Important Season Dates
Coaches and bench staff are encouraged to review the
important season dates found under the Team Officials tab on the website. This will outline important meetings, clinics, rostering and AP deadlines, blackout dates for the association for tournaments and guidelines.
Parent Meeting
Following the formation of teams, it is important for the coach to call a parent meeting to introduce themselves, the bench staff and clarify expectations and goals for the season. This meeting can be held in the lobby of either SHRC or STA, or in a changeroom provided one is available. It is suggested to schedule it either before or after a practice.
In preparation for this meeting:
- Coach – determine tournament dates and fees
- Manager – collect volunteer bond cheques ($500 dated Dec 1, 2023) and medical forms to provide to team trainer
Suggested topics to cover:
- Team responsibilities – carrying away jerseys, gamesheet, timeclock, payment of referees – these are items that can be scheduled or assigned to parents
- Expectations of players and parents
- Confirm up to date or preferred contact information for parents
- Determine/discuss best option for communications – email, group chat
- Dress code for players (warm up gear required)
- Expected arrival times ahead of practices and games (home and away)
- Tournaments – dates, fees
- Mode of communication between coaches and parents and reminder regarding the 24-hour rule when addressing concerns
Rosters
- Your roster cannot be created until all members of your team (players and bench staff) are registered on RAMP for the current season (http://SouthHuronGH.rampregistrations.com) AND bench staff has completed the required qualifications.
- All teams will need an approved roster for regular season games as well as tournaments (pre-season exhibition may take place before roster is approved). Players/bench staff will not appear on your RAMP GameSheet app until your roster is approved.
- Substitute or pick up players can be used and are not rostered to the team, but rather sharing of the player is completed via RAMP. See Pick Up Players below for information.
- A copy of your approved roster will be sent to you or your manager.
Pick Up/Substitute Players
- Teams can use a pick-up player to replace a rostered player who is unavailable. You cannot have more players than the number of players approved on your roster in any game. Adding a pick up player is done by the coaches (the team the player is rostered to and the coach picking up the player). The coach that wants to borrow the player will submit a request to use a pick up player through the RAMP team Games Portal and once approved by the coach of the team the player is rostered to, the player can be added by to the RAMP GameSheet app (see info below).
- A number of rules apply for the use of pick up players and are outlined below:
a) Pick-ups are not permitted for suspended players.
b) All Pickup Player requests must be completed via RAMP Games Portal. To submit and approve a request please use the link that will take you to the OWHA website: Player Pick Up Requests (Oct 2022_).pdf (rampinteractive.com)
c) For Regular Season League games, a team may pick up any eligible player, to a max of 3 pick up players, from a lower category to bring the total number of players to the number of rostered players (can’t exceed the total number on the roster). The OWHA may authorize the movement of a goaltender for emergency situations only, identified as being situations in which the team would have no roster goalie available to play.
d) Pick Up players are not eligible for Championship Weekend. (Exception for Goalies with League approval). NOTE: Pick up players are NOT permitted for OWHA provincial playdowns or championships.
e) A Pick-Up Player is defined as EITHER from:
a. a lower age level and the same classification or lower. (E.g.: 1 – U15 A team can call from U13 A team. Or E.g.: 2 – U15 A team can call from U13 BB team).
b. the same age level and lower classification: (E.g.: 3 - U15 A team can call from U15 BB team.)
c. CANNOT be from a higher category (E.g.: 4 – U15 A team can NOT call from U13 AA team.)
f) Any team found to have violated the Pick-Up Players rule will forfeit the game and will be reported to the OWHA as a suspendable offence.
g) Pick up players must meet OWHA requirements including but not limited to prior written approval from the pickup players team/association.
- After the coach requests the player via RAMP (team page) and the rostered coach approves the request, the pick up player can be added to the gamesheet. This can be done through the “ROSTER” tab and then by selecting either the Home team or the Visiting Team. The “ADD PLAYER” button is there and all information pertaining to that player can be added (NEED TO HAVE THE PLAYER ADDED AS A PICK UP PLAYER FIRST).
