The rains have washed away inter-conference play in the B.C. Hockey League.
The highway situation continues to play havoc with the BCHL season as the road closures, mostly in the Interior, have meant the cancellation of all remaining out-of-conference games in the 2021-22 season.
The Victoria Grizzlies schedule was front-loaded with games against teams in the Interior Conference, both home and away, so the Grizzlies will have only one game affected by the cancellation of inter-conference play, a Feb. 11 date in which the Merritt Centennials were due to visit The Q Centre.
The postponed games will be made up with games within the Coastal and Interior Conferences. Even at that, numerous games between Interior Conference teams have also been postponed. The league said it will continue to revise the schedule in the coming weeks to make up postponed games later in the season.
The Grizzlies (11-9) will try to halt a three-game slide when they host the Surrey Eagles (8-9) tonight and Chilliwack Chiefs (9-6) on Saturday night at The Q Centre. Tonight’s game is the Grizzlies’ annual Teddy Bear Toss game so the team is asking all fans to bring a stuffed animal to the game and throw them on the ice after the Grizzlies’ first goal.
The Grizzlies will have three key forwards back on the ice tonight. Captain Ellis Rickwood returns from a one-game suspension while star rookie Matthew Wood is back from earning a silver medal at the Capital City Challenge, which featured the top Canadian U-17 players eligible for the 2023 NHL draft. And Connor Eddy is expected back after missing several games due to injury.
