2021-22 Canadian Junior season

This is the '''2021-22 Canadian Junior hockey season.

Lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic
As of the early September start of training camps and games, the United States government is keeping the border closed coming into the United States and it may be in place until early 2022 as a spike in the number of COVID-19 cases are hitting both nations. This fourth wave is due to a variant strain of the virus which has gone on despite a large percentage (and growing) of the population of both countries being fully vaccinated. The border is closed to land travel but there is a loophole for air travel. This will change in in November 2021 allowing only fully vaccinated people (with proof of vaccination) to enter the United States.

Border Closure Issues
Going into the 2021-22 season, fifteen American teams were originally planned to play in the junior leagues of Canada. The impact of the closure has had a varying degree of impact ranging from a reduced number of opponents to play against, some teams were forced to opt out of playing in 2020-21 due to the border issues and even 2021-22, some of their leagues cancelled their 2020-21 season all together, or even in one case the team being put out of business after facing the reality of not being able to play. The only US-based teams in any of the leagues that were able to play were the five teams that make up the Western Hockey League's U.S. Division as they played a schedule among themselves as was the case with each of the league's four divisions, which had a minor modification to have all the Alberta teams in one division and the same with the teams from British Columbia. The teams from Manitoba and Saskatchewan were put into one division (this division used a bubble environment to get in many of their games early in the season).


 * The Buffalo Jr. Sabres of the Ontario Junior Hockey League are forced to sit out the 2021-22 season due to the COVID-19 related restrictions and border crossings between Canada and the United States after sitting out the eventually cancelled 2020-21 season.


 * The Superior International Junior Hockey League plans on the return of the two United States based teams as part of a balanced league schedule which could easily be modified if they are unable to participate. The league was planning on having its annual showcase event February 8-10, 2022 in Spooner, Wisconsin. The league schedule also included back to back games against the same teams to cut down on the amount of travel. The Thief River Falls Norskies and the Wisconsin Lumberjacks would open the season playing the first two weekends against each other in the hopes of the border reopening.


 * The Buffalo Regals of the Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League "resigned from their participation in the league" when the league schedule was released for the 2021-22 season. and other sources indicating that the franchise had folded.


 * The American based teams in the Western Hockey League (five teams) and Ontario Hockey League (three teams) were scheduling mostly their fellow American teams for the first months of the season and the cross border games were kept at a minimum so that they could easily be rescheduled if needed.


 * On August 18, 2021 it was announced that the Spokane Braves were sitting out the 2021-22 KIJHL season due to the uncertainty over the status of the Canada-US border. The team has reaffirmed its' commitment to the league for the 2022-23 season.


 * The Wenatchee Wild who are the lone American team in the British Columbia Hockey League are listed on the league schedule as of late August. When the schedule was released the team would be playing roughly the first quarter of the season playing road games. In early September the team would then flip home games or push back dates for home games. The team is attempting to have teams fly in for games. On October 1st, the league would modify the schedule and have teams fly into the US and drive back home as the border is open going into Canada by ground but not the other way around. Traveling players would have to provide a negative test to cross either way and four home dates involving the Wild will not be played.


 * The Soo Eagles, the lone American team in the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League, are planning on playing home games out of their home rink in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan but have a fall back plan of playing out of the arena in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. But in the first few weeks of the season they would play a home and home series against other teams in the league in the opponents home rink.


 * The Abbotsford, British Columbia based Vancouver Devils of the Western States Hockey League were due to be the only Canadian team in the league's Northwest Division for 2021-22 but would end up having to sit out due to border related issues involving playing in that division and that the travel involved in playing in the Provincial Division would not have been economically feasible for all teams involved.

Omicron Variant Spread
Due to a spike in the number of cases of COVID-19 including daily records in almost all of Eastern Canada just prior to the Christmas holiday break period many eastern provinces issued new restrictions shutting down organized team sports and other social gatherings in an effort to reduce the spread of the virus.

Many leagues in Canada traditionally have a built in break to their schedules for the most of the last two weeks of December and first week of January for the Christmas, Boxing Day and New Year's holidays as well as the Junior World Championships which traditionally starts December 26th and runs through about January 5th. Players usually return home for this break which is likely to lead to another major increase in the number of cases on teams when players return.

