Hockey Calgary Changes for the 2017-2018 Season

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May 18, 2017

At the end of each season Hockey Calgary and our member associations take some time to review our programs as they presently exist to determine if changes are necessary to improve the game as we know it in the city of Calgary. At this same time we are also given notice by Hockey Canada and Hockey Alberta as to any major changes that they are implementing for the upcoming season.

As we get set to open registration for another season below is a list of some of the major changes that will take place for the upcoming 2017-18 season:

1. Mandatory ½ Ice Hockey for the Initiation Program (Timbits)

This directive is coming directly from Hockey Canada, and will be imposed across all minor hockey associations in the country
In Calgary we are 90% of the way there due to ice constraints that have existed in our city over recent years
It does mean that ‘No Full Ice Games’ will be permitted at all for this age category, this includes all tournament games as well
Hockey Calgary is actively working on revising the Timbit Operational Manual, and there will be more information forthcoming on this topic

2. RIS Re-certification every 4 years

Hockey Calgary has instituted re-certification of the RIS program with the goal of continuing to educate our membership
There is much more to ‘Respect in Sport’ then just dealing with poor behavior and each year the Respect Group updates their program to include such important topics as:
- i. Cyber Bullying
- ii. Concussion Management
- iii. Long Term Athlete Development
Recertification will be required every 4 years beginning in the 2017-18 season
This means that anybody having taken the course prior to 2014 will be required to recertify for the upcoming season
The recertification process was activated on May 1, 2017, and those required to recertify will need to do so prior to registering for the 2017-18 season

3. Flames Community House League

Hockey Calgary is pleased to announce that the Calgary Sport & Entertainment Group (the Calgary Flames) have agreed to sponsor our house league
For the upcoming season we will continue to operate the house leagues in the 4 regions of the city with the main difference being that teams will be provided Calgary Flames jerseys to wear
The Flames jerseys will be in different colors and will provide the ‘House League’ with their own identity within the Hockey Calgary program

4. Non-Body Checking Divisions in Bantam & Midget

As agreed by the Operations Council of Hockey Calgary, we will continue to implement Non-Body Checking at specific divisions within the Bantam & Midget Age Categories
Bantam will remain the same as 2016-17
- i. Divisions 1-3 will be permitted to body check
- ii. Divisions 4 and below will be Non-Body Checking Divisions
Midget will add 1 more division of Non-Body Checking for the 2017-18 season, and will now align with the Bantam division
- i. Divisions 1-3, will be permitted to body check
- ii. Divisions 4 and below will be Non-Body Checking Divisions

5. Atom League Structure

In 2016-17 HC piloted a new atom league structure
Over the past few months we have reviewed the program and surveyed the membership to understand their views of the league
Based on this information we will maintain our ‘Pilot Atom League Structure’ for the 2017-18 season with a few modifications as follows:
- i. We will move from 6 divisions to 7 divisions
- ii. The league will be divided ‘North/South’ versus into the 3 regions that existed this past season
- iii. The seeding grid will be adjusted to create an improved competitive set for some teams and associations
We feel that these changes will help address concerns that were raised by some members while maintaining some of the positive aspects that were highlighted by other members

Atom League Structure Review and Revisions for 2017-2018 - FULL ARTICLE

We thank you in advance for your support of these modifications. Change is never easy but it is often necessary if we hope to improve the state of the game within Hockey Calgary. We look forward to another exciting season in 2017-18.

Hockey Calgary Changes for the 2017-2018 Season - PDF Printable Version

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