Constitution, Rules & Regulations
Western Ontario Girls Hockey League Regulations
As amended May 2010
Article 1 Name
The Organization shall be known as Western Ontario Girls Hockey League,
Herein referred to as "WOGHL"
Article 2 Objective
To provide recreational hockey instruction and competition for females of all ages. To instill in the players a love for the game of hockey and a respect for the ideals of sportsmanship.
Article 3 Affiliation
The WOGHL shall be affiliated with the Ontario Women’s Hockey Association (OWHA).
All games shall be played by WOGHL, Hockey Canada and OWHA rules.
Article 4 Membership
1. Each Player
2. Each team official, coach, assistant coach, trainer, manager
3. Each executive member
4. Certain other officials appointed from time to time by the Executive
5. Any new Association applying to play in the WOGHL, must be accepted by a vote at a General Meeting.
6. Every player and every team official must be registered with OWHA for the current playing season.
7. Each team/association must use the appropriate "Intent to Register" form. Forms must be handed in with the applicable payment at the Fall Scheduling meeting before team is eligible for scheduling games.
8. Each team is required to pay the annual membership fee of $60.00.
Article 5 Executive
a) The Executive shall consist of the President, Past President, Secretary and Treasurer. There will also be a group of Directors consisting of Division Convenors and Statisticians.
b) The members of the executive shall be elected to a two year term at the annual general meeting.
c) The Directors shall be elected by ballot at the AGM and serve a term of two years. The minimum number of directors shall not be less than 6. Where there is a shortage of directors, appointments will be made by the executive.
d) The Executive shall carry out the objective of WOGHL according to the Regulations. The executive shall be responsible for the planning, organization and administration of WOGHL.
e) The official signing officers of the WOGHL shall be the Treasurer and either the President or the Past President.
f) The Executive shall appoint a League Privacy Officer for the current season and associations will be notified of this person.Article 6 Duties of the Executive Members
a) The President shall preside over all WOGHL meetings.
b) The Past President shall act in the absence of the President and assist the President whenever required.
c) The Secretary shall keep proper minutes of all Executive meetings and send copies to all voting members. The Secretary shall handle all correspondence on behalf of WOGHL.
d) The Treasurer shall have charge of the books pertaining to other business of the WOGHL. The Treasurer shall collect funds and deposit funds in a bank account in the name WOGHL. The Treasurer shall sign all cheques pertaining to WOGHL monies under the direction of the Executive. The Treasurer shall be responsible to administer the Performance Bonds as set out in the by-laws.
e) The Directors, Division Convenors and / or Statistician shall keep all game sheets pertaining to WOGHL play in order to determine standings, individual records and discipline actions.
Article 7 Meetings
a) The Annual General Meeting (AGM) shall be held prior to May 1st of the playing year for the purpose of reading the annual report and electing officers. All members shall be notified thirty (30) days prior to the date of the AGM.
b) General meetings of the WOGHL may be held periodically prior to and throughout the season. All members shall be notified 14 days prior to any general meeting.
c) Division Convenors may hold meetings at any time throughout the season. Date, time and location to be agreed upon by all members involved.
Article 8 Voting Powers at General Meetings
a) The elected and appointed officers of the Executive are entitled to one (1) vote at all General Meetings and at the AGM. Proxy votes are permitted.
b) One member from each participating centre is entitled to one (1) vote.c) All votes for election purposes are to be by secret ballot.
Article 9 Nominations
a) Each voting member shall have the privilege of nomination of a candidate for an elected office of WOGHL
b) A member may be nominated for more than one office, but may not hold more than one office in any given year.
Article 10 Amendments
An amendment to the constitution of WOGHL may be made at the AGM. A proposed amendment must be submitted to the Secretary 30 days prior to the AGM and copies sent to each association or posted on the WOGHL website prior to the AGM. A simple majority of all votes cast is required for an amendment to be adopted.
