West Coast League makes schedule changes, but NorthPaws plan to take to Norbrock Stadium field

Photo: Jeff Putnam/City of Kamloops

Norbrock Stadium

The Kamloops NorthPaws won’t be crossing the border during their inaugural West Coast League season, but that doesn’t mean the Tournament Capital won’t see the team in action on the diamond.

"Right now, our focus is to get ready to play this summer. Like everything else this year, the future is unpredictable so we’ll continue to adapt as the circumstances for the season unfold," Jamie Shinkewski, operations manager for the NorthPaws, told Castanet Kamloops.

"Bottom line, we want to see Norbrock rocking this summer."

After the WCL unveiled a revised 2021 regular season schedule on Thursday — a campaign with no international travel — the Kelowna Falcons announced they would withdraw for the year.

The revised schedule will see the WCL's Canadian teams playing each other, while the U.S.-based squads do the same south of the border — not unlike what's happening right now in the NHL.

“After the adversities we all faced last year, we’re looking forward to a new season devoted to our communities and our student-athletes,” West Coast League commissioner Rob Neyer said in a press release.

“At the same time, we’re grateful for the guidance and assistance of local, state and provincial health officials while prioritizing the health and safety of our players, staffs, fans, and host families.”

The Canadian schedule won’t be released until mid-April, but hopes to see the NorthPaws, Edmonton Riverhawks and Nanaimo NightOwls all participate in their inaugural seasons, along with the established Victoria HarbourCats.

The WCL's U.S. schedule looks to have 48 league games per team and will be announced early next week.