PJHL ADOPTS TOURNEY-STYLE CHAMPIONSHIP FINALE

The Provincial Junior Hockey League announced this week that it will adopt a new playoff format for the Schmalz Cup finals.  The championship will pit the four conference winners in a round-robin tournament to be held from May 7 to May 15 to determine rankings.   The second- and third-place finishers will meet in a semifinal on May 14 with the winner advancing to meet the top-seeded team from the round-robin in the final on May 15 at the University of Guelph.

The preliminary  playoff rounds will remain the same:  best-of-seven series within each division, followed by a best-of-seven playoff to determine the conference champions.  In the Glanbrook Rangers’ South Bloomfield Division, as in all divisions with an odd number of teams, the first-place finisher will be offered a bye for the first round.  If that team declines, the bye will be offered to each subsequent team in turn until it is accepted.  The remaining teams will then play off and the bye team will rejoin the following round, seeded according to season finish.  The eight division winners will meet in the four conference finals.

As part of the playoff restructuring, the PJHL also announced a contest for a new name and logo for the Schmalz Cup tournament, something along the lines of the NCAA’s “Frozen Four.”  The winner will receive two tickets to the finals, a PJHL hoodie and recognition on the PJHL website and in the tournament program.   The deadline is Feb. 27 and submissions can be sent through the PJHL’s social media platforms or email to pjhlsocialmedia@gmail.com