out.”

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The IIHF canceled six tournaments in January, including the U-18 Women’s World Championship for the second year in a row, over COVID concerns.

Canada’s youth men’s team opens the Group A round robin against the Czechs at Rogers Place on Sunday. Austria, Germany and Finland complete that group.

The defending champions of the United States, Russia, Sweden, Slovakia and Switzerland make up Group B in Red Deer.

Canada faces Austria on December 28 with a game the next day against Germany before crowning the preliminary round on New Year’s Eve against the Finns.

The quarterfinals on January 2 and the semi-finals on January 4 precede the medal games on January 5 in Edmonton. Canada fell 2-0 to the Americans in the 2021 final.

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The Canadian women’s hockey team will also play the American women on January 3 at Rogers Place in the penultimate game of their pre-Olympic Rivalry Series.

The goal of the organizing committee is to carry it out without major interruptions or teams forced to play with few hands.

The tournament got off to a rocky start last year. Sweden arrived without their regular coaching staff and a third of the German team remained in prolonged quarantine during their first three games due to positive tests for the virus.

“Confidence level? I would tell you until we get to January 5 and the event is over and we award gold medals, my confidence level is always on the edge, let’s put it that way. You worry constantly,” McIntosh said.

“We want to offer a great event. That is our commitment to the IIHF and the Canadian fan. “

© 2021 The Canadian Press



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