2023 WMHA Waterloo Gold Puck Tournament
December 8-10, 2023
ALLIANCE Tournament Sanction
#24-014
AAA Teams Only
Divisions:
- U16 & U18
- Guaranteed four (4) games
- 2 games Friday, 2 games Saturday - Semi Final and Final games Sunday
Arenas
- Manulife Financial Sportsplex - RIM Park (three ice pads)
- Waterloo Memorial Recreation Complex
- Albert McCormick West Arena
*Hallways and corridors in all City facilities must be clear at all times, with hockey bags pushed against walls if waiting for a dressing room.
*Running and warm up activities will take place OUTSIDE of the facility.
*Throwing of balls or other items in the hallways and corridors is prohibited.
Divisions
- U16: 16 teams – 2 groups of 8 teams
- U18: 20 teams – 2 groups of 10 teams
GAME LENGTHS
Round Robin (all divisions)
15 - 15 - 15 minute stop time periods; 3 minute warm-up.
Semi-finals and FINALS (all divisions)
15 - 15 - 20 minute stop time periods; 3 minute warm-up.
Ice will be resurfaced at the end of every two periods of play. All Championship games will start on "newly-prepared ice” and there will be a flood at the 2nd intermission of all Championship games (semi-finals and finals).
Scheduled game start times are approximate. Teams must be ready to play 15 minutes prior to the scheduled game time for round robin games. All Semi-final and Final games will begin at the scheduled game time.
There is a mercy rule, PLUS extra time built into the schedule so you must be ready to play 15 minutes prior to the scheduled game time or run the risk of forfeiture. Teams that are not ready to start their games on time or within the 15-minute window may forfeit such games at the discretion of the arena coordinator. Due to the nature of our scheduling, time restrictions will be enforced.
MERCY RULE
If the goal differential is seven goals at any time during the second period or five goals in the third period, the clock shall change to running time. If subsequently the margin is reduced to less than seven goals or five goals respectively, the clock will NOT revert back to stop time. During running time, minor penalties will be 3:00 minutes and major penalties, 7:30 minutes. The mercy rule is in effect for all games including round robin, elimination (if applicable), semi-finals and finals.
OVERTIME
All Divisions Semi-Final and Final Games shall be sudden victory. Overtime periods in semi-final and final games will be 5 minutes - 3 on 3; followed by a shoot-out. Teams may freely substitute during the overtime. A player who remains penalized at the end of overtime is not eligible for the shootout. The shootout starts with a 3 shooter per team format. The home team chooses if they wish to shoot first or second. The team that scores the most goals in the 3 vs 3 format wins. If still tied the shootout becomes sudden victory, ie. the first team to score in an equal amount of shots will be declared the winner. No player may shoot twice until all players, excluding goalies, have participated in the shootout.
PENALTIES DURING OVERTIME
No team is permitted to drop below three skaters. If in the overtime period, the team with the man advantage adds a skater or skaters. The penalized player(s) return to the ice at the expiration of the penalty and the 3 on 3 resumes at the point when there are no penalties being served.
TIME-OUTS
There will be no time-outs in round robin play. One 30 second time-out per team per game will be permitted in Semi-Final and Final Games.
PLAYOFF SEEDING
- All round robin games will have points awarded as follows:
- 2 points for a win
- 1 point for a tie
- 0 points for a loss
U16 Division - top 2 teams in each group advance to semi-finals
U18 Division - top 2 teams in each group advance to semi-finals
Playoff seeding will be based on points. All teams will be re-seeded after round robin based on points. Semi Final Matchups: #1 Seed (Home) vs #4 Seed (Visitor) and #2 Seed (Home) vs #3 Seed (Visitor).
ADMINISTRATION, RULES and POLICIES
Admission - NO GATE FEE
Eligibility
Only teams with approved Hockey Canada (HC) or Hockey USA rosters/cards will be permitted to play.
A maximum of nineteen (19) players may participate in any one game. However, a total of twenty-one (21) players may be registered (three of which may be goalies) and substituted from game to game.
There shall be a maximum of six (6) team officials registered to any team. Only five (5) may go on the bench.
Affiliated players may participate only if listed on an approved Affiliated Players List.
Travel Permit
All teams must present a travel permit with their player registration to the tournament office prior to their first game. There is a tournament office in every arena. Preferred method is to upload to the Event Connect team portal.
General
Following the protocol of the Minor Hockey Alliance of Ontario, the Home team will wear dark jerseys and the Visiting team will wear light jerseys.
Teams will play a minimum of four (4) games. Please check your schedule to ensure it is accurate. You are guaranteed four games against different opponents. In the event of a conflict, please notify the Registrar as soon as possible.
ALLIANCE Hockey playing rules shall govern.
Teams may be required to provide a person to operate the penalty gate.
No one, other than players, coaches and trainers are allowed in the dressing rooms or the hallway leading to the dressing rooms before and after games.
Any player/coach receiving a second major penalty MAY be immediately suspended from further play in the tournament.
Alliance rules require suspensions to be served in the next scheduled game. Therefore, a player or coach receiving a suspendable penalty must serve it during the tournament regardless of their league's additional requirements. It is the responsibility of the team's coaching staff to confirm player/coach eligibility after any suspendable penalty. Due to variations in league rules, any player or coach under suspension entering the tournament is ineligible to participate in the tournament unless first cleared by the Tournament Committee. Either of the above violations will cause the offending team to automatically lose the game in which either of the above occurred. If the offending team loses the game, the score will stand. If the non-offending team loses the game, the score of the game will be recorded as one goal greater for the non-offending team than the offending team’s score. Both the offending participant and the head coach of the offending team will be suspended for the remainder of the tournament.
A Tournament Committee will hear protests. No protest will be heard regarding a referee's decision. A $300 deposit, that will be returned if your protest is successful, must accompany all protests. A protest may only be heard if it is brought to the attention of the tournament chairperson or their delegate within thirty (30) minutes of completion of the game in question. A formal written submission can follow the initial notification. A hearing and ruling will be completed prior to the team's next scheduled game. All decisions made by the Tournament Committee are final.
Video Review
Video review can be used in the instance of resolving any dispute with respect to identification of a player or players who are involved in and penalized in an altercation. The video review will not be used for determining if the penalty was the warranted, but to ensure that the penalty was assessed to the correct player.
Tie-Breaking Formula
Tie-breaking and the determination of the wild card teams in round robin standings will be based, in order, on:
- The head to head result involving the teams tied (two way ties only).
- The best ratio of "Goals For/(Goals For + Goals Against)" in all round robin games.
- The team with the least goals against would advance.
- The team with the most goals scored.
- The team that scored the first goal in the head-to-head game.
- The team with the lowest number of penalty minutes.
- A toss of a coin by the tournament chairman.
Tournament Game sheets will be conducted digitally through Gamesheet INC., and player rosters and stats will be uploaded online. Contact the Tournaments Director for questions, and or requirements for manual game sheets – special exceptions only are permitted.
Tournament game standings will be made available digitally online through the WMHA Tournaments website.
Teams will be permitted to enter the arena 60min prior to the scheduled game ice time. Teams must exit the change rooms quickly (within 30min) after games are concluded.
Release from Liability
Acceptance of a team's entry releases the tournament committee and officials, the arena management and everyone connected with the tournament from all liability for injury or accident which may be incurred by a player, team official or spectator while attending or participating in the tournament.
E & OE