Tournaments
-
The majority of SH teams will select between 1 and 3 tournaments to play in each season.
- The expenses for the tournaments are to be paid by the teams and are not covered by SHMHA.
- The selection of these tournaments is determined by the coach and should use parent input on the number, timing, cost and location. Tournaments can fill quickly and teams will need to register for these as early as possible to ensure entry.
- SHMHA works hard to host a home tournament for each of our teams each season.
- If a home tournament is available for your team, it is expected that your team will register for it as one of their selected tournaments.
- When making these selections, please consider the travel expenses involved for families. .
- Once tournaments have been selected:
- Coaches will need to reschedule any conflicting league games
- Notify Ice Scheduler to have the tournament added to your calendar
- You will need to provide tournament name, dates and location.
- After the ice scheduler has added the tournament to your team’s calendar, managers can add tournament games to the team calendar using the mobile app or desktop version.
Practices
-
Teams have been provided with a weekly practice and game schedule that will remain consistent through the season starting early in October and ending in March (watch for black outs during home tournaments).
- Should you need to cancel or change a practice, please notify the ice scheduler as soon as possible. Any cancelled practice times will be sent out to other teams to fill. It is our hope that no ice goes unused as it remains an expense to SHMHA regardless of use.
- Alternatively, your team contact will also receive emails listing any open ice times that are available to your team to add to your schedule throughout the season
- There should only be 1 team contact communicating with the Ice Scheduler throughout the season (pick up ice, cancellations etc.)
- SHMHA endeavors to distribute extra ice as evenly as possible, but there may be times when ice will need to be swapped, cancelled or rearranged to accommodate weather cancellations or the rescheduling of games etc.
Medical Information
-
A medical information sheet must be completed for each player. A copy of the form can be found on the SHMHA website under Team Officials tab. The forms are to be filled out by the parents and should be kept on file by the team trainer. Be sure to also collect a form for any affiliate players that will be skating with your team. These forms are to be destroyed at the end of the season.
Concussion and Return to Play
See links under Team Officials Tab for links to information on concussion facts, prevention and return to play form.
Injury Reports
A Hockey Canada Injury Report (located under Team Officials tab – Forms) Must be filled out and submitted whenever:
- A player leaves the ice with concussion related symptoms.
- A player suffers an injury requiring medical attention.
Please follow all Hockey Canada guidelines on return to play and required documentation.
Supervising Your Team
-
There must be at least one team staff member in the arena when the first player arrives and until the last player leaves. Do not leave players unattended.
- OHF “Two deep dressing room policy”:
- It will be the Policy of the Ontario Hockey Federation that, when any player under the age of 19 is in the team dressing room(s) before, during and after a game or practice, a minimum of two of the following shall be present in the dressing room(s) or immediately outside the dressing room(s) with the door ajar: two team or club/association officials, properly screened or one such official and an adult person associated with the team. In the situation of Juvenile or U21 hockey the coach may use an adult player over the age of 19 to be the second adult associated with the team.
- Two deep policy applies during any interactions with players (coach discussion with player, trainer assessment off ice etc.)
On the Ice
-
No player will be allowed on the ice at any time without proper equipment.
- Any individual under the age of 16 as an on-ice helper with a team must wear full gear.
- Helpers over the age of 16 (including coaches and bench staff) must wear a helmet.
- Ice time is scheduled by the hour, but this block is only 50 minutes to allow 10 minutes to clear and resurface the ice. This applies to all groups.
- No person is allowed on the ice surface while it is being cleaned. No person is to enter the ice surface until the staff has cleared from the area and closed the doors.
Website
Officials
-
Officials are automatically assigned when games are added to the schedule. Sufficient notice to reschedule a league game or add an exhibition game must be given in order to allow for this to happen. There is a severe shortage of qualified officials, so please give the ice and referee scheduler as much notice as possible to both schedule and cancel.
