Powering Down: Saskatoon Blades ban cell phones

The Saskatoon Blades have banned players from using cell phones at the rink. (Getty)

The Saskatoon Blades have done what so many parents around dinner tables and teachers in classrooms would love to do—they’ve separated teenagers from their phones.

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The CBC reported Sunday that the Blades are testing a policy that has players hand over their cell phones upon entering the rink for practices and games. According to Saskatoon head coach Dean Brockman, players had been relinquishing their phones about 90 minutes before games, but no more, at least for now.

“When there’s distraction and you’re not mentally focused towards one thing, we just thought it was a course of action that we’d try for a short-term period and see if it helped our play or helped our focus on the ice and in the dressing room,” Brockman told the CBC.

The Blades currently sit 18th in the 22-team WHL with a 10-16-1-0 record, four points out of an Eastern Conference wild card berth but having played more games than the teams they’re chasing. Saskatoon last made the playoffs in 2013 when they also hosted the MasterCard Memorial Cup.

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