The players and coaching staff involved with the Canadian World Junior hockey team participating in the selection camp in Red Deer, AB, have seen the operation put on hold for a minimum of two weeks, effective Monday, November 23. This break comes on the heels of additional positive results on COVID-19 tests within the bubble.

“Following the confirmation of two positive tests among players at Canada’s National Junior Team Sport Chek Selection Camp on Monday, Hockey Canada has confirmed that all players, coaches and staff are considered close contacts and are therefore subject to the mandatory 14-day quarantine period under Alberta Health Services’ Order 05-2020,” read a statement from Scott Salmond, senior vice president of Canadian national teams Wednesday.

“Hockey Canada will continue to abide by all protocols and guidelines set forth by the Government of Alberta and Alberta Health Services, as it is not exempt from Order 05-2020, and will put a pause on all camp activities until the quarantine period is complete,” the statement continued. “We remain in constant communication with the appropriate health authorities, and we appreciate and thank Alberta Health Services for its dedication to ensuring the health and safety of our players, staff and the community at large.”

Once the positive tests were discovered on Monday, Hockey Canada made the decision to put all camp activities on pause, with all players, coaches and other management staff entering a two-week quarantine. All people involved with the operating of the world junior selection camp will undergo mandatory testing before coming out of the large-scale suspension.

Already having cancelled all activities on Monday and Tuesday following news of the positive tests, Hockey Canada attempted to isolate just the players/coaches who had been in contact with the positive cases, but with the dressing rooms, meeting rooms, gyms, benches and training facilities all being shared amongst the players, all participants were determined to be close contacts under Alberta’s current health order.

This news means that the team will not be able to be together again until December 7, just a few days before its scheduled departure for the NHL’s Edmonton hub-city ‘bubble’ to which the 2021 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship will be hosted from December 25 to January 5. Already down two coaches (close contacts of a prior Team Canada COVID-infected skater) the management team has some difficult work on its hands to prepare a roster for the this year’s tournament.

Highlighting the selection camp roster is two Manitobans and four others with ties to the local hockey scene within the province. 2020 NHL Entry Draft selections Seth Jarvis (13th overall, Carolina Hurricanes) and Daemon Hunt (65th overall, Minnesota Wild) of Manitoba are participants in the camp.

The Brandon Wheat Kings have seen two players attend camp (Braden Schneider, Ridly Greig), the Winnipeg ICE have team captain Peyton Krebs participating, while the Winnipeg Jets’ first round selection from this year’s draft, Cole Perfetti has also joined in the process. Five of the six players with ties to Manitoba were selected by NHL clubs earlier in October, while Krebs was taken by Kelly McCrimmon’s Vegas Golden Knights at last year’s event.

Full information on each player is listed below: 

Carter Brooks

Carter Brooks - Associate Editor of Game On Magazine - is a news writer and sports columnist situated in Winnipeg, MB. On top of reading and writing, his favourite pastimes include camping, car-modification projects and coaching hockey. Carter can be reached at carterbrooks1994@gmail.com.