With the recent developments surrounding COVID-19 and following the advice and directives from the New Zealand Government, Ministry of Health, Sport New Zealand and the New Zealand Ice Hockey Federation, AIHA has made the difficult decision to postpone the beginning of the 2020 season of ice hockey.

This decision means the start of the following scheduled ice hockey activities have been postponed:

Adult Hockey League
Junior League
Bantam League
Super League (Under 9 and Under 12)
Learn to Play Ice Hockey Programme
Pre-season trainings for Bantam & Junior League (on ice and off ice)

This is not a cancellation of the 2020 ice hockey season, but rather a delay to the start of it, for the above activities.

Our intention is to resume the above activity in June 2020, and the AIHA Board of Directors will meet in the lead up to this time to discuss the feasibility of this, based on what is happening at the time.

Given the 2020 NZIHL season has been suspended, a number of new ice time slots have been made available, which should allow AIHA to deliver the same level of ice hockey our players were expecting in 2020, with a similar season end date to the original season for each league. We will release more information on this as soon as possible and will continue to communicate updates to our members as we can.

Additionally, the school holiday programmes for our Under 9, Under 12, Bantam & Junior Leagues have been cancelled.

These decisions were voted on by the AIHA Board of Directors on Friday evening, after earlier consultation that day and night with Sport NZ, and following the latest directives from the Ministry of Health and New Zealand Government. The AIHA Board of Directors agree that the health and safety of its players, volunteers, families and wider community is paramount in a situation such as this, and that following the advice and directives provided by the Ministry of Health and Sport NZ, this is the correct decision given the circumstances.

This decision has been made with heavy hearts and will have a negative impact on many of our members, along with the impact to both Paradice Ice Skating Rinks and Centre Ice. We ask that you continue to support these businesses in any matter that you can during this time.

The fact that no ice hockey will be played for the foreseeable future has saddened us. The ice hockey rink is a gathering place for friends and family to enjoy each otherâ€™s company, along with the greatest sport on earth.

We ask for your understanding and patience during this unprecedented time and assure you that AIHA is doing everything it can to bring ice hockey back to its members as soon as possible.

Through this period, we advise all our members to visit the below websites regularly, and to follow their guidance on reducing exposure risk:

Kind Regards,
Auckland Ice Hockey Association

For COVID-19 health advice and information, contact the Healthline team (for free) on 0800 358 5453 or +64 9 358 5453 for international SIMS. Or visit the Ministry of Health website: https://www.health.govt.nz/our-work/diseases-and-conditions/covid-19-novel-coronavirus