The North American Hockey League (NAHL) has released of the 2020-21 regular season schedule; and in-conjunction, the Kenai River Brown Bears regular season schedule.
The Kenai River Brown Bears plan to play the first half of the regular season in Minnesota. The Brown Bears home base in Minnesota will be in Anoka, Minnesota and home games will be played in an arena in Breezy Point, Minnesota.
Kenai River Brown Bears General Manager Chris Hedlund explains the plan for starting the hockey season on the road.
“We’re excited. We’ve made a decision to move forward for the 2020-21 season. Starting in Minnesota gives us a great opportunity to be around long term, get through the season and have a great opportunity back on the peninsula again this season. In the end, we’re going to start in Minnesota, you probably heard that Fairbanks made the same announcement. We’re going to do our training camp down here; we’re going to do the first portion of our season down here just because of all the travel restrictions and protocols for getting players in and out of the state (Alaska). We’ll do our first home and road games down here(Minnesota). If all goes well our goal would be to come back after the Christmas break for the second portion-I hate to call it the second half because its a bigger chuck on the backside. It’s not split like normal because we’re delayed by a month and we intentionally, as a division, pushed our dates back. Right now, our commitment is mid-January because that’s when our home games would start in Alaska, barring any concerns with COVID restrictions on travel that’s really what’s guiding when we come back.”
Kenai River Brown Bears General Manager Chris Hedlund explains roadblocks faced by the Brown Bears in preparing for upcoming season.
“Mainly it’s travel. The testing, the isolation process and then you get down to when you come back to Alaska-anywhere on the road, honestly; if players get tested positive or somehow come down with symptoms, because we are a symptom-based strategy we’re using as a league, and we have to isolate players you start adding costs form the hotel and the lodging sites if you have to isolate them. You also start getting to the point where if you don’t have enough players, you can’t play a game. That makes it hard to not have a for sure on that side. Then you start looking at the facilities and the requirements that the city and the state have; maybe, the quantity of fans. To come back for 250 fans is a challenge. We are hoping to get at least fifty percent capacity so that we can come back and have a good crowd and get the revenues that we need to pay the bills.”
The regular season will commence on October 9, 2020 and end on April 25, 2021.
The Kenai River Brown Bears open the regular season with a four-game series against the Chippewa Steel at the Chippewa Area Ice Arena beginning on November 6th.
Click here for download the 2020-21 NAHL Schedule in .pdf format
Kenai River Brown Bears
Head Coach: Kevin Murdock (2nd Year)
2019-20 record: 52 GP, 27-19-6, 60 pts. (3rd in the Midwest Division)
2020-21 NAHL Divisional Alignment:
Central Division (6): Aberdeen Wings, Austin Bruins, Bismarck Bobcats, Minnesota Wilderness, Minot Minotauros, St. Cloud Norsemen
East Division (6): Danbury Jr. Hat Tricks, Johnstown Tomahawks, Maine Nordiques, Maryland Black Bears, New Jersey Titans, Northeast Generals
Midwest Division (5): Chippewa Steel, Fairbanks Ice Dogs, Janesville Jets, Kenai River Brown Bears, Minnesota Magicians
South Division (6): Amarillo Bulls, Lone Star Brahmas, New Mexico Ice Wolves, Odessa Jackalopes, Shreveport Mudbugs, Wichita Falls Warriors
