WESTFIELD – As a result of an uptick in COVID-19 cases directly tied to hockey across Massachusetts, the state put a temporary halt to all on ice activities except for college and professional hockey until Nov. 7.

Bruce Landon, general manager at Amelia Park Arena, said a second closure this year is devastating to the arena.

“It’s devastating simply because we were closed down for so long starting in mid-March, so we were really just getting back on our feet trying to recoup our revenue. We lose all the events we had scheduled for two weeks so there’s a gigantic drop in revenue over the next two weeks, but at the same time it’s very expensive to maintain the facility,” he said.

In addition to hockey, the arena offers several other on-ice events that must be put on hold because of the shutdown, including public skates, lessons, and rentals.

Landon said the arena had gone above and beyond the guidelines that were initially released for ice arenas.

“We went above and beyond what was mandated by the state, the health department, by Mass State Hockey, by USA Hockey. Here at Amelia Park we had no issues whatsoever, this was a blanket statement issued by the governor. We were certainly in compliance with all of the protocols in place and we went above and beyond that,” Landon said.

Along with others he spoke to about the shutdown, Landon said he was confused as to why college practice was still allowed and everything else had to be shut down.

“I don’t understand it, nor do a lot of people that are operating arenas around Western Mass. especially. Colleges are allowed to practice, pro teams are allowed to practice, none of them are up and running so that made no sense whatsoever to even mention the pro teams,” he said.

David Caspole, associate athletics director at Westfield State University, said that the university received no specific guidance in terms of the allowed college practices.

“We didn’t get any direct contact from the governor’s office, we just saw the release like everyone else but it’s great for the student athletes to be able to get out on the ice,” he said.

At this point Caspole said the team had only been practicing for a week and were following all the current COVID-19 protocols.

“Right now, we’re practicing in smaller groups with the players wearing masks on and off the ice and we’re adhering to all the NCAA Resocialization of Collegiate Sports guidelines. At this point there are no full-scale scrimmages because those have not been approved yet,” he said.

Aaron Michelucci, the president of Westfield Youth Hockey, said that the players were missing out because of the shutdown.

“We have approximately 150 players and somewhere in the neighborhood of 25 to 30 coaches and assistant coaches. Right now, the players are unable to participate in something that gives them an outlet from regular everyday life,” he said.

Despite being unable to practice indoors, Michelucci said some of the teams were still able to practice at the outdoor rink at Amelia Park.

“For Westfield Youth Hockey we are somewhat lucky because of Amelia Park so we’ve been able to do outdoor-style practices with appropriate masks and hygiene at the outdoor rink there. So, we’ve been able to keep the kids active and engaged which has been sort of a blessing this week,” he said.

Michelucci said that everyone had to remember that the sport is about the children first.

“I would advocate for everyone to follow the rules and remember why we are involved in youth hockey. It’s about the kids and the kids have to be the priority. Spectators, breaking rules on rosters and stuff like that is just not helping our kids,” he said.

He added that the shutdown is a reminder for the organization and hockey teams across the state that COVID is still present.

“From a hockey perspective, the shutdown is a good reminder for us as an organization and the rink to take everything seriously and reassess things that might have not been appropriately enforced, so I think the governor made the right call in hindsight. It was a let’s stop and check ourselves at the door and make sure we really start paying attention,” he said.

While the current suspension is set to end on Nov. 7, Landon said there is even more uncertainty beyond then.

“There’s still a lot of uncertainty going forward even after two weeks as to what’s going to happen with the leagues and what we have, there’s a lot of decisions to be made after Nov. 7 as well,” he said.

For now, Landon said it is a waiting game until the park can start running its regular events.

“We’re still open we’re just hoping we can get things back to normal, so we sit and wait for the governor to make his next ruling and I guess Nov. 7 is when we’ll hear,” he said.