The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
The 2004 Royal Bank Cup in Grande Prairie, Alberta, will be the first Hockey Canada junior 'A' championship played without the red line for offside passes. Hockey Canada's junior council recently voted to support a motion for the removal of the red line for the Royal Bank Cup and 2004 regional championships. Hockey Canada's officers and board of directors supported the junior council motion at the Hockey Canada semi-annual meeting in November. The regional championships are the Fred Page Cup, Dudley-Hewitt Cup, Anavet Cup and Doyle Cup. The regional champions will join the Grande Prairie Storm of the AJHL in the 34th national junior A championship. The five-team Royal Bank Cup, for junior 'A' supremacy in Canada, is scheduled for May 8-16. Three of Canada's 10 junior 'A' leagues played without the red line, for offside passes, prior to 2003-04. The remaining seven leagues voted to play without the red line this season. The Alberta Junior Hockey League has been playing without the red line since 1994-95. Research conducted that season, for a Hockey Canada pilot project, indicated that games were an average 20 minutes faster, largely because of fewer stoppages. The Ontario Provincial Junior Hockey League and British Columbia Hockey League also played without the red line before 2003-04. The Maritime Junior 'A' Hockey League, la Ligue de Hockey Junior AAA du Quebec, Central Junior Hockey League in eastern Ontario, Northern Ontario Junior 'A' Hockey League, Superior International Junior Hockey League in the Thunder Bay, Ont., region, Manitoba Junior Hockey League and Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League followed the AJHL, OPJHL and BCHL example this season. The Fred Page Cup involves the Maritime, Quebec and Central Junior champions, plus les Braves de Valleyfield of the LHJAAAQ, in Valleyfield. The Fred Page Cup will be played April 21-25. The Dudley-Hewitt Cup involves the OPJHL, NOJHL and SIJHL champions, plus the North Bay Skyhawks of the NOJHL, in North Bay. The Dudley-Hewitt Cup is scheduled April 27-May 1. The Manitoba and Saskatchewan champions will play a best-of-seven series for the Anavet Cup. The Anavet Cup will start April 24 in the home arena of the SJHL champion. The Alberta and B. C. champions will play a best-of-seven series for the Doyle Cup. The Doyle Cup will begin April 23 in the home arena of the AJHL champion. Grande Prairie and the Anavet Cup champion will open the Royal Bank Cup. Please check the CJAHL web site at www.cjahl.com for all your Canadian junior 'A' information.
