Get Ready For Some Hockey!

February 8, 2020 was the last time I was in the broadcast booth at Wayne Fleming Arena alongside Kyleigh Palmer as we called the final game in the 2019-20 season for the Manitoba Bisons. The Alberta Pandas had defeated the Bisons 4-0 on that afternoon as they prepared for the Canada West Playoffs and, eventually, the U SPORTS National Championship. It's hard to imagine that it will have been some twenty months - 615 days to be exact! - when we take our places above the ice once more to call a Manitoba Bisons game, but we now know the who and the when for that next game as the 2021-22 schedule has been released!

If I told you that I had been axiously awaiting this day, you'd be right in calling me a liar because I have been dying to see the new schedule since Canada West announced the modified twenty-game schedule. With two new teams on the schedule, there was excitement to see when those teams might be visiting for the first time along with finding out who else would be making the trip to the Manitoba capital. Needless to say, we know thanks to the schedule released today!

The season opens on October 15 for all teams except Saskatchewan who get the bye in the first week with there being nine teams in the conference. Regina has the honour of visiting the MacEwan Griffins in that first weekend to welcome the Griffins to the circuit while UBC gets the first visit with their interprovincial rivals in Trinity Western on opening weekend.

The first battle between the expansion squads happens on November 26 as Trinity Western hosts MacEwan. Regina, Calgary, and Manitoba have no games in December this season as they have their bye weekends on December 3 and 4. And for the first time in conference history, the four Alberta teams will meet and crossover on one weekend as Calgary visits Alberta while Mount Royal visits MacEwan on Friday, November 5 before Mount Royal plays Alberta and Calgary plays MacEwan on Saturday, November 6! Outside of those schedule quirks, there are some key dates that I'm going to focus on for purely selfish reasons. In saying that, here is the home schedule for the Manitoba Bisons in 2021-22:

• October 15-16: Calgary Dinos (Opening Weekend)
• November 5-6: Regina Cougars
• November 12-13: Conference Bye
• November 26-27: Alberta Pandas
• December 3-4: First-Half Bye Week
• January 21-22: Trinity Western Spartans
• February 11-12: Saskatchewan Huskies (Last Games of Season)
• February 18-19: Second-Half Bye Week

I will say that I'm not particularly excited about what amounts to two games every two weeks, but c'est la vie with this modified schedule. Seeing good teams like the Calgary Dinos, Alberta Pandas, and Saskatchewan Huskies coming in will be worth the price of admission, and having both Regina and Trinity Western visit will give Manitoba ample opportunities to see how they measure up to those squads. Seeing Trinity Western here for the first time in program history is exciting, and I'm looking forward to talking about a lot of "firsts" that weekend.

Because I'm not particularly excited about the schedule, I think I'm going to modify the coverage for the Bisons this season. Namely, I think I'm going to make a road trip or two to provide additional coverage and watch and call more hockey! The road trips will likely be the two ventures into Saskatchewan on October 29 and 30 to visit the Huskies and on February 4 and 5 to visit the Cougars. More live hockey is never a bad thing, and we do have mobile broadcast units that will allow us to send the signal back to Manitoba!

If the road trips are due to happen, I'll make an annoucement for them as we near the season. As it stands for now, start organizing your calendar because there are ten nights where you're booked and expected for an appointment at Wayne Fleming Arena for a dose of hockey action! Vaccinations will be key if fans are going to be in the stands, so get that dose before coming to Wayne Fleming Arena for all the hockey goodness you can enjoy in one night!

Canada West hockey is back. It's been a long, long time since I could say that.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!