The 2020 AIHL season was going to be the 21st

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's axial tilt, tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperat ...

of the

Australian Ice Hockey League The Australian Ice Hockey League (AIHL) is Australia's top-level men's ice hockey league. Established in 2000, the AIHL is sanctioned by Ice Hockey Australia (a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation). The AIHL is a Semi-professional ...

(AIHL). It was originally scheduled to run from 18 April 2020 until 23 August 2020, with the Goodall Cup finals following on 29 August and 30 August 2020. However, on 12 March 2020 the league announced the postponement of the 2020 season to a to be determined date due to

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

. Then on 29 July 2020, the AIHL commission's return to play committee announced the official cancellation of the 2020 AIHL season due to July COVID outbreaks on the east coast as well as continued border closures for WA and SA. This marked the first time the Goodall Cup was not awarded since 1993, when the competition was cancelled as a result of financial problems.

Teams

In 2020 the AIHL had planned to have 8 teams competing in the league.

League business

On 11 February 2020, the AIHL announced the league would be adopting the international standard sixty minutes match length. Between 2013 and 2019 the AIHL ran fifty minute matches, while prior to that the league ran forty-five minute matches. The change increases the league's matches by ten minutes and standardises the period lengths to twenty minutes each. The change came into effect for the 2020 season. On 12 March 2020, the CBR Brave announced they would be livestreaming all home matches at Phillip Ice Skating Centre for the 2020 season. A partnership with production company Wonqy would deliver the stream. Later on 12 March 2020, AIHL commissioner, David Turik announced the 2020 season would be postponed due to the

coronavirus pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

(

). The AIHL Commission held consultation with the teams and took medical advice from State and Federal Governments in coming to the decision. The Commission did not release a new proposed start date for the 2020 season but will meet regularly to discuss progress and determine if there is a time period for the season to be moved to. In late July the AIHL commission's return to play committee released a public update to advise the 2020 season had been cancelled and would not go ahead. In early August, a new incorporated body was established in

Brisbane, Queensland Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

with the mission to expand the league and secure an AIHL licence for 2022.

Exhibition games

On 7 January 2020, the Melbourne Ice and Melbourne Mustangs co-announced the organisation of an exhibition charity match to be played between the two teams to raise money for the Victorian Bushfire Appeal. The match was scheduled for 19 January 2020 at O’Brien Icehouse. The Ice defeated the Mustangs 5–2 in the charity match with the event raising over $50,000. On 13 January 2020, it was announced that the

South Australian South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which includes some of the most arid parts ...

ice hockey community, including the Adelaide Adrenaline, Adelaide Rush and

Avalanche An avalanche is a rapid flow of snow down a Grade (slope), slope, such as a hill or mountain. Avalanches can be triggered spontaneously, by factors such as increased precipitation or snowpack weakening, or by external means such as humans, othe ...

alumni had arranged for an exhibition charity match for 9 February 2020. The match was named ''The Bushfire Appeal Ice Hockey Classic'' with teams broken into ‘Locals’ and ‘Rest of the World’. In front of a packed out IceArenA, the Locals came from 6–4 down in the second intermission to claim a 7-6 (OT) victory. The Locals won with a golden goal scored by Adelaide Rush player Tash Farrier in the 3v3 overtime period. The event raised $23,951 with all money going to CFS Foundation and Kangaroo Island Mayoral Relief and Recovery Bushfire Fund to assist with the

Adelaide Hills The Adelaide Hills region is located in the southern Mount Lofty Ranges east of the city of Adelaide in the state of South Australia. The largest town in the area, Mount Barker, South Australia, Mount Barker, is one of Australia's fastest-growi ...

and

Kangaroo Island Kangaroo Island (, ) is Australia's third-largest island, after Tasmania and Melville Island, Northern Territory, Melville Island. It lies in the state of South Australia, southwest of Adelaide. Its closest point to the mainland is Snapper Poi ...

fire recovery effort. On 27 January 2020, the

Sydney Ice Dogs The Sydney Ice Dogs (formally ''Western Sydney Ice Dogs'') is an Australian semi-professional ice hockey team from Sydney. Formed in 2002, the Ice Dogs are a member of the Australian Ice Hockey League (AIHL). The Ice Dogs are two time Goodall Cu ...

and

Sydney Bears The Sydney Bears (formerly ''Macquarie Bears'') is an Australia, Australian semi-professional ice hockey team from Sydney, New South Wales. Established in 1982, the Bears are the only remaining founding member of the Australian Ice Hockey League ...

announced they would hold a bushfire recovery appeal charity match between the two teams at

Macquarie Ice Rink The Macquarie Ice Rink is an ice sports and public skate centre, opened in 1981 and located within the Macquarie Shopping Centre in the northern Sydney suburb of Macquarie Park, New South Wales, Australia. It is the current home of the Sydne ...

on 21 February 2020. All proceeds would go to the

NSW Rural Fire Service The New South Wales Rural Fire Service (NSW RFS) is a volunteer-based firefighting agency and statutory body of the Government of New South Wales. The NSW RFS is responsible for fire protection to approximately 95% of the land area of New Sou ...

and

Australian Red Cross Australian Red Cross, formally Australian Red Cross Society, is a humanitarian aid and community services charity in Australia. Tracing its history back to 1914 and being incorporated by royal charter in 1941, Australian Red Cross Society is ...

