COVID leaves another Truro Bearcats’ season without an ending

For the second year in a row, instead of a win or loss bringing the Truro Jr. A Bearcats’ season to an end, COVID has punched the final buzzer.

The latest imposed provincewide COVID restrictions were too much to bear for the team and their counterparts in the Maritime Hockey League’s Eastlink South Division, and all eight clubs decided to end their season. The division includes the other Nova Scotia teams as well as Summerside.

Three North Division teams, Fredericton, Campbellton and Miramichi, are continuing on, while Grand Falls and Edmundston have also ended their seasons.

“Stu (Rath, team owner) met with the Board of Governors last night (April 27) by conference call, then I met with our players and Shawn (Evans, head coach and GM),” team President Dave Higgins said of the sequence of events.

“When you’re in a league, not everyone is going to agree on every decision that is made,” Evans said. “But every decision that was made, at that time, was done for what was best.”

“I think we did everything that was possible,” Higgins agreed, adding he appreciated all the support from Bearcats’ fans, especially during a year of stops-and-starts.

“It wasn’t feasible for any team to take a two or three week hiatus where we might still not know the results. If it was worse, it could be another two weeks or whenever.”

Uncertainty was a big part of the decision, as was the fact that with arenas shutdown, and restrictions greatly limiting activities, there was little to occupy the players’ time.

“You just couldn’t have the players sit around this long with nothing to do,” Higgins said. “It would be one thing if we could have practiced and, at least, stayed on the ice, but when you can’t even practice, it wasn’t feasible to keep it going that long.

“There is already a lot of down time in hockey which can be kind of fun, but if you’re not practicing or playing, then what do you do with the other hours in the day? There are only so many video games you can play. It’s tough on kids to have that much time on their hands, especially with so many restrictions in place.”

Higgins and Evans talked about the league and individual teams doing everything they could to get the season in.

Both men noted the hardest part is seeing the graduating players’ careers end without a conclusion. It was the same scenario last year when that group included Higgins’s son Ben – Bearcat captain and star forward.

“When you’re in a league, not everyone is going to agree on every decision that is made,” Evans said. “But every decision that was made, at that time, was done for what was best.”

“I think we did everything that was possible,” Higgins agreed, adding he appreciated all the support from Bearcats’ fans, especially during a year of stops-and-starts.

Both men noted the hardest part is seeing the graduating players’ careers end without a conclusion. It was the same scenario last year when that group included Higgins’s son Ben – Bearcat captain and star forward.

“Everybody wants a finality to the season, and we had one of those teams that could have had some success in the playoffs,” Evans said. “Us and others, but certainly we had an opportunity.”

Higgins talked in particular about Truro’s own Alec Macdonald.

“I feel sorry for a kid like Alec. With our team for four years, he came up through minor hockey in Truro, played more than 100 games with our team but never a playoff game,” Higgins said of the goaltender.

“A lot of people don’t know that. He didn’t really become the starter until last year and there were no playoffs last year, now no playoffs again this year. That’s a tough way to end your career, playing that many games and not being able to play in a playoff game.”

Macdonald said he loved playing for his hometown team, especially in their home rink the Rath Eastlink Community Centre.

“Growing up, we had billets from the Bearcats and I would be one of the kids running to the tunnel to give high-fives to the guys, so it all came fullcircle,” Macdonald said. “Now I was the one giving the highfives to the little kids, coming on and off the ice. It’s pretty cool to think about it.”

Macdonald described Evans as the best coach he ever had, adding all the team’s staff were very good to him over his time. He also expressed appreciation for the fans.

“They have always had my back for sure,” he said. “It sucks we couldn’t have had more fans out there this year, I was really hoping we could.”

Higgins and Evan said many of the players have already picked up their gear and are headed home.