ROCHESTER, Minn. - Hockey is just around the corner. Friday is the start of main camp for the Rochester Grizzlies and North Iowa Bulls.

The Grizzlies will welcome roughly 80 players including veterans, prospects, and those they hope to build relationships with for the future.

As with anything in the world of COVID-19, the Grizzlies will have to take extra precautions such as temperature checks, sanitation, etc. to make sure everyone is as safe as possible.

They will be taking the same precautions as they did at the Austin Bruins' main camp at the end of July.

Coach Chris Ratzloff says he is more than confident in their ability to create a safe environment.

“The feedback we had from the people that attended the Austin camp said that was one of the best that they’ve seen for precautions that have been taken of the ones they had been to,” Ratzloff said. “We’re going to follow the guidelines. Obviously, the Rec Center has a little different policy than Austin’s rink does but it’s going to be quite similar.”

At the completion of the camp, the team will have a little more than a month to prepare for the first matchup of the season.

Ratzloff says he is both excited and nervous.

“I think the scary part is the unknown for what we’re going to have to do in case we do have someone that gets infected or just keeping the kids in a safe environment and trying to get across to them, ‘hey, we know you’re 16-20 years old but you need to stay as a group and stay away from other people.”

The NA3HL season is slated to begin Oct. 2.