The Alberta Junior Hockey League is seriously considering pulling the plug on the Olds Grizzlys Junior A Hockey club, after years of accumulating debt has finally made the situation "dire.
The Alberta Junior Hockey League is seriously considering pulling the plug on the Olds Grizzlys Junior A Hockey club, after years of accumulating debt has finally made the situation "dire."
"The Olds Grizzlys Organization has not been immune to the existing economic realities and as a result are in jeopardy of not participating as members of the AJHL for the 2017-18 Season," said the league's commissioner Ryan Bartoshyk, in a statement released last Thursday (May 18).
Bartoshyk went on to say that it is of the "utmost urgency to clarify the existing financial and operational situation of the Olds Grizzlys" and determine whether they can be "both viable and operational for the upcoming season and beyond."
"We've always had financial issues," said interim president of the Grizzlys Rebecca Henderson "and we are just, kinda at, almost – I don't want to say the breaking point, it's not the best way to put it."
But it seems like it might be a breaking point – the AJHL will hold its annual general meeting on May 27, and informed Grizzlys leadership at their regular board meeting Wednesday evening (May 17) that they would decide on the team's future then.
This came as a surprise, said Henderson, who said they've been in talks with the league, the town and with potential investors for several months, and weren't expecting an ultimatum.
In response, the team will be hosting a town hall meeting next Wednesday (May 24) at 7 p.m. at the Sportsplex, in a last-ditch attempt to convince the AJHL not to axe the program.
"The league needs us to show that we've got the support of the community," said Henderson. "If we have ten people show up, that want the team to stay, it kind of shows us that the town doesn't want the team."
It costs about $600,000 for the team to operate each year, although Henderson said that is a bare bones budget. Revenue is generated from three sources: game nights, fundraising and sponsorships. The bulk of the team's expenses are tied up in travel costs, as well as ice fees, which sets the Grizzlys back $40,000 each year.
According to Henderson, the financials each year can be a guessing game. Last year, the team essentially broke even, short only $900, But a few years ago they were short $90,000. This year isn't looking good either – financial statements aren't yet finalized, but Henderson is estimating a deficit in the neighbourhood of $30,000 to $40,000.
At this point, the team owes about $300,000, to suppliers, the bank and the league.
Head coach Dana Lattery says the Grizzlys aren't alone in their financial troubles.
"There's no pointing fingers," he said. "Even (for) privately-owned teams, owners chip in money at the end of the years to cover what was lost. It's junior hockey. It's the business."
He says the AJHL stepping in is actually encouraging.
"At the end of the day, it's a challenge as to the honour of having a junior A hockey team," said Lattery. "There is such a huge financial and cultural benefit to a small town to have a junior team."
"But it comes at a cost. It's not free to run the team. It's not cheap to run the team."
Lattery says they've come to a point where they need help from the town, the people and the community. But he says he's confident they will step up.
"Just the fact that it's been here for 35 years, that's a powerful statement," said Lattery. "That's a lot of longevity and a lot of history and culture in a hockey program, and I know we can do it, 100 per cent."
"I just want people to come to the meeting. It's not an ego thing, it's not about Dana Lattery, it's about the Olds Grizzlys," he said.
"It's about the town of Olds having a junior hockey team. And I can't stress the importance enough for a junior team to stay in a town, and I don't think we would ever truly know what it was like to not have it, unless you lost it. And then you would always regret that you didn't keep it."
