Rule 6-40 article 3 states that a penalty shall be assessed to a player who intentionally or recklessly contacts a player to the head, including with the stick or by an illegal body check. Penalty-minor or major if flagrant. 

That being said, there are things you need to know before yelling at the stripes for the non-call. The key words in this rule are intentionally and recklessly. As you know by now there can be a huge height discrepancy in players especially at the high school level where you can have an 8th grader playing against a senior in some cases.So what does that mean?

If you have a 6 foot player chasing down a puck against a say a 5 foot player and the taller player keeps their hands and stick down and makes contact with the shorter player, there is not a penalty there as that is coincidental contact. Unfortunately in this case the shorter player is at a disadvantage although remember the key words, intentional and reckless because if the taller player uses his size to bully the shorter player than he will be assessed a minor for roughing or head contact and in some cases a major.

One other thing I want to touch on while we talk about height differences. I have noticed with the smaller players trying to check the bigger players, they are raising their hands and in some cases jumping into the bigger player. If you leave your feet to make contact on a player, that is a charging penalty. The other one I am seeing is the smaller player is crouching down while attempting  a hip check and making contact below the knee, that is a tripping penalty.

I hope this clarifies any confusion that you may have with this rule and although we don’t see everything, our number one concern is safety on the ice. So play safe and good luck in the rest of the season.

With High School hockey approaching fast, I wanted to inform you of the rule changes for the up coming season for The National Federation of State High School Associations. Please note that it is unclear if every high school in the nation plays out of this rule book so check with your coach or athletic director to see what rules you are playing. Please note these rules apply to any level of high school hockey, freshman, JV and Varsity.

The most notable new rule (6-12-1) this season follows the rule books of both the NHL and the NCAA as every face off will take place on one of the nice dots on the ice. Previously if the puck was dropped on a “last place played”, you would see a face off anywhere on the ice. This rule takes the guess work out of when the last place the puck was played. Another notable rule you will see on faceoffs is that a hand-pass will now take place in the end zone of the offending team just like if a puck is played with a high stick.

Also following the NHL and NCAA template, new rule 6-12 states that after a penalty is assessed, the ensuing faceoff will take place at the defensive zone faceoff spot of the offending team, except at the start of a period or after a goal is scored. Basically that means if your team is penalized, no matter where the infraction takes place, the faceoff is in your end.

The third new rule (3-4-8) is for safety on the bench which states that all players are required to wear helmets with face masks while in the players’ or penalty bench. Failure to follow this rule will buy you a misconduct.

rule 6-8   contact to the head is a stand alone penalty now and there is a zero tolerance policy with hits to the head and neck area….keep your hands, shoulders, elbows and sticks down

The following rules are reworded:

2-1-2b  It is required that the visiting team shall wear dark-colored jerseys; the home team shall wear white-/light colored- jerseys.

3-3-2    The goalkeeper’s leg pads shall not be wider than 11 inches(27.94 cm) each, nor longer than 38 inches (96.52 cm).**2012 season

3-3-3    Protective padding attached to the back or forming a part of the goalkeeper’s gloves shall not exceed 8 inches (20.32 cm) in width at any point, nor shall it exceed 15 inches (38.1 cm) in width. Protective padding attached to the back or forming part of the goalkeeper’s catching glove shall not exceed 8 inches(20.32 cm) in width at any point, nor shall it exceed 15 inches (38.1 cm). In addition, the catching glove shall have a maximum circumference or 45 inches (114.3cm). **2012 season

4-2-8    Add: When the rules indicate “Captains choice of players” for serving the penalty, the captain must select a player who was on the ice when the infraction occurred. This includes bench minors.

4-3-2    Replace: A player (captain’s choice of players)  with “An additional player”

Just a few very important reminders and I will go into more detail about player safety in future articles and post some videos that will hit home to you so I can make my point but for now use these guidelines.

Players will not be allowed on the ice with ripped, taped or unzipped pants. You do not look cool skating around like that. You’re coach requires you to come to the rink in a professional manner by wearing a tie, that doesn’t end when you take the tie off. Ripped and unzipped pants look stupid, period. Players must wear the equipment the way it was designed for your safety. Helmets must have the “J” clips that keep your cage from coming up into your chin. The helmet has to be HECC certified and by removing any part of the helmet voids the HECC certification so don’t do it. Mouth guards goes with out saying but yet players are still trying to play without them, the same goes for the goalies. Also for goalies, you are required to wear the “flapper” on your mask, you can not take the ice without this.

Have a safe and successful season…see you on the ice.