COVID’s impact on rinks across Saskatchewan differ in trying year on the ice

It wasn’t the dream season many were hopeful for in Saskatchewan rinks, whether in small towns or in urban centres.

In the fall, the plants were turned on at the winter mainstays for many. Other rinks, such as Edam’s Community Centre, didn’t have to turn on a plant.

Instead, that community had to wait a little bit longer before its rink could become functional, as the natural ice was delayed due to the mild start to the winter. Martin Smith, the president of the community centre, said what started off as hope quickly turned into a series of challenges due to COVID-19.

“It hit us tremendously. Normally you would have rentals for a number of different things,” he said, pointing to weddings and large group events at the facility, along with the regular hockey draw. “Those were non-existent.

“We had to be a little bit creative. We knew everybody was missing rink food … We put on six takeout nights at the arena and we were able to raise enough money that we could pay things such as power bills and rink attendant wages.”

That creativity turned into a series of fundraisers that also included a snowmobile derby, along with a silent auction. In addition to the six takeout nights, Smith estimated the town brought in around $13,000. He added it wasn’t a matter of choice; those typical fundraisers just weren’t able to go due to the COVID restrictions.

The entire season at the Edam rink lasted just one game, according to rink manager Chantelle Fudge.

“We only had one home game before everything got shut down. So we invested all the money to put it in basically for one game … It was a U11 game, so not a big moneymaker,” she added.

The town didn’t put ice in its curling rink either in 2020-21. More revenue ended up being lost at the community centre. Luckily, the entire rink food drive-through was able to clean out the kitchen stock bought prior to the season’s start.

As for the future of the arena in Edam, the fundraisers usually go to upkeep on the facility. Now, upgrades will need to be delayed, according to Smith.

“Us, along with many, many rinks across the province — we’re all in the same boat. It would be devastating to have a second season in a row (without) normalcy,” he said. “It’s not just Edam.”

Smith’s right. Small-town rinks struggled through the season. With upgrades to cleaning mechanisms and protocols at the beginning to the eventual shutdown of any competitive games throughout minor and senior hockey in November, there were obstacles around every corner.

Down in the south-central region, those thoughts were echoed by Scott Temple, the president of Balcarres Minor Hockey.

“Like most rinks, we put our ice in on schedule … We were ramping up for a hockey season,” he said. “We had a full slate of teams in town here, so our ice schedule was full (with) game times (and) practice times. Once the games came to a halt, we went to the eight-person practices (as required under public health orders).

“It was tough on the rink. We lost last March and now we lost this March. Those are probably two of our busiest months (with) playoffs (and) year-end tournaments. For the most part, our rink is just like any other small town; it’s the busiest building in town during the winter.”

Temple did add the financial strains of relying on a canteen weren’t felt in the community of around 500. It leases out its canteen annually to an individual who runs a restaurant attached to the rink and also handles the food for players, family members, coaches, officials and staff in the building. He added the financial strains affected more than just the rink itself.

“We did miss out on rentals from city teams. Smaller communities that have natural ice come and rent the rink for tournaments. It’s not just the lost revenues for the rink. When those out-of-town teams come in for tournaments, they’re in our community (and) they’re spending money in our community,” he said.

Kelly McClintock, the general manager of the Saskatchewan Hockey Association, said COVID affected small towns more than urban centres because they’re all operated in different ways.

“Depending on how they’re operated, this season has really had — in our opinion — a negative impact,” he said.

“There (are) communities that are making between $40,000 and $50,000 in net profit off their canteen over the winter. This year, they experienced none of that.”

The moneymakers, like Temple said, lie with games and tournaments, according to McClintock. With restrictions in place, that put limits on what many could and could not do from fundraising to bringing people into the facility to the actual lack of gameplay on the ice. So just how rough a shape are some of these communities?

“I haven’t heard of any community where a rink might not open (in the future),” McClintock said Wednesday.

“I think that we’re all a hardy bunch in Saskatchewan, so I really think that (there will be) communities and people in communities who band together and do fundraising when we can start doing fundraising and make sure that rinks are open. Because rinks are kind of the bloodline and life of smaller communities.”

McClintock added he doesn’t foresee a dropoff in membership for the upcoming season, yet it did decline by six per cent for 2020-21.

As minor hockey associations try to keep fees lower, a balance must be found. That includes facilities possibly owing their communities money, working at more unique fundraisers or even having to look for more money from the parents.

The financial struggles weren’t just felt in these rural settings, though. According to the City of Saskatoon’s Andrew Roberts, revenues were affected in the big cities too.

“We were down in revenues of not quite 20 per cent — about 19 per cent from budget in 2020. (It’s) a little premature to project the overall impact for 2021 yet, but we were, as expected, a little bit below budget of the first couple months of 2021,” the director of recreation and community development said.

That loss of 19 per cent translated to around $440,000. The revenues were supposed to be over $2.3 million; instead, they ended up at $1.9 million. At the same time, no layoffs were needed, according to Roberts. Costs were able to be cut also, with savings of around $200,000.

Although the strain and stress were felt inside all four of Saskatchewan’s borders, the thought of the rinks within the small towns closing isn’t a welcome one for any.

“Even if you don’t have the kid or the grandkid or anyone playing, people would go down to the rink and just watch the minor hockey teams play,” Temple said of Balcarres’ aptly named ‘Polar Dome.’ “We’ve been getting good attendance (at senior games) too. And people in town just miss getting out … It was tough.”

Another issue Temple struggled with during the shutdown in November was around the target on the backs of what he believed ended up with minor hockey.

“We’ve done what we were told to do and we followed the rules, (so) it was tough for people to understand why we were getting singled out,” he said. “These kids wanted to stay on the ice. We made a few tweaks to our protocols … After that, it was basically practices every day.

“It was frustrating being singled out as the group supposed to be a super-spreader when there were very few cases linked to minor hockey.”

Rinks across the province have now been shut down for the warmer months. It’s typical around this time, with some usually staying open a bit later to get in those final playoff, provincial and tournament games.

But as the plants are shut off and the natural ice disappears, everyone around the game seems to be looking towards the future and another opportunity to get the game off the ground, back on the ice and the hope of the return of normalcy.