The WHL made changes to its early-season schedule this week as a result of the U.S.-Canada border still being shut down.
The WHL said that teams in the British Columbia Division will only play teams from inside their own division, and the teams in the U.S. Division will also only play teams from inside their own division. The league said that the move was necessary because bus travel between the U.S. and Canada is still closed.
In other WHL news, the Calgary Hitmen announced that former NHL’er Matt Stajan has been hired as one of the team’s assistant coaches.
Stajan will join Steve Hamilton‘s staff alongside Trent Cassan and Brad Kirkwood.
Stajan retired from professional hockey in 2019 after a season in Germany.
“I’m grateful for the opportunity to be able to help these young men grow and develop at this early stage of their careers,” Stajan said. “It will be great to learn the coaching and development side of the game, working alongside Steve, Trent and Brad.”