- Teams will be responsible for paying and tracking officials for all of their home games. Cheques will be distributed at the beginning of the season to each head coach in order to allow for this to happen. Tracking forms are available on the website (under the Team Officials tab) and must be filled out at each game. Officials receive mileage upon arrival along with pay for the game – if your game is the first one of a series that the official has arrived for, you will be responsible for paying it.
- You may request more additional funds have another cheque written. This could take a week or more, so please track your funds carefully.
- A pay schedule for referees can be found on the website under Coaches and Managers info. Fees are based on the division as well as the length of the game.
Below is a list of the standard league game times for reference:
- OWHA-SOUTHERN Divisions and Categories to follow:
- All U11; U13 A, BB, B, C; U15 BB, B, C; U18 B, C: 10-12-12
- All U18 A, BB; U15 A: 15-15-15
- WOGHL offers min and max period lengths. While SHMHA does not curfew games, coaches need to ensure games are completed within their scheduled ice time out of respect for the next team and officials.
- U9 Half ice (until Jan 15): 2 x 22 min straight time with 2 min buzzers
- U9 Full ice: 10-10-12 minimum to max of 10-10-15
- U11-U18 HL: 10-10-12 minimum to max of 10-10-15
- U11C/B- U18 C/B: 10-10-15 minimum to max of 10-15-15
- Warm up 2:30 and no team meetings on ice prior to game as well as no team meetings at the bench between periods (short break for goalie to switch ends and have water break only)
RAMP Gamesheets
-
Gamesheets are completed electronically on iPad that are provided at the arenas. They are located in the booth, and this may change during the season as we sort out storage options.
- The code to unlock the iPad is XXXX.
- Teams will be provided a team login and password which is used to login to the team page to access game codes: https://admin.rampcms.com/login.
- It is suggested that one person is assigned (manager or RAMP rep for the team) that can access the game codes for each game.
- For each game, there are 4 codes on the RAMP team webpage:
- Home Team
- Visiting Team
- Gamesheet
- Officials
- The manager or RAMP rep for the team will email out the Gamesheet code for the timekeeper before each game. The coach will need to log into the RAMP GameSheet app (either using the home or visiting team code) and mark who is present/absent for the game (bench staff and players) and the coach will also sign the gamesheet electronically.
- Each timekeeper will need to create their own username and password to log into the RAMP GameSheet app. They will then use the game code provided by the team manager (or team assigned RAMP rep) to load the game onto the iPad.
- Follow the links below for instructions on how to use the RAMP GameSheet and FAQs:
• Electronic gamesheets - For Teams (Oct 29).pdf (rampinteractive.com)
• Question - Ramp Gamesheet App (Oct 27) Final2.pdf (rampinteractive.com)
Exhibition Games
-
SHMHA allows teams to arrange for home exhibition games where ice time and referees are available. The selected time slot must be long enough to allow for a game.
- It is not recommended to schedule games in practice time slots as these are often not as long as game slots. Enough notice to allow for referees to be scheduled must be given. Once scheduled, notify the ice scheduler to have it added to your calendar. As it is not a league game, it will not be linked to your opponents calendar and they will also have to have it added on their end. The situation is also applies in reverse should you be travelling for an exhibition game.
- Exhibition games are inputted under Portal Games in RAMP and the home team needs to send the game codes to the away team and timekeeper.
- There will be times where requests for home exhibition games may not be able to be accommodated due to referee shortages. In these cases, coaches will be notified as quickly as possible and will be responsible for notifying the other team to cancel the game.
Scheduling/Cancelling/Rescheduling Games
-
RAMP and our website are not linked in any way. So all home games need to be created by the home coach in RAMP, plus the coach needs to notify the Ice Scheduler of ALL games to have them added to the calendar.
- There are various reasons why a game may need to be cancelled. The travelling/visiting team may need to cancel for inclement weather. League games must be rescheduled if this happens and the coach is responsible for rescheduling this game with the opposing team.
- The coach will need to notify the Ice Scheduler ASAP and he will remove it from the website which will also trigger cancellation of the refs for home games.
| Notify the Ice Scheduler of scheduled/cancelled/rescheduled games: |
|
Bernie ([email protected])
|