Playoff structure, regular schedule, among AJHL revamp announcement

The changes range from subtle to significant as the Alberta Junior Hockey League announced a number of measures heading into next season. 

Fewer games, more competitive playoff races. These are just some of the differences fans will see when the puck drops for the next season for the Bonnyville Pontiacs and the AJHL.

On Monday, the league announced that the 12-team league will play a 54-game schedule, with a schedule more focused again on divisional play, where there are six teams in the North and South.

The top-4 clubs in each division will make the post-season, a far cry from the previous format where only the bottom team in each division, or the worst two overall, missed the post-season.

Teams can also be more veteran heavy. Rosters will now be allowed to feature a maximum of eight 20-year-olds, expanding from the previous six.

The lone expansion team confirmed, the Devon Xtreme, will play in the North, while the Drayton Valley Thunder will shuffle to the South.

“The team is excited to be moving forward after a long and drawn out process trying to figure out the path of the AJHL,” associate general manager Neil Langridge told Lakeland Connect when asked about the changes. 

Many Junior A hockey fans across the province have been curious about what the future holds for the league with the tumultuous start to 2024.

They look to leave behind the drama of five of the biggest franchises leaving mid-season to pursue the BCHL — after having their games against the other 11 teams cancelled once news leaked they were accepted into the BCHL for the next season.

These changes are seen as good for the Bonnyville Pontiacs, said Langridge, who believes the playoff format and shortened schedule length are a boost.

The fewer games are coupled with an extension of actual season time. For example, in year’s past the last games of the regular schedule would conclude on the final weekend of March. Now, two more weeks have been added.

“I think that’s going to make the regular season mean a lot more and create a lot of excitement going through the 54 games. For us, that was a request we were looking at, even when we had 16 teams. Sixty-two games last year was just too much,” said Langridge. 

“We had two weeks where we had four days of practice. Now we’re looking at the potential schedule this year where it’s ten….that’s a huge bonus for us and we’re happy that the league has moved in that direction.

“With a little bit less games, that means more games on weekends and less mid-week games, which will be better for families and overall business for the Bonnyville Pontiacs.”

How the additional two spots for overage players figures into this year’s roster construction will be a balancing act for Bonnyville.

The team is looking to turn the page and begin a new era with head coach Ayrton Nikkel behind the wheel after their own uncertainty in that role.

“Our team is going to look a lot different next year with a lot of players moving on. I think we finished the year with four 20-year-olds last season,” said Langridge. 

“We believe the younger teams are more heavily recruited by the NCAA and that’s going to be a work in progress. You’re going to get teams that are big and heavy and old, and are going to play hard. And for us it’s going to be finding a middle ground, to find us veterans who can help us through the dog days of a hockey season, and having some impactful youth on your team that are creating excitement in the scouting world.”  

The AJHL release also said that in June, changes in several categories, including playing rules, “which will directly benefit the players, prospects, coaches and game officials by providing consistency and improvement to the standard of play” will be announced.

The schedule for next season will be unveiled next month as well.