Good news for Battlefords North Stars fans: their bid to repeat as SJHL Canalta Cup champions will resume this week 鈥�- on PlayStation4.
The SJHL has announced it is inputting its teams and rosters, along with actual team and player statistics, into NHL 2020. The simulated Canalta Cup playoffs will pick up right where they left off when games were suspended on March 12.
The simulation is set to begin Thursday, April 23 with game five of La Ronge vs. Yorkton at 7 p.m., with live broadcasters calling the play-by-play on the Twitch platform.
Game five featuring the North Stars hosting the Nipawin Hawks will happen April 24 at 7 p.m. and game six of that series, if necessary, would go April 26 at 3 p.m. that day.
To stream the games you can go to twitch.com/sjhlhockey . More details are posted on the SJHL website www.sjhl.ca.
鈥淭he motivation for this venture is to provide SJHL fans, and hockey fans in general, with the ability to watch the game simulations and provide entertainment during these uncertain times,鈥� the league stated in a news release.
鈥淕iven the restrictions of self-isolation, it is hoped that these game simulations will bring people and communities together in a time where the population is feeling disconnected. So join us, from wherever you might be, as we aim to pull the global hockey community closer together than it鈥檚 ever been鈥� but, buckle up, because we鈥檙e getting set to drop the puck on a whole new game."
In response to suggestions on social media that the actual Canalta Cup would be awarded based on the simulation, the SJHL president Bill Chow issued a clarification on Wednesday: "We would like to clarify that the actual Canalta Cup will not be presented at the conclusion of the SJHL playoff simulation. It will be a virtual championship."
"This isn鈥檛 the 2020 SJHL Championship, as it was intended. This is a way to keep hockey in our lives, when literally all other options have been exhausted. We ask that our fans keep this in perspective and realize that we hope people enjoy the virtual playoffs for what they are and to have some fun with the virtual playoffs."
听
