OLDS — The Grizzlys are guaranteed to be in the post-season.
That’s thanks to the Alberta Junior Hockey League’s (AJHL) new format, created after five teams left the league to play in the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL).
That’s exciting for a team that currently stands last among the remaining 11 teams in the league and hasn’t made the playoffs for years.
The AJHL announced the new format Wednesday.
Teams now play a 57-game regular season.
When the regular season ends, the top five teams will automatically advance to the 2024 Inter Pipeline Cup AJHL Playoffs.
The bottom six teams will square off in a best of five play-in series (the sixth-place team will play the 11th-place team, the seventh-place team will play the 10th place team and the eighth-place team will square off against the ninth-place team.
Winners of the play-in series will fill spots six through eight in the opening round of the AJHL playoffs.
Round 1 of the Inter Pipeline Cup AJHL Playoffs will begin the weekend of March 15-17 and will be a best-of-seven series. The top seed will play the lowest remaining seed and so on.
The AJHL champion will represent Alberta at the 2024 Centennial Cup National Junior A Championship which will be held May 9-19 in Oakville, Ontario.
A complete league schedule is now available on the AJHL website, along with updated league standings.
