Walkerton Men’s Recreational Hockey League - Rules & Regulations

General Rules

1. CMHA Rules will apply along with any additions from the WMRHL rules.

2. The centre-ice red line will not used for the purpose of the 2-line offside rule.

3. League meetings are open to all members of the WMRHL.

4. All team representatives in attendance will be given one vote on all league business with a maximum of 2 votes per team. Team representatives may also hold positions on the league executive. The league President, who is considered a team representative for the purposes of General Rule 6 below, does not get to vote on any WMRHL business.

5. All motions must receive more than 50% of the votes cast in order to be passed.

6. All league meetings must be attended by at least one representative from each team. Any team not represented or being late for a meeting will be assessed a fifty-dollar ($50) fine and the team will lose one point in the standings. A fifteen (15) minute grace period will be allowed prior the penalties being assessed.

7. Minimum age of players is twenty-one (21) years of age. The league executive must approve any exceptions, with any member at the meeting having veto rights.

8. The President / Referee-in-chief of the WMRHL will change on an annual basis with the new president starting each year at the Christmas meeting. The presidency will rotate through the teams in the league with teams providing a candidate in the following order – Knights, RKS, Chiefs, D’Anglers, Hounds, Puck Hogs.

9. For the year prior to a team’s term as president, a team will provide a Vice-President for the league.

10. League statistician and timekeeper will be appointed by league as required.

11. Any change of team colours must get WMRHL executive approval prior to purchase.

12. Full teams may be allowed to enter the league when numbers dictate and when agreed upon by the league executive.

13. At the year-end tournament, the team with the least, second least and third least penalty minutes during the regular season will receive 36, 24 and 12 beers of their choice from the team with the most, second most and third most penalty minutes.

14. Any individual that is not on a team and is at a meeting must pay for one round.

15. A donation of $100 from each team, for a total of $600 will be donated to a local charity each year. This charity will be picked by the league president and agreed to by the league executive at the pre-season meeting.

League Finances

1. Team fees will be determined at the start of each season by the league executive.

2. Team fees are to be paid to the Treasurer by October 31st for the 1st half of the season and January 31st for the 2nd half of the season. Late payment will result in a $50 fine to the team for each month that payment is not received.

Player Selection Rules

1. All players must join the league through the player selection draft process.

2. No player can be picked up after the draft, unless their name was on paper at the time of the draft and unanimous consent is received from all team representatives.

3. There is to be only 2 player selection drafts per season. These drafts are to be held prior to the first game of the season and prior to the first game after the Christmas break.

4. All players entering draft must submit completed application form with cash or a cheque for $100 made payable to WMRHL. If the player doesn’t want to play on the team that they were selected to they must wait one full year to re-enter the draft. That team may choose to keep that players money or give it back.

5. All teams must submit a revised team list prior to the beginning of the draft process. All players on team list must have played at least one game in the prior season to be included on the list. Any player who fails to play at least one game for his existing team in the prior season must return to the draft to rejoin the league. An exemption exists for players who have been forced to quit due to an injury or a suspension. Or executive approval.

6. Draft order will be determined by the league standing as of the end of the regular season for the preseason draft and as of the standing at the Christmas break for the Christmas draft. The team with the fewest points gets the first pick. If tied, then the team with least number of wins will get the first draft. If still tied, as coin toss will break the tie.

7. Any team that has less than 14 players, not including the goalie, must choose a player, if one is available, when it is their turn to pick as per the above draft order.

8. Any team that has 21 or more players, not including the goalie, must not draft any more players during the draft process.

9. Following the draft, team representatives are responsible for notifying their new players.

10. The league president will call all non-drafted players to pick up their refund.

Rules of Play

1. Length of game will consist of two 18-minute stop time periods with a five (5) minute pre-game warm-up. If the game is tied after the two periods the game will go to a shootout. 3 shooters per-team, no repeats. If still tied after three shooters then teams take turns until one team scores and the other doesn’t.

