Hat Trick Ball Hockey

Administrative Regulations

•All players must complete a waiver form to play.

•Players that are under the age of 18 must have their waiver form completed by a parent or guardian. Violation of this rule could result in suspension/legal charges.

•Deposits and registration fees are non-refundable.

Equipment

•CSA approved hockey helmets with functional chin straps are mandatory. Face protection is optional although strongly recommended.

•Any player under the age of 18 must wear full face protection (cage or bubble).

•Hockey gloves are mandatory.

•Hockey sticks must be in good condition. Plastic sticks are not permitted.

•Team shirts must be the same color and numbers are recommended for stats purposes. Failure to meet the requirements above can result in players being removed from the game.

•Although not mandatory, we strongly suggest the use of a mouth guard, shin pads, elbow pads and a protective cup for your own safety.

Rosters

*Unless specified below, all references to players, include goalies.

•Game day rosters are limited to 19 players.

•Important: All players, full time or spares, must have 3 regular season games to be eligible for a team in the playoffs. *Captains, it is your responsibility to ensure your team roster is accurate on the website.

•Players can only play on one team per division unless they are a paid full-time player on another roster and/or the player is pre-approved by the league.

Furthermore, if divisions are required, the rules, bolded below, will be updated, and shared with captains.

-Teams in the A division are allowed to pick up any player from any division whether inside or outside the league as long as they are not already on an A roster.

-Teams in the B division cannot use A level players unless full time or pre-approved by the league. They can pick up players from the C division or outside the league. Any spares from inside or outside the league will be assessed to determine if they qualify as A level players and captains will be made aware.

-Teams in the C division cannot use A or B level players unless full time or pre-approved by the league. They can pick up players from outside the league. Any spares will be assessed to determine if they qualify as higher level players and captains will be made aware.

•Injured players can sign in with the scorekeeper and it will count as a game played. This player won’t count towards the 19-player game roster.

•In the regular season, goalies can be borrowed from other teams no matter the division or brought in from outside the league.

•In the playoffs, all goalie spares must have enough games to qualify for the playoffs. If they do not have enough games to qualify, they must be approved in advance by the league to ensure fairness.

NOTE: Teams using “A” level goalies to spare during the regular season can be denied being able to use them come playoffs even if they qualify if it is deemed an upgrade on their division roster.

•The league holds the right to request proof of identification from a player if required. False information can result in further discipline towards the team, captain and/or player.

•Teams require a minimum of 5 players to start a game.

•In circumstances where a team does not have 5 players, officials or the league will start running the clock 5 minutes after the scheduled start time and the game will be deemed a forfeit once 5 minutes has run off the clock or 10 minutes past the scheduled start time. Once the clock has been started, if the team in question gets enough players to play, they will be assessed a delay of game penalty which must be served right away.

•If a goalie gets injured during a game, the team has 5 minutes to find a replacement. Failure to do so will result in the team playing with 6 runners.

•Only the team captain is permitted to communicate with the referee’s and the scorekeeper.

Gameplay

•The format is 5 on 5, plus goalies.

•Teams are to remain on the same side/bench for the entire game. If a team wants to change at the intermission due to an advantage, they must request it with an official before the start of the second half.

•Teams are responsible for their own balls in the warm-up.

•Games will consist of two 16-minute (stop time) periods. A short intermission will be provided in between periods.

•Each team has one timeout per game.

•If there is a 5-goal difference with 5 minutes or less in the game, the clock will continue to run.

•If a team gets a (10) goal lead at any point during a game, the game is officially over by mercy. Teams who wish to use their half of the floor for the remaining time can do so, but must vacate the floor 10 minutes prior to the start of the next game.

•The scorekeeper holds the right to change the clock to run time to ensure we stay on schedule. Should this take place, both teams will be notified.

•If the referee is unsure of a goal or penalty, they can consult the scorekeeper at their own discretion.

•The scorekeeper can stop a game to speak with a referee and a call can be reversed after such discussion.

•If a regular season game ends in a tie, we directly go to a sudden death shootout.

•Each team sends one player, and they shoot at the same time. Since its sudden death, if one player scores and the other does not, the game is over.

•If still tied after 3 shooters, the team who scored first in the game decides if they shoot or defend in the "final shot". If the game was scoreless, we will randomly select a team.

•No player can shoot twice, unless shooting in the “final shot”.

•The final shot determines the winner of the game, based on the one play. If the player scores, their team gets the win, however, if the player does not score, the goalie's team gets the win.