The province of Nova Scotia issued orders on December 21st that shut down ice hockey game in the province at the Junior B, Junior C, U-18 and minor levels in the province. On December 21st the QMJHL pushed back the restart of the season after the Christmas break, which began after games of December 18, from December 28th to January 7th as a result in the surging COVID-19 infection rates across Eastern Canada. The Maritime Junior A Hockey League had already issued a statement on December 15th saying that games in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia would be postponed until from December 18th to January 2nd (later extended to January 5th and then to January 20th . Two games were scheduled in PEI with the December 18th games being played and a December 30th game being reviewed (later cancelled). Public Health Nova Scotia would issue a new statement on January 5th that extended the postponements to at least February 1st.

The province of Newfoundland and Labrador issued orders moving to Alert Level 3 which meant the end of organized team sport competition in the province until at least mid-January.

Hockey PEI and Hockey Newfoundland and Labrador would both issue statements on January 3rd and 4th respectively indicating that bans in that province were extended to at least January 17th.

The Ligue de Hockey Junior AAA Quebec announced on December 21st that the league would be shutting down until January 12th. This was as a result of the provincial government issuing new restrictions that would shut down hockey in the province. This would shut down all leagues in the province. The Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League had already been forced to play a home game with no fans in attendance prior to the league shutting down operations for an extended Christmas break due to the surge in cases across the league.

The Central Canada Hockey League would announce on December 16th that games were cancelled for December 16th and 17th. The following day that shutdown was shut down until at least January 1st subject to further review.

The Ontario Junior Hockey League would announce the cancellation of its All-Star Celebration which was scheduled to be held January 14th and 15th in Collingwood.

On December 21st the Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League would announce the cancelation of their Future Stars/Top Prospects event scheduled for December 28th.

On December 22nd the British Columbia Hockey League which had its schedule severely disrupted by flooding that had hit the province during the fall had redone its schedule to include only in-division games to alleviate weather and COVID-19 related travel issues as much as possible.

On December 26th the Ontario Hockey League announce the next three regular season games for the Sarnia Sting would be postponed. On December 23rd the league would also cancel a December 28th game with the Oshawa Generals visiting the Ottawa 67's due to COVID-19 protocols involving the 67's The Niagara IceDogs, Flint Firebirds , Owen Sound Attack , Kingston Frontenacs , and Erie Otters all were shutdown by the league earlier in the month of December. The Sudbury Wolves were shutdown on November 30th. These cancellations would cause more than 20 games to have to be rescheduled from December 1st to January 2nd. On December 28th the league postponed the games of the Barrie Colts and Peterborough Petes. The Oshawa Generals would have 2 games cancelled by the league on December 29th. The Windsor Spitfires would have games cancelled December 30 & 31. In short order the Kitchener Rangers, Guelph Storm Niagara IceDogs , and London Knights would all be added to cancellations upon return from the Christmas break.

On December 28th the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League announce the cancellation of four games due to COVID related issues among four teams involved in two home and home series over the December 31-January 1 timeframe.

The Alberta Junior Hockey League announced on December 29th that two games involving the Fort McMurray Oil Barons would be cancelled due to COVID related issues.

On December 29th the 2022 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships are cancelled amid three games having to be forfeited due to positive tests among several teams.

On January 4th the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League announced three week pause in the league schedule. The Ontario Junior Hockey League would make the same announcement the same day. As would the Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League.

Between January 6th and 7th the Western Hockey League suspended all activities of 15 out of 22 teams in the league.

Due to the restrictions in place in the province of Ontario the Superior International Junior Hockey League put the Ontario based teams on a pause ontil January 28th. The two U.S. based teams would be scheduled for four games between each other over January 11th to 15th period while the rest of the league was idle.

Major Junior

 * 2021-22 OHL season
 * 2021-22 QMJHL season
 * 2021-22 WHL season

Junior A

 * 2021-22 AJHL season
 * 2021-22 CCHL season
 * 2021-22 MJAHL season
 * 2021-22 MJHL season
 * 2021-22 NOJHL season
 * 2021-22 OJHL season
 * 2021-22 QJHL season
 * 2021-22 SIJHL season
 * 2021-22 SJHL season

British Columbia Hockey League withdraws from CJHL
The British Columbia Hockey League announced in March of 2021 that it was withdrawing from the Canadian Junior Hockey League. This means that the league will no longer be part of the Canadian Junior A classification. The league remains a member of BC Hockey and Hockey Canada. The full impact of the decision is not yet known but the league, its' players, and teams will no longer be eligible to compete for the Centennial Cup or in the World Junior A Challenge or the CJHL Prospects Game. For at least the 2021-22 season, the playoff champion of the Alberta Junior Hockey League playoffs will directly advance to the Centennial Cup.