Rules and Regulations
1. AgeTeams playing in the WOGHL shall be divided based on age of players as set down by the OWHA. Team age to be categorized the same as the OWHA
a) All players must be properly registered on their teams OWHA team registration form as per OWHA rules. Any player added to a team roster after January 1st must be approved by the WOGHL executive.
b) To be eligible for WOGHL playoffs, all players must have played a minimum of five (5) WOGHL games with their OWHA registered team prior to January 15th. Exemptions may be granted at the discretion of the WOGHL Executive. Teams unable to meet these criteria must apply in writing to the WOGHL Executive for exemption.
c) For League games, a team may use from their own association, a maximum of three (3) pick up players from a lower category to bring the total team strength to fifteen (15) but not to exceed the number of registered players on the team. The Executive may authorize the lateral movement of a goaltender for emergency purposes only. No call ups for playoff games without the permission of the League Convenor and League President
a) Each team may register a maximum of seventeen (17) skaters and a maximum of two (2) goaltenders. b) Your OWHA Team Roster to be submitted to your Convenor by date set out at the Scheduling Meeting.
As required by Hockey Canada and OWHA. Mouth guards are recommended by the WOGHL.
a) All teams are reminded to follow and respect the Fair Play Codes set out by Hockey Canada in the "Safety Requires Teamwork" Booklet.
b) All teams are expected to adhere to the guidelines of Hockey Canada/OWHA "Speak out" Program for Harassment and Abuse.
c)"Good Sportsman Rule" – All WOGHL games will end with the players of the two teams and coaches shaking hands.
The Division Convenors and coaches of said division shall be responsible to finalize the format of the League Schedule. The play-off format will be decided at the scheduling meeting. The WOGHL supplies Awards for the Regular Season Champion, the Play-off winner and the Play-off Finalist.
It is the responsibility of all teams to have a balanced schedule. Any team or association failing to attend the scheduling meeting shall not be eligible for league play. The scheduling meeting will be held late September of each calendar year. All associations will be notified at least 14 days prior.
Each team is required to have one member of the coaching staff attend the schedule meeting to be eligible to play in this league. Teams will not be allowed to schedule games prior to full payment of fees.
a) Each team shall supply to the Executive or their respective Convenor with:1. A map to their arena location, sufficient in number for each team in their division
2. A list of phone numbers for that team’s contact person, both day and evening, preferably with a fax number
3. A cheque or money order payable to the WOGHL to cover the entry fees for each team and each center to provide one cheque to cover the performance bond.
b) Each team must advise the Executive or the Division Convenor in writing of their respective team uniform colours for the season.Uniform colour conflicts - as per OWHA
c) Each team must advise the Executive or the Division Convenor in writing of their home ice dates and times, which shall be sufficient in number to provide home games against all other teams in their division. If there are teams that must travel over two hours to a game, arrangements may be made to play two games on the same day, or a mutually agreed upon arrangement.
d) Each team must undertake to have sufficient ice time to meet play-off requirements
e) The home team is responsible for mailing all game sheets to the division Convenor or statistician weekly or a $25.00 fee will be assessed. If two or more game sheets are outstanding, the delinquent team will be ineligible for league play-offs. The Association Travel Representative of the delinquent team will be notified of the fine by the statistician. This fine will be deducted from the Associations Bond account immediately. The Association will have 14 days from initial notification to remit funds to replenish the bond. Failure to replenish the bond will result in ALL the teams in this association being deemed ineligible for further play and all existing points will be removed from the standings.
a) PICK-UP PLAYERS: A Pick-Up Player is defined as EITHER from:
i) a lower age level and the same classification or lower
ii) the same age level and lower classificationE.g.: 1 Bantam A team can call from Peewee A team
E.g.: 2 Bantam A team can call from Peewee BB team
E.g.: 3 Bantam A team can call from Bantam BB team
E.g.: 4 Bantam A team can NOT call from Peewee AA team
b) Every Pick-Up player or goalie must be designated on the game sheet with the symbol "AP" beside her name. Exceptions can be made ONLY with approval of both the convenor and WOGHL president or his/her designate.
c) NO pickup players from within the same division and/or Tier Group.
d) NO pickup players in the playoffs without the prior consent of the division convenor and the league president.
a) If a player is serving a suspension, the coach or manager must write SUSPENSION and the suspension game number beside her name on the game sheet. (i.e. SUSPENSION 2 OF 4)
b)Any and all game sheets that show either the initiation or serving of a suspension must be faxed to the appropriate WOGHL Director/Convenor within 24 hours of the game being played, even if they are issued/served as tournament or exhibition games.
c)These actions are in addition to those required by the OWHA.
a) WOGHL Executive is responsible for dealing with suspensions; it may add more games to the OWHA Minimum Suspension.
b) If a team receives more than 25 penalty minutes in a game, excluding a player’s 10 minutes per game misconduct, the coach is suspended for the next league game. Second time, the coach receives two games. Third time, the coach is indefinitely suspended and must appear before the WOGHL Executive.
