Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 4/4/2017 (1261 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

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The fight for equal rights on the hockey ice is alive and well, and it’s fantastic to see.

With the popularity of major junior, college and professional hockey in North America, the women’s game is often sent to the background, which doesn’t seem right. But the American women’s team brought it to the forefront before their world championship tournament. They wanted to make the same amount of money as the men, threatening to boycott the event in Michigan unless a new agreement was reached.

The support for the women was fantastic to see, with Canadians backing their colleagues and other players refusing to go as replacements. Senators also supported the players. USA Hockey eventually bowed to the pressure, reached a more fair deal and the women’s game took a huge step forward.

Then came Wednesday’s announcement that the University of North Dakota decided to cut its women’s hockey program as well as its swimming and diving teams. Without a doubt, UND is known for hockey and the way the school handled the situation was disgusting.

Knowing that cuts were coming, the athletic department invited representatives from teams believed to be at risk to make pitches for their programs to continue. Brandonite Kristen Campbell, a goalie who has three years of eligibility remaining, told the Winnipeg Free Press’s Mike Sawatzky that the women’s hockey team was not invited and thought it was safe.

Then the school leaked the story about axing the program on Wednesday and told other teams before the players and coaching staff themselves. The story broke while the team was practising in preparation for next season.

One has to wonder at how much money the school is saving as well. The team plays out of the Ralph Engelstad Arena, just like the men, so the main costs for the team would be scholarships, equipment and travel.

The move makes one wonder what effect it will have on the women’s game. Even though UND never won an NCAA championship, it has eight current or graduated players who are currently playing at the world championship and up to a dozen at next year’s Olympics. Suddenly all those role models for young girls are gone from the state, especially since it was the only Division I program in North Dakota.

It may have an effect in Manitoba as well. If local players want to pursue the NCAA route but don’t want to move far from home, Grand Forks seems like the ideal location. Without UND, players will have to look at various schools in Minnesota, which is still a decent distance away but not as close.

The Manitoba Female Midget Hockey League is producing more and more players who can make the jump to the NCAA ranks as well.

The American women’s hockey team is aware of these issues and have already taken action. According to a Grand Forks Herald article, Jocelyne and Monique Lamoureux, UND alumni who play on the American team, wrote a letter to both the athletic director and president of UND raising those points and asking for them to reconsider.

The players started a social media campaign to save the team on Monday as well, but things aren’t looking good.

According to the Herald, school president Mark Kennedy responded to the Lamoureaux twins saying it was "a difficult decision for all involved. I understand the concern that this creates within the hockey community. It was a difficult recommendation to hear and to accept. … I want you to know that we are proud of the success you both have had at UND and continue to have on the national and world stage. You continue to be outstanding ambassadors for women’s hockey."

They will be good ambassadors for the game. So will Neepawa’s Halli Krzyzaniak, who just finished her four-year career with the school and posted on Twitter she’s no longer proud to be a part of UND.

Women’s hockey is growing in Brandon, Westman, Canada and the United States, and it’s fantastic to see. Hopefully the fight put up by female hockey players the last few weeks will inspire more girls to take up the sport, and UND’s short-sighted decision won’t harm it too badly.

• • •

As terrible as the UND situation has been for women’s hockey in general, I can’t help but look to Brandon’s post-secondary institutions and applaud them for their cautious approach to adding new sports to make sure these situations don’t happen here.

Brandon University wanted to add soccer but was careful by creating a college-level program at a lower cost with the plans to eventually join U Sports when the teams prove they can be competitive at that level and the school can deal with the extra costs.

It was careful with its support of the curling teams as well, helping to fund them for the western championship but not being able to throw a ton of money for them to play in a lot of bonspiels as preparation. It could help them perform better, but it could also cause financial constraints as well.

A lot of people would like to see the men’s hockey team come back, but the cost of that would be extremely high and may cause other programs to fold.

At Assiniboine Community College, the volleyball and soccer programs are going strong and the women’s hockey team’s move into the American Collegiate Hockey Association gives it more creditability as well. Ideally, ACC would add a men’s hockey program to complement the women’s but the school won’t pursue it until it has enough money to make it sustainable.

How many programs to run and how much money to invest in them aren’t easy decisions to make for athletic directors like Russ Paddock at BU and Beth Clark at ACC. It seems like they’ve made the right ones so far, especially if it means they won’t have to cut any in the future, keeping university and college sports strong in Westman.