. The Bears defeated the Ice Dogs 6–3 in the event. On 28 February 2020, Melbourne Mustangs announced the annual pre-season exhibition Melbourne derby involving the Mustangs and Ice would be held at the Icehouse on Saturday 4 April. On 16 March 2020, the Ice and Mustangs officially cancelled their pre-season exhibition game due to COVID-19 and the postponement of the AIHL season. On 2 March 2020, Adelaide Adrenaline announced a pre-season exhibition match against a South Australian Select team for 21 March 2020 to be held at the Adelaide IceArenA. On 15 March 2020, the Adrenaline officially cancelled their pre-season exhibition game due to COVID-19 and the postponement of the AIHL season. On 30 July 2020, one day after the cancellation of the 2020 AIHL season, the Newcastle Northstars and Sydney Ice Dogs announced the formation of the 2020 Hawkesbury Classic exhibition series between the two teams. The four match series was originally to be held at both the

Hunter Ice Skating Stadium The Hunter Ice Skating Stadium is an ice sports and public skate centre, opened in 2000 and located in Warners Bay, a suburb of Lake Macquarie, New South Wales, Australia. The stadium serves as the home ice rink of the Newcastle Northstars w ...

in Newcastle and Macquarie Ice Rink in Sydney between 2 August and 22 August 2020. On 14 August 2020, it was revealed the series would be extended by three matches, creating a full seven match series. Game One ended with the Ice Dogs claiming a 3–2 overtime victory to take a 1–0 lead in the series. Game two saw the Ice Dogs double their lead in the series to 2–0 with a 3–2 overtime victory. Game three was won by the Northstars in a 5–4 shootout victory, halving the Ice Dog's series lead to 2–1.

Personnel changes

On 11 January 2020, Adelaide Adrenaline announced former player and head coach Sami Mantere had been re-appointed as head coach for the 2020 season. Sami replaced outgoing head coach, Jim Fuyarchuk, who held the position for the last two seasons. On 31 January 2020, Melbourne Ice announced their new head coach for 2020 would be Canadian Michael Marshall. Michael hails from

Calgary, Alberta Calgary () is a major city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a Metropolitan area, metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the List of ...

and joins the team off the back of four years coaching in Sweden. On 8 February 2020,

Perth Thunder The Perth Thunder is an Australian semi-professional ice hockey team from Perth, Western Australia. Founded in 2010, the Thunder have been a member of the Australian Ice Hockey League (AIHL) since 2012. The Thunder are based at the Perth Ice Are ...

announced Dave Ruck had ended his three-year tenure as head coach of the West Australian team. The 2017 AIHL coach of the year would be replaced by the recently retired former Thunder player, Ben Breault. The appointment is the first senior head coaching role for Breault. On 24 February 2020, CBR Brave announced head coach Rob Starke would not be returning for the 2020 AIHL season. Starke had left

Canberra Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...

and moved back to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

for personal and professional reasons in the off-season. Rob left the Brave having guided the team to their first three titles including the 2018 Goodall Cup. On 27 February 2020, the Brave announced Stuart Philps as the team's new head coach and Rob's replacement.

Player transfers

Interclub transfers

:* Mid-season transfer.

Retirements

New signings

Players lost

Regular season

The regular season began on 18 April 2020 and ran through to 23 August 2020 before the top four teams advanced to compete in the Goodall Cup finals weekend.

April

May

June

July

August

Standings

Skater statistics

2020 AIHL season top-ten lists for the following four skater statistical categories: Points, Goals, Assists and Penalty minutes.

Goaltender statistics

2020 AIHL season top-ten lists for the following two goaltender statistical categories: Goals against average and Save percentage

Goodall Cup playoffs

The 2020 finals weekend is scheduled to begin on 29 August with the Goodall Cup final held on 30 August. Following the end of the regular season the top four teams advance to the finals weekend, which is to be held at

STADIUM A stadium (: stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage completely or partially surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand or sit ...

LOCATION In geography, location or place is used to denote a region (point, line, or area) on Earth's surface. The term ''location'' generally implies a higher degree of certainty than ''place'', the latter often indicating an entity with an ambiguous bou ...

. The series is a single game elimination with the two winning semi-finalists advancing to the Goodall Cup final. The winner of the final lifts the historic Goodall Cup. All times are UTC+10:00

Semi-finals

Final

References

External links

The Australian Ice Hockey LeagueIce Hockey Australia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aihl Season 2020 2020 in ice hockey 2020 in Australian sport

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

Ice hockey events cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic