Vancouver will not be an NHL hub city: Canucks 

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) — Vancouver is officially out of the running as an NHL hub city.

The Canucks issued a statement Thursday thanking the league and health officials for the effort they put into the bid.

The team said in a statement, “Although Vancouver won’t be a hub city, we are still excited to see hockey start up again.” Training camp is set to resume at Rogers Arena in the coming weeks.

#Canucks statement on @NHL hub city bid. pic.twitter.com/qs6v4EOO7w

— Vancouver #Canucks (@Canucks) June 25, 2020

Premier John Horgan said in a Tweet that he will continue to cheer for the Canucks wherever they play.

“I’m disappointed the NHL playoffs won’t be coming to Vancouver, but we will not bend the rules on public health guidelines and risk the progress we’ve made. Protecting the health and safety of people in BC is our number one priority,” he tweeted.

The NHL is looking for two hub cities as part of its goal to play out the playoffs — one for the Eastern Conference and one for the Western Conference.

Los Angeles, Chicago, and Las Vegas are still in the running, with Las Vegas considered a favourite.

Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry spoke about the bid earlier Thursday.

“Basically, the fact that we would take the health of the players and the health of our province as the primary concern, in terms of having the NHL play in Vancouver, I actually think that that is a positive for us and that it should have been something that the NHL saw as a positive partnership. We are doing very well. We have a good balance. But under no circumstances was I going to compromise, in any way, the health of people here in British Columbia, and we made that very clear,” Henry said.

“We also made it very clear that we were absolutely willing to partner with the NHL to make sure the health of the players and the people that were here in British Columbia, if Vancouver was a hub city, would be paramount, as well.”