11. Forfeits
a) The convenor and statistician together will decide if any team should forfeit a game. If they can not decide, it will be determined by a committee formed by the President.b) Any team forfeiting a game will receive a $100.00 fine payable to WOGHL.
c) Any team not finishing all playoff games will receive a $100.00 fine payable to WOGHL. If payment is not received this team will not be in good standing and therefore not eligible for participation in next season’s play.
Any Association or team who is levied a fine by WOGHL will adhere to the following procedure:
a) The Association Travel Representative of the delinquent team will be notified of the fine by the WOGHL. This fine will be deducted from the Associations Bond account immediately.
b) The Association will have 14 days from initial notification to remit funds to replenish the bond.
12.1 FINES DETAIL
a) $25.00 per league game not completed by the end of the season
b) $10.00 for game scores not called in within 72 hours to division contact.
c) $100.00 per team for Team Roster Sheets not being handed in on time.
d) $25.00 for not having a representative at a General Meeting.
e) $100.00 for game cancellation with less than 72 hours notice.b) In Midget & higher it is recommended to use a three (3) referee system.
c) If an Approved Referees do not officiate a regularly scheduled game, then the Home team will forfeit this game. The Visiting team may apply through the Discipline Committee to receive a refund up to $200.00 from the Home team due to travel to this game.
d) A MINIMUM of two (2) Approved Referees must be present before the start of ANY WOGHL game unless agreed upon by BOTH Head Coaches of the teams BEFORE the game is started. The game sheet MUST be initialled by BOTH Head Coaches prior to game commencement and approved by the two (2) Approved Officials.
e) There is a Fifteen (15) minute grace period allowed for any Officials late for any WOGHL game and/or as such time that the Home Centre is able to replace any Officials that are not present at the start of game commencement.
a) Cancellation of a game by a team can be done without penalty or further responsibility up to two weeks (14 days) prior to the day a game is scheduled. This game must be rescheduled as provided below.
b) Ice costs for a game cancelled less than two weeks before the game day becomes the responsibility of the team which gives notice of cancellation unless the ice is used by the non-canceling team, or some other team. The cancelling team will be assessed a $100.00 disciplinary fine payable to the League.c) A rescheduled game is not considered to be locked into the schedule until the Convenor for that division has been notified.
d) Games cancelled must be rescheduled within seven (7) days of game cancellation. Any team that does not reschedule within the seven (7) day period will be assessed a $50.00 disciplinary fine payable to the League.
f) The Executive may, in its discretion and upon identifying special circumstances, waive or reduce any fines levied for game cancellation infractions.
g) The Executive reserves the right after an investigation, to issue an additional $200.00 fine, payable to the League, to any team who either fails to show for a scheduled league game without just cause; cancels a scheduled league game within 24 hours of its playing time without just cause; or refuses to reschedule a cancelled game.
h) Cancellation due to weather conditions must be made before three (3) hours of the scheduled start time.
1. The team cancelling the game MUST DIRECTLY CONTACT BY PHONE AND SPEAK to a designated team representative before this game is officially considered cancelled.
* Note: E-mail and voice messages will NOT be considered as proper notification.
2. It will be the responsibility of the home team to then notify the convenor of this change.
3. The cancelled game is to be rescheduled within seven (7) days. 4. Any team violating this rule will forfeit the game. i) Teams receiving fines in accordance with any of the forgoing provisions shall be notified by the League that an infraction occurred, a fine is being levied and the amount of the fine; the fine shall be paid within fourteen (14) days of notification. Should a team fail to pay a fine as provided above, then the Executive may, in its sole discretion, through the Convenor, advise the defaulting team that, as a result of its failure to abide by the rules, it is deemed to have withdrawn from the League, and from all League games scheduled by it, and that the team is no longer a League member, with the result that:
1. All points awarded to the defaulting team will be taken awayj) To be eligible for the playoffs and any league awards, teams must play all their regular season games. The only exception will be if a game is forfeited. If a team has more than two forfeits, they will be ineligible for the playoffs and any league awards.
15. Awards
All divisions must follow the following format:
Regular Season Champions
Playoff Champions
Playoff Finalist
Playoff Consolation – Champions & Finalists - This must be determined at the scheduling meeting if this will be awarded, otherwise they will not be available.