•In a playoff game, sudden death overtime will be played. We will begin with 4 on 4 for 4 minutes. If no one scores, we then go 3 on 3 for 3 minutes. All stop time. If still tied, we move on to a 3-player shootout. If still tied after the 3-player shootout, we move on to a sudden death shootout. No one can shoot twice until the entire team has shot.

•If point standings are tied after the regular season, we will rank in this order:

-Wins

-Total points in head-to-head matchups

-Goal differential

-Goal against

-Goal for

-Least amount of team penalty minutes

If three or more teams are tied, the total points in head-to-head matchups are not considered. Wins is the first tie breaker, followed by goal differential, etc.

•Icing is non-touch and called from inside your own blue line instead of the red line. If the goalie leaves the crease, the icing will be waived off. Players are permitted to change on an icing.

•For offsides we use the floating blue line. Once a player has moved the ball over the offensive blue line, the blue line disappears, and the attacking zone increases in size to the centre red line. In other words, the ball remains on-side until it crosses the centre red line, not the blue line.

•Hand passes are permitted if they are received inside your defensive blue line.

•Faceoffs following penalties will be in the offending team’s zone unless penalties are off setting.

•If the play is stopped due to an injury, the injured player must leave the floor.

•During the play, if a player is bleeding or loses their helmet, they must immediately leave the floor.

•All netting is live throughout the arena. The play will stop if the ball hits any part of the ceiling or anything out of bounds behind the benches, scorekeeper or penalty box area.

Penalties

We will follow NHL penalty guidelines with a few exceptions noted below.

Minors = 2:00 minutes

Any stick above your shoulders that contacts the ball

Swinging a stick recklessly

Diving or sliding which interferes with a player or is deemed dangerous, whether or not the ball was touched first.

Getting involved in the play without a helmet on.

If a goalie leaves their crease to get involved in an altercation.

Double Minors = 4:00 minutes

Any high stick that contacts another player above the shoulders.

Head contact, including face wash.

Any minor penalty deemed by the ref to be excessive and not warranting a major/match penalty.

Majors/Match Penalty = 5:00 minutes

Any penalty in which the ref deems excessive, intent to injure or a reckless play, includes accidental.

Players who are assessed a major penalty automatically receive a game misconduct. The penalty must be served by a player on the floor.

Misconduct = 10:00 minutes

Player will serve the misconduct in the penalty box; however, the team is not shorthanded.

Any player that is assessed a 2^nd misconduct penalty in the same game shall automatically be assessed a game misconduct penalty.

Game/Gross Misconduct

Players who are assessed a game/gross misconduct are ejected from the game and could face further discipline. A player who gets ejected must leave the floor and bench area. Failure to do so can result in a bench penalty and/or further discipline.

Other

•Any player which receives 3 penalties in one game is ejected from the game. Double minors count as one penalty towards the player, unless stated otherwise by the referee. A delayed penalty or a penalty shot counts as a penalty against the offending player.

•Any player that comes off the bench will receive a 2 minute bench minor and game misconduct.

•If a referee awards a penalty shot, the player fouled must take the penalty shot unless injured. If injured, the player taking the shot must have been on the floor.

•No delay of game penalties will be assessed if the ball leaves the playing area, however, referees can assess a delay of game penalty towards any action deemed intentional.

Suspensions, Fines and more

•The league will assess suspensions, fines and expulsions when required to maintain the integrity of the league and for everyone’s safety. These are reviewed on a case-by-case basis and the league has the final decision in each case. Fines are enforced as a deterrent and the fine money collected will be used to reward fair play.

•When a suspension is assessed, it applies to all HTBHL leagues, therefore, you cannot play HTBHL until the full suspension is served.

•All major/match penalties and game/gross misconducts come with a $20 team fine and an automatic league review to determine if further action is required.

•If any player receives a combination of 2 game ejections/misconducts in one season they will be automatically suspended for 1 game and fined $20. The following ejection/misconduct could result in further discipline including being suspended for the remainder of the season.

•Any default within 48 hours of your game time will result in a team fine of $60.00. If a default occurs, the final score will be 10-0.

•All fines must be paid before the following game.

•Both referees or the league can cancel a game due to a team or players behavior and such could result in a loss for that team.

•Should a game be cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances, the league will attempt to reschedule the game. If it can’t be rescheduled, no refunds will be issued.

•Captains are responsible for their teams and their spectators.

•The league holds the right to expel players that don’t abide to our rules and regulations.

•All actions taken on or against facility property before, during or after games can also result in league suspensions/fines/expulsion.

•Use of illicit drugs and/or alcohol is prohibited on all facility property. Any player who is suspected of being intoxicated by the league, officials or facility staff must leave the premises immediately, and can result in league suspensions/fines/expulsion.