The directors of the NEHC have come to the difficult decision to cancel the league’s regular-season schedule and 2021 NEHC championship tournament – for both the men and women – due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The conference had previously announced the postponement of the 2020 portion of this season’s schedule in July.
Member institutions – Babson, Castleton, Hobart, Johnson & Wales, UMass Boston, New England College, Norwich, Skidmore, Southern Maine, Suffolk (men) and Castleton, Johnson & Wales, UMass Boston, New England College, Norwich, Plymouth State, Salem State, Southern Maine, and Suffolk (women) – will have autonomy to schedule competition based on institutional policy coupled with local and state health guidelines.
“The NEHC had remained optimistic that a season could safely take place this winter,” reads a statement. “However, with a surge in cases both nationally and regionally, state-to-state travel amongst the membership has proved insurmountable. The NEHC membership hails from six different states that each have a variety of travel restrictions in place as it pertains to crossing state lines during the pandemic.”
Individual institutions may make announcements regarding competition for their hockey programs this winter.
The conference will continue to monitor the latest data and health guidelines as it pertains to COVID-19 and provide additional updates as appropriate.