16. Playoffs
a) PlayoffsEach division will decide at the playoff scheduling meeting the format for the playoff series. All teams will qualify for the extended playoff series, subject to any other WOGHL rules.
All play off formats must be established at the playoff scheduling meeting.
All tiebreaker rules must be established at the playoff scheduling meeting and must be consistent with 16.E
The tiebreaker rules must be consistent with the established play off format.
b) The "Higher Placed" team in the regular season will have Home ice advantage throughout the play offs.
c) Each series will have a deadline date to be finished by. The convenor and the President of WOGHL or his/her designate must approve any exceptions made to anyteams not finished. The team or teams responsible for the delay may forfeit the series. The first team with available ice time within 72 hours will start the series. Home ice advantage remains with the higher placed team.
d) In the 2nd and 3rd rounds each team in the series will hand their ice times (3 available ice times) to the division convenor or designate and they will schedule the series. The format of these series will be decided by the division convenor in conjunction with the teams involved. If teams do not have sufficient ice times home ice advantage may be forfeited to the team with available ice times. e) No curfews will be allowed in any play off games.1. No overtime in any games. The only exception would be in the final game of a series, if the game is tied, and the series is tied two 10 minute sudden death overtime periods will decide the winner. The home team is responsible for sufficient ice time in the final game. If the game is still tied after the overtime periods then rule 2 will apply.
2. If the series is tied after three (or five) games, the following criteria will be used:
i) Goals scored minus goal against in all games
ii) Fewest goals allowed in all games
iii) Most periods won in all games
iv) Fewest penalty minutes in all games
v) First goal scored in seriesvi) Flip of coin
In the event that two (2) teams cannot agree then the convenor will decide.
17. Tie Breaking Format
a) Regular SeasonIf teams are tied at the end of the Regular Season the following criteria will be followed: (same as OWHA Playdowns)
iii) Goals scored minus goals against iv) Fewest goals allowed v) Fewest penalty minutes vi) First goal scored vii) Most goals scored viii) Flip of coin.
18. Game protests
a)To protest a team must:b) Within 5 days of a protest being filed, the WOGHL President shall set a date for hearing the protest. The hearing date will be no more than 10 days after the filing date.
1. Prepare a rebuttal in writing 2. File the rebuttal in writing with the WOGHL President within 48 hours of receiving the protest or in his/her absence with the WOGHL Secretary.
a) When a team has one hour (50 minutes) of ice available for a game, the clock will be set to 10-10-12 and the curfew must be marked on the game sheet and initialed by both teams prior to the commencement of the game. A three (3) minute warm up will start each game.
b) If a team has 1.25 hours (65 minutes)of ice time available for a game the clock will be set to 12-12-12 minute periods and the curfew time must be marked on the game sheet and initialed by both teams prior to the commencement of the game. A three (3) minute warm up will start each game.
c) If a team has 1.5 hours (85 minutes)of ice time available for a game the clock will be set to 15-15-15 minute periods and the curfew time must be marked on the game sheet and initialed by both teams prior to the commencement of the game. A three (3) minute warm up will start each game.
d) PeeWee division and up are encouraged to request 1.25 hours of ice time.
e) Midget division and up are encouraged to request 1.5 hours of ice time.
f) Time outs: No time outs allowed in Regular season games. One 30 second time out allowed per team per Semi – final or final play off game only.
20. AppealsMatters that may be appealed include:
a) A decision by a WOGHL Convenor, the WOGHL President or any WOGHL Committee. b) To appeal, an individual, team, or Association must submit written documentation stating the reasons for the appeal and facts supporting the appeal to the WOGHL President.
c) All appeals must be filed within 7 days of the decision you are appealing.
d) A $200 Appeal fee must accompany the appeal. The $200 Appeal fee may be refundable at the discretion of the Appeal Committee. e) Within 7 days of the appeal being filed the WOGHL President shall set a date for the appeal. The hearing date will be no more then 15 days from the filing date. f) The WOGHL President shall notify all parties to the appeal as soon as the date is set. g) The Appeal Tribunal has the authority to uphold, increase, or decrease a suspension.
h) The Appeal Tribunal shall render its decision not more than 5 days after the hearing.
21. All Star Games
Each year an All Star game will be played for each division in the WOGHL. Players will be picked by their own teams/representatives and ALL teams will be represented. The All Star coaches will be selected by the executive. The All Star game will be held at the end of the season.