SJHL not looking to expand further outside Sask. following major shakeup with Alberta, B.C.

The commissioner of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL) is hopeful a major shake up in Alberta’s junior ‘A’ league will have minimal effect in Saskatchewan.

Last weekend the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) announced it had agreed to terms with five teams from the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL) to jump ship next season.

In March of 2021, the BCHL withdrew its membership from the umbrella of the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL) to become an independent Junior ‘A’ league.

SJHL commissioner Kyle McIntyre told CTV Morning Live people are wondering what the move could mean for the league he oversees.

“We’ve been keeping an eye on it,” McIntyre said. “We’re not sure what the impact is going to be, obviously you’re always concerned when five quality programs are moving to another league, we’re wondering about the impact that’ll have on Alberta and certainly our thoughts go out to the players and the teams involved.”

When asked if the move could open the door to a more interprovincial approach to Junior ‘A’ leagues in Western Canada, McIntyre said league officials are happy with the current competitive balance in the SJHL.

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“We believe that we have a real good league and we’re really proud of our Saskatchewan content and we are proud with how we’ve grown our brand, right now we are not really looking westward or eastward in terms of expanding our league,” McIntyre said.

Out-of-province teams are not totally unprecedented in the SJHL. The Flin Flon Bombers play their home games in Manitoba, and the league once included the Lloydminster Lancers before the franchise moved to the AJHL in 1988, operating today as the Lloydminster Bobcats.

From 1987 to 1997, the SJHL even had a team based out of Minot, North Dakota, but the league has operated with the same 12 teams since the Lebret Eagles folded in 2001. That’s not a competitive formula the commissioner wants to upheave unnecessarily.

“We think we have a really good thing going on in the SJHL and we’re kind of selfish and we don’t want to expand that,” McIntyre said.

The five Alberta teams that agreed to join the BCHL next season are the Brooks Bandits, Blackfalds Bulldogs, Okotoks Oilers, Sherwood Park Crusaders and Spruce Grove Saints.

Since the announcement, the AJHL has cancelled all games between the five teams and the 11 other clubs in the league.

The CJHL is the governing body of nine Junior ‘A’ leagues in Canada and the U.S. including the SJHL. The CJHL season culminates with the Centennial Cup in late spring, featuring the champions of all nine leagues and the host community’s team.

-- With files from Cole Davenport.