It’s September and a young man’s fancy is turning to thoughts of hockey.
In Tumbler Ridge, however, there’s no sign of the Steel Kings, the Junior A team that had its first season last year.
The team, which collapsed after only four games, was expected to return this year, but, according to sources at the District, nobody has heard from the league since January of this year.
At that time, Derek Prue, GMHL West Executive Director appeared before council to update the District on the status of the team.
“We’ve been in putting the fires out mode since the passing of Andre Payette,” said Prue on January 16. Payette was hired as the head coach of the team, but passed away on September 28 of last year, leaving the team without a coach and owner.
Prue said the league approved a one-year postponement of operations in Tumbler Ridge, while things get sorted out. “We were in a position where we had to decide how we could move forward with this year, and we decided we could make a go with Mackenzie. They were ahead of the game having been a part of the league last year, so that’s where I put my energy.”
But that team has collapsed as well, after Prue failed to show up to a discussion of the team’s lease with the District of Mackenzie. “During the period of July 2021 -July 2023, the community has shown tremendous support for the team,” says the June 12 Council Highlights for the District of Mackenzie. “However the product has not been delivered as initially offered. For this reason Council chose not to renew the Mackenzie Mountaineers lease.”
At the time, Prue said the plan was to come back for this season: ““I want to make sure we get over the finish line and at that time we can retrench and see what possibilities are for next year,” he said. “If [the District] would be open to another run at it, we would look at feasibility of that.”
But, with teams about the Peace and across the country moving into full swing, there’s been no word on the GMHL West coming back to Tumbler Ridge.
The reason for that, according to GMHL Commissioner Ken Girard, GMHL West “has lost their membership” with the GMHL. “We just couldn’t deal with them anymore,” says Girard. “They’ve apparently started something new, but I don’t know about that.”
Earlier this year, he says, there was an announcement on the GMHL web page. It reads: “It is with regret that we must inform you of a significant decision regarding the Western division of the GMHL. Due to financial challenges and various other issues, we are left with no choice but to cease all GMHL team operations within the region.
“Effective immediately, all team memberships in Alberta and British Columbia will not be renewed for the upcoming 2023/24 season. This decision has been made after careful consideration of the circumstances and the impact on the overall stability and functioning of the GMHL.
“We understand the disappointment and frustration this news may bring, both for the affected teams and the dedicated individuals involved. It is our intention to prioritize the sustainability and long-term viability of the league as a whole.
“We would like to express our sincere gratitude to all the teams, players, staff, and fans who have been part of the Western division of the GMHL.”
According to some reports, Prue owes the GMHL more than $100,000.
Prue, it appears, has created a new league, the National Junior Hockey League. The league consists of five teams, none in BC. The Gibbons Pioneers, The Edson Eagles, The Fox Creek Ice Kings and the High Prairie Red Wings are all teams from the GMHL Northwest division. Rounding out the new league is the Thorsby Crush.
The league is described as “Tier 2 Junior A Hockey.”
But this means that the other two teams in the GMHL Northwest BC division—Kitimat Saax and the Burns Lake Timbermen—have been left to die as well.
Prue has been involved in a number of unsuccessful teams and leagues over the years, from managing the Border City Bandits—which went bankrupt halfway through its first season—to working as Director for Expansion for the Western States Hockey League, a partnership that lasted for one season, before Prue took the teams that he established in Alberta over to the GMHL in June of 2019. Earlier this year, that partnership ended poorly as well.
Trent is the publisher of Tumbler RidgeLines.
