As the local high school fall sports season winds to its conclusion next week, focus is shifting toward a potential winter campaign. While the MIAA waits on guidance from the state regarding modifications for winter sports, some schools throughout the Commonwealth have already begun making decisions about how their respective athletic departments will operate come next month.
Most notably in Western Mass., all three Berkshire County ice hockey programs have announced they won’t be participating in competitions this winter. While Wahconah announced last month that it wouldn’t be fielding an ice hockey team this winter, Mount Everett and Drury followed suit this week. According to the Berkshire Eagle, there will be no high school hockey in that county this winter.
Both Drury and Mount Everett were members of the Wright Division, which also includes the Greenfield hockey program. Greenfield, which operates as a co-op with seven other schools (Turners Falls, Franklin Tech, Athol, Mahar, Frontier, Pioneer, Smith Academy), has not yet determined its winter season fate, though GHS Athletic Director Mike Kuchieski said Thursday that he’s hopeful the program can have some semblance of a season. Greenfield won its first-ever state title a year ago, knocking off Lunenburg in the MIAA Div. 3A final.
Franklin County athletic directors are expected to meet today about the upcoming winter season. Back in August, the group voted to hold regional games only in the sports of field hockey, golf and cross country, while postponing football, soccer and cheering until the “Fall II” season. The same Franklin County “bubble” wouldn’t be possible with hockey however, as just one team represents the entire county.
“We’re planning on playing in the Western Mass. bubble and hopefully guidelines allow us to do that,” Kuchieski said. “As of now, we have to wait until the powers that be make decisions and then we move accordingly.”
Travel was considered one of the main issues behind Drury’s decision to cancel its hockey season. AD Dave Racette wrote in a letter to members of his community that securing travel approval from the schools in his co-op (Mount Greylock, McCann Tech and Hoosac Valley) across county lines was unlikely.
“With travel to the Pioneer Valley prohibited by several schools in our co-op agreement and the unlikelihood of finding Pioneer Valley teams willing to schedule out-of-county games, even if restrictions were lifted,” Racette wrote, “we have come to the difficult decision to cancel Drury hockey for the upcoming 2020-21 season.”
The schools in the Greenfield co-op would likely need to approve travel measures for the Green Wave, as the situation would differ from other potential winter sports like basketball, which could feasibly be conducted within Franklin County and North Quabbin Region boundaries.
Rink access presents another challenge for Western Mass. ice hockey programs. Several area programs play out of rinks that have been closed to the public for some time, particularly on college and prep school campuses. UMass’ Mullins Center Practice Rink, Orr Rink on the campus of Amherst College, and Lossone Rink on the campus of Williston-Northampton School in Easthampton are unlikely to be available for high school games and practices this winter, significantly limiting options for area programs. Those rinks represent home ice locations for potential Greenfield opponents like Belchertown, Amherst and Easthampton.
Greenfield’s Collins-Moylan Arena, operated by FMC Ice Sports, is expected to reopen this weekend after closing due to the state’s two-week mandate requiring all rinks in the Commonwealth to shut down while allowing for new modifications and safety measures to be implemented. FMC also operates Fitzpatrick Arena in Holyoke and Smead Arena in Springfield, and if all goes according to plan, all three venues would be available come the winter season. Westfield’s Amelia Park Arena is another potential option for high school games this winter, as the rink currently hosts both the Westfield and Southwick hockey programs, while Olympia Ice Center in West Springfield is another potential option.
Mount Everett AD Jason King told the Eagle that rink availability was a major factor in canceling his school’s season. The program, which operates a co-op that also includes Monument Mountain, Lee and Lenox, played its home games at the Berkshire School — a co-ed prep boarding instutution.
“They’re a closed campus at the moment,” King said. “I had been talking with our youth program, and they’re going to combine with the Berkshire Bruins this year, so they’re going to be up in Pittsfield playing this year. There are a lot of different factors. It wasn’t just one thing.”
Kuchieski said he hopes the picture will come into focus over the next few weeks. As of now, the MIAA has set a Nov. 30 start date for winter sports, though new youth and high school winter sport guidelines from the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA) are expected at any time. That guidance could potentially impact that starting date.
“Do I want everything to happen tomorrow? Of course. Is that a possibility? No,” Kuchieski offered. “We just have to be patient and try and handle everything as it comes. I can’t make any guesses. That’s not fair to anyone.”