Alberta premier: Edmonton is ‘safest place’ for NHL’s potential return
Posted May 20, 2020 10:43 am.
Last Updated May 20, 2020 10:50 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
EDMONTON – Both Alberta Premier Jason Kenney and Edmonton Mayor Don Iveson support the Edmonton Oilers‘ bid to be one of the ‘hub cities’ the NHL has been said to be considering as the sites of their potential return.
The league’s 2019-20 campaign has been suspended since March 12 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and no decisions have yet been made on when or how a potential restart of the season could come. However, as Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman has reported, the league is considering a 24-team playoff format that would see groups of six teams convene in four hub cities.
Friedman highlighted three Canadian cities — Edmonton, Toronto and Vancouver — currently in the running to be hubs. On Tuesday, Kenney said during a press conference that he believes Edmonton is the safest choice for the NHL should the league opt for the hub-city setup, given how the city and the province have responded to the pandemic.
“We continue to work very closely with the Edmonton Oilers franchise on refining Alberta’s proposal — we’re very keen on attracting the NHL playoffs for the summer shortened season. And I think we’ve got a tremendous pitch to make,” Kenney said.
“First of all, in terms of Alberta being a star performer in North America on the public health response to the pandemic, particularly here in Edmonton, where the number of active cases — I think we’re down to 50 active cases in this population in greater Edmonton of 1.2 million people, and a handful of people in hospital with hundreds of acute care beds that have been set aside for COVID patients.
“Together with the highest per-capita testing in North America, if not the world, I think we are the safest place they could find in the continent to come and, in a very thoughtful and careful way, finish off the season with the playoffs.”