Junior B
The Rive-Nord Junior AA Hockey League is not playing this year.


 * 2021-22 CalJHL season
 * 2021-22 CAJAAHL season
 * 2021-22 CapJHL season
 * 2021-22 CJAAHL season
 * 2021-22 CRJHL season
 * 2021-22 EOJHL season
 * 2021-22 GOJHL season
 * 2021-22 HJBHL season
 * 2021-22 IJHL season
 * 2021-22 KJHL season
 * 2021-22 KIJHL season
 * 2021-22 LJHL season
 * 2021-22 MJAAHL season
 * 2021-22 NBJHL season
 * 2021-22 NEAJBHL season
 * 2021-22 NWJHL season
 * 2021-22 NSJHL season
 * 2021-22 PacJHL season
 * 2021-22 PJHL season
 * 2021-22 SJJHL season
 * 2021-22 SLSJJAAHL season
 * 2021-22 VIJHL season

Junior C

 * 2021-22 BFJAHL season
 * 2021-22 CalJCHL season
 * 2021-22 HTJHL season
 * 2021-22 LJAHL season
 * 2021-22 MaurJAHL season
 * 2021-22 MontJAHL season
 * 2021-22 NCJHL season
 * 2021-22 NJHL season
 * 2021-22 NSRJHL season
 * 2021-22 OSFJAHL season
 * 2021-22 PEIJHL season
 * 2021-22 ProvJHL season
 * 2021-22 QVJCHL season
 * 2021-22 RNJAHL season

Junior D

 * 2021-22 LJBHL season
 * 2021-22 MaurJBHL season
 * 2021-22 MontJBHL season
 * 2021-22 OSFJBHL season
 * 2021-22 RNJBHL season

Other Junior
The Ontario Junior A Hockey Super League was formed with the intent of beginning play with the 2020-21 season. Due to a large spike in COVID-19 cases in Canada after Thanksgiving, the province of Ontario put restrictions in place which made it impossible to conduct a season of any form. The league was setting its sights on starting with the 2021-22 season. The league's website is inactive and no updates have appeared on league and team face book pages since then.

The six active members of the Western States Hockey League vote to withdraw from the league in early January and form the Can-Am Junior Hockey League.


 * 2021-22 BCHL season
 * 2021-22 MMJHL season
 * 2021-22 CAJHL season

Independent

 * 2021-22 GMJHL season

AAU/United Hockey Union

 * 2021-22 CPJHL season  Season suspended October 18th
 * 2021-22 WSHL Season  league members withdraw in early January to form Can-Am Junior Hockey League

National

 * 2022 Memorial Cup - National Major Junior 🇨🇦
 * 2022 Centennial Cup - National Junior A 🇨🇦

Regional
The Doyle Cup is removed from the regional qualifying tournaments for the 2021-22 season as a result of the British Columbia Hockey League withdrawing from the Canadian Junior Hockey League. The winner of the Alberta Junior Hockey League playoffs will advance directly to the Centennial Cup.


 * 2022 Fred Page Cup - Eastern Junior A
 * 2022 Anavet Cup - Western Junior A (MB-SK)
 * 2022 Keystone Cup - Western Junior B
 * 2022 Don Johnson Memorial Cup - Maritime Junior B
 * 2022 Maritime-Hockey North Junior C Championships - Maritime/Nunavut Junior C

Provincial

 * 2022 Dudley Hewitt Cup - Central Junior A
 * 2022 Coupe Dodge -Quebec Junior B
 * 2022 Cyclone Taylor Cup - British Columbia Junior B
 * 2022 Russ Barnes Trophy - Alberta Junior B
 * 2022 Alberta Junior C Playoffs

The Baldy Northcott Trophy (Manitoba Junior B championship) is traditionally contested for when there is more than one Junior B league in the province. But it was not awarded since 2018 as the two leagues involved had split and it was far from amicable and legal issues remain to be resolved.