The good news is the Carillon Senior Hockey League will again operate with six teams this season.

The bad news is two communities rich with senior hockey history will not have a home team to cheer for and support in 2017-2018.

The Steinbach Huskies and La Broquerie Habs have both taken a one-year leave of absence.

If you're a hockey fan and you really enjoyed watching the Huskies or Habs over the years, you may want to ask this question.

"What in the name of Andy Stoesz, Ken Krentz, Gil Dube and Mitch Normandeau is going on?"

"We're disappointed," said CSHL president Ray Laing. "La Broquerie had a 70-year run except they had to take one-year off when the arena burnt down in 1977. So that run has come to an end. Hopefully things will return. Steinbach's issue was just a lack of interest from players to get it going this year. Hopefully they'll miss it and be back next year.”

La Broquerie has been without a Hanover Tache Junior Hockey League team since 2014 so the Habs haven't had that natural pipeline for players to make the jump from junior to senior hockey.

The Huskies meanwhile were already running thin last year when it came to players making a commitment to find time to practice and play a 20-game season as well as playoffs.

Despite losing Steinbach and La Broquerie, the CSHL will still have six teams as the St. Malo Warriors are back from their one-year leave of absence and the Lac du Bonnet Blues were added to the league.

President Laing said it took a lot of effort to make the Warriors return come to fruition.

"Luc Carriere has done a lot of work over the summer. He organized a golf tournament and he's created some excitement in the community. He's working hard putting players together and if his enthusiasm towards it is any indication, they'll have a pretty good year.”

The Blues just needed a league to play in.

Lac du Bonnet won the Manitoba Senior Hockey League championship in 2015-2016 but the MSHL did not operate the following season.

"Distance is definitely a factor," said Laing when asked about the Blues acceptance into the CSHL. "St. Jean to Lac du Bonnet is quite a hike. Ste. Anne and Springfield are closer so if there are weekday games to be played those teams could be travelling up there. Otherwise it will mean a heavy weekend schedule for the other teams to make the trip easier."

As for the players from the Huskies and Habs who still want to play senior hockey - there is a free agent rule in the CSHL.

A player such as Steinbach's Tanner Harms or La Broquerie's Rejean Carriere, for example, can go to any team they wish but if the Huskies and Habs return next season, they have to go back to their old teams.

The defending champion Ste. Anne Aces, Red River Wild, Grunthal Red Wings, Springfield 98’s, St. Malo Warriors and Lac du Bonnet Blues will play a 20-game schedule beginning October 27th.