The Alberta Junior Hockey League today unveiled the schedule for the 2019 Exhibition Season and 2019-20 Regular Season. The league will open its 56th season with a 46-game exhibition schedule prior to AJHL Opening Weekend on September 13th-15th, 2019.
?The AJHL reached a five-year high in attendance during the 2018-19 season, which is a credit to the efforts our teams have made to enhance the game day experience and the commitment of our coaches to ice competitive and entertaining teams,? said AJHL Commissioner Ryan Bartoshyk. ?We look forwarding to building on this momentum in the upcoming season as our teams continue to advance both on and off the ice.?
The 2019 AJHL Exhibition Season will begin on Friday, August 23rd, and will include 10 interleague games against CJHL opponents, as well as 10 games outside of AJHL communities. The excitement of AJHL pre-season action will be extended to DeWinton, Stettler, Airdrie, Westlock and Cochrane in 2019.
The 2019-20 regular season, which will include 15 teams and unbalanced divisions with the absence of the Calgary Mustangs, runs from September 13th, 2019 to February 27th, 2020. The opening month of the regular season will conclude with the 13th Annual AJHL Showcase in Camrose, Alberta from September 26th ? 28th, 2019. Pre-Registration for the scouting community is now available at AJHL.ca and event details including tickets and volunteer opportunities will be released shortly.
Five AJHL Teams have partnered with local schools to host ?Hooky Games? this Fall. The Drumheller Dragons and Lloydminster Bobcats have planned a home and home series with afternoon Hooky Games in October. The Brooks Bandits and Camrose Kodiaks both host the Calgary Canucks for Hooky Games in October, and the Sherwood Park Crusaders will welcome schools for the day in a home game versus Lloydminster in November.
The Canmore Eagles will continue a tradition of hosting games in Banff, AB. The Eagles start the new season with games at Banff Recreation Centre while awaiting the completion of renovations at the Canmore Recreation Centre. The Lloydminster Bobcats will also take AJHL hockey to a new community on December 6th in a game versus the visiting Fort McMurray Oil Barons in of Onion Lake, SK.
The Grande Prairie Storm are thrilled to host an exhibition contest on December 5th against the Czech Republic Junior team in advance of the 2019 World Junior A Challenge. The World Junior A Challenge ? a showcase of Canadian and international talent ? will once again feature a five-team format when Dawson Creek, BC hosts the event from December 7th-15th, 2019.
AJHL teams are inviting fans to spend the holidays together with several games scheduled on holidays dates throughout the season. The Brooks Bandits and Sherwood Park Crusaders will both host games on Thanksgiving Monday and Remembrance Day. The Camrose Kodiaks will ring in 2020 with a New Year?s Eve game, and the Okotoks Oilers will celebrate 2020 with a home game on New Years Day! The AJHL will also host five games on Family Day in February 2020!
The 2020 Inter Pipeline AJHL Playoffs start on Sunday, March 1st with a new opening round format:
? North Division – Top 7 teams qualify (1st place receives a Bye, 2 vs 7, 3 vs 6, 4 vs 5)
? South Division – Top 6 teams qualify (1st & 2nd place receive a Bye, 3 vs 6, 4 vs 5)
The Viterra AJHL South Division and Viterra AJHL North Division will playoff to determine a divisional champion at the conclusion of Round Three. The North Division Champion and the South Division Champion will then compete in the Inter Pipeline Cup Final.
The AJHL Champion advances to a best-of-seven series versus the BCHL Champion for the right to represent the Pacific region at the National Junior A Championship. The best-of-seven series begins in the BCHL on April 24th & 25th, 2020. The 2020 National Junior A Championship will take place from May 9th-17th, 2020 in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba.
A complete League Schedule is now available on the AJHL Website AJHL.ca. The AJHL schedule can be exported to calendars and mobile devices through the Schedule Page on the AJHL website.
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