2. Body contact will not be allowed, except to the extent that a player shall be allowed to stand his ground or to “squeeze” another player off. This shall not, at any time, be interpreted as to allow body checking.

3. All players must wear CSA approved hockey helmets. Approved partial or full-face mask protection is optional.

4. If a team has less than 5 skaters as of game time and the game has not been cancelled 24 hours in advance, the team will forfeit the game and be assessed a $100 fine payable to the WMRHL. No fine will be assessed if any of the roads coming into town are officially closed.

5. A team will receive two points of a win even if the win is in the shootout, one point for a loss in the shootout and zero for a loss in regulation.

Tournament Rules

1. To be eligible to play in the Tournament, players must have played in at least 5 regular season games.

2. Tournament will be a round robin format with groupings determined by final season standings. In one round robin will be teams placing 1st, 4th, and 6th, while the other round robin will be teams placing 2nd, 3rd, and 5th. Ties in league standings will be broken as follows:

i) Goals plus – minus

ii) Least penalty minutes accumulated by the teams

iii) Coin Toss

3. The 1st and 2nd place teams in the regular season are awarded the use of the larger dressing rooms during the tournament.

4. Tournament games will consist of two 18-minute stop time periods with a five (5) minute pre-game warm-up.

5. All Tie games after regulation will end with a shootout. Team with the best record in the regular season goes first. (3 shooters per-team, no repeats. If still tied after three shooters then teams take turns until one team scores and the other doesn’t)

6. Every game worth 3 points (3 for the win, 2 for the shootout win, 1 for the shootout loss.)

7. If a round robin ends in a tie between teams the winner will be determined as follows:

i) If only 2 teams left, then head-to-head record from round robin. (Including shootout)

ii) Goals plus-minus from round robin plays (not including shootout goals)

iii) Least penalty minutes accumulated during tournament games

iv) Coin Toss (the team with the best regular season record will call the toss)

8. Finals will start 30 minutes after the last semi-final game ends.

Player Penalties

1. Any player receiving three (3) minor penalties in one (1) game shall be ejected from the game. The game ejection occurs on the 3rd penalty.

2. Any player who shows disrespect for another player or a game official shall be given a ten-minute misconduct or a game misconduct, if required. A player who receives a game misconduct after the first period of the game will miss the team’s next scheduled game.

3. Penalties shall be assessed for spearing, butt ending, spitting, kicking, and fighting. A five (5) minute major penalty accompanies this violation. A player who was on the ice at the time of the infraction must serve a five (5) minute penalty. If the opposing team scores, the penalized player remains in the penalty box until the full five (5) minutes is served.

4. The above penalty constitutes an automatic minimum three (3) game suspension. With the discretion of the referee for more. If the same individual receives a 2nd penalty referred to in #3 above within 365 days of the 1st penalty, an automatic league suspension for the next thirty (30) consecutive games (including playoff games) will occur – subject to the league executive approval.

5. Any player receiving a major penalty shall be ejected from the game and receive a one game suspension. A player who was on the ice at the time of the infraction must serve a five (5) minute penalty. If the opposing team scores, the penalized player remains in the penalty box until the full five (5) minutes is served.

6. When any other 5-minute penalty is assessed, a disciplinary meeting will be held. All league executives including all team representatives should be present. If they wish, the referees and the player(s) involved can also attend. An information gathering discussion of the facts involved will be held and referees and all players associated with the teams involved will be dismissed. The representative of the remaining teams will discuss the issues and assess appropriate penalties.

7. Any verbal or physical abuse of game officials shall constitute a match penalty and the offending player will receive an automatic five game suspension. The league committee, in conjunction with the referee, will review this misconduct and assess addition penalties as required

8. Referees will give immediate reports to the timekeeper on the match and misconduct penalties. The game may be delayed, if required, to allow the game officials to accurately record the infractions. Time remaining on the clock will be adjusted, when required, to compensate for the delay of the game.

9. Referees are advised to show zero tolerance to any physical or verbal abuse.