GameTime CT

Connecticut's premier high school sports website

  • GIRLS SPORTS
    • Basketball
    • Cross Country
    • Field Hockey
    • Golf
    • Gymnastics
    • Hockey
    • Indoor Track
    • Lacrosse
    • Soccer
    • Softball
    • Swimming
    • Tennis
    • Volleyball
    • Track & Field
  • BOYS SPORTS
    • Baseball
    • Basketball
    • Cross Country
    • Football
    • Golf
    • Hockey
    • Indoor Track
    • Lacrosse
    • Soccer
    • Swimming
    • Tennis
    • Track & Field
    • Volleyball
    • Wrestling
  • Schools
  • Newspapers
    • CT Post
    • The Danbury News-Times
    • Greenwich Time
    • The Middletown Press
    • New Haven Register
    • The Norwalk Hour
    • The Register Citizen
    • The Stamford Advocate
  • Polls
    • Baseball Top 10
    • Boys Basketball Top 10
    • Girls Basketball Top 10
    • Football Top 10
    • Hockey Top 10
    • Boys Lacrosse Top 10
    • Softball Top 10
    • Other Polls
  • Scores & Stats
Boys Hockey

CT Rink Association changes course, to allow one parent per player beginning Monday

Joe Morelli | February 10, 2021

3
Danbury Ice Arena is shown in a 2019 photo.
1of3

Danbury Ice Arena is shown in a 2019 photo.

H John Voorhees III / Hearst Connecticut MediaShow MoreShow Less
Wonderland of Ice in Bridgeport.
2of3

Wonderland of Ice in Bridgeport.

Christian Abraham / Hearst Connecticut MediaShow MoreShow Less
3of3

The Connecticut Rink Owners Association decided to reverse course and allow one parent or guardian per high school hockey player at each of its 16 state rinks beginning Monday.

Just last week, the CIAC had notified the state athletic directors after meeting with the association not to allow spectators for the entire month of February. Wednesday’s decision is in alignment with the DECD Sector Rule for spectators, which includes the wearing of masks and social distancing per COVID-19 protocols.

Anthony Giusto, general manager of the Newington Arena and the Cheshire boys ice hockey coach, said he spoke with CIAC executive director Glenn Lungarini on Wednesday morning before the decision was made.

“In talking with ADs, the CIAC and (SCC Commissioner) Al Carbone, we were all kind of under same idea to go with spectators,” Giusto said. “It was a collaborative effort.”

Giusto said the rinks in the association were “interested in keeping our door open. We were shut down for seven weeks (during the endemic). That was pretty devastating for us.”

Bob Crawford, the owner of three rinks in the association (Simsbury International Skating Center, Champions Skating Center in Cromwell and the Bolton Ice Palace) said he would have been OK going to the end of February with no fans.

“I had planned to do it until the end of the month, but one person is fine, too,” said Crawford, a former player for the Hartford Whalers, among other NHL teams. “We will accommodate everyone the best we can. Some schools don’t want fans, some do. It’s so hard to enforce across the board. We will follow the sector rules and (schools) can decide whether they want fans. Youth hockey goes by DECD sector rules.”

On Monday, Bennett Rink in West Haven allowed two fans per player into its arena for a doubleheader: Notre Dame-West Haven vs. Immaculate and Hamden vs. West Haven. It defied both the CIAC’s and the SCC’s recommendation to not allow fans.

Bennett Rink is not a part of the rinks association, instead owned and operated by the West Haven Board of Education.

“How do you just make a policy that parents can’t go and watch their kids play hockey, or any sport for that matter?” said Neil C. Cavallaro, West Haven’s superintendent of schools and a member of the CIAC’s ice hockey committee. “I didn’t think it was fair. I didn’t think it was right, so I came up with a plan to allow parents into Bennett Rink.”

Said Giusto: “Eventually we would have (made this decision), We (the association) has been getting a lot of emails and texts from schools asking about what our basis was for keeping (fans) out of the rinks. Monday’s events expedited it.”

About Joe Morelli

Joe Morelli is the schools sports editor for New Haven Register and GameTimeCT. Email him at jmorelli@nhregister.com

Newsletter Signup

Don't strike out on CT high school sports news. Sign up for The Whistle newsletter from GametimeCT

You agree to our Terms of Use. Your information will be used as described in our Privacy Policy.

Spring Sports Quick Links

Spring Sports Quick Links

BASEBALL 2021: PRESEASON TOP 10 | PLAYERS TO WATCH | GAMES TO SEE
SOFTBALL 2021: PRESEASON TOP 10 | PLAYERS TO WATCH | GAMES TO SEE
BOYS LACROSSE 2021: PRESEASON TOP 10 | PLAYERS TO WATCH | GAMES TO WATCH
GIRLS LACROSSE: PLAYERS TO WATCH | GAMES TO SEE
Spring Sports Schedules

Winter 2021 Preview Links

Winter Sports 2021 Links

2021 ALL-STATE TEAMS

GTCT: BOYS BASKETBALL | GIRLS BASKETBALL | BOYS HOCKEY | GIRLS HOCKEY
CHSCA: GIRLS BASKETBALL | GYMNASTICS | BOYS HOCKEY | CHSGHA: GIRLS HOCKEY

TeamPlayer Scores and Stats search

Scores and Stats

Video

Podcasts

Fall Sports Quick Links

Fall Sports Quick Links

2021 FOOTBALL COLLEGE RECRUITING LIST
2020 GAMETIMECT ALL-STATE TEAMS
BOYS SOCCER
GIRLS SOCCER
FIELD HOCKEY
GIRLS VOLLEYBALL
BOYS CROSS COUNTRY
GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY
2020 LEAGUE PLAYOFFS:
Central Connecticut
Fairfield County
Shoreline Conference
Southern Connecticut
South-West Conference

Twitter

Tweets

Polls

Sorry, there are no polls available at the moment.
Follow Us
© Copyright 2017 Hearst Media Services Connecticut, LLC