Ice Hockey Regulations

The Intramural sport convener may modify these rules at their discretion. The Intramural sport convener and officials have the discretion to rule on any matter not covered by these rules.

Click here for Intramurals eligibility rules.

A. HOUSE RULES

In general, our rules are governed by Hockey Canada. Please see our house rules below for exceptions. Also below are Hockey Canada rules that warrant special emphasis.

I. The games will consist of 3 running-time periods of 15 minute duration. The referees may specify a shortened third period if the game has been delayed in any way. The last 2 minutes of the third period will be stop time if a 2 goal differential or less separates the teams. The game may be "curfewed" by the Thompson Recreation & Athletic Centre (TRAC) staff at any time.
II. There is no red line offside pass rule; the red line is eliminated for this purpose.
III. Only the captain of each team is allowed to address the officials pertaining to any aspect of the game. When addressing an official, the captain is expected to be courteous and respectful. When a captain or receives a penalty s/he shall lose all their privileges for the duration of the penalty.
IV. All minor penalties are three minutes in length, majors are seven minutes in length, for which the player receives an extra game misconduct and is subject to further sanctions.
V. A player who accumulates at least 7 minutes in penalties will be ejected for the remainder of the game.
INTRAMURAL SPORT CONVENER’S NOTE: 10 minute misconducts will not result in an automatic Class 1 suspension unless it is taken in the third period of play.
INTRAMURAL SPORT CONVENER’S NOTE: Misconducts will be assessed for the same reasons as 10 minute misconducts, but will not be associated with any penalty minutes and will not automatically result in a Class 1 suspension. A misconduct will simply result in removal from the current game.
VI. A double minor penalty will be assessed to any player for body checking.
• Body Checking Defined: When a player makes a visible attempt to hit another player to impede the progress of that player.
VII. The carrying of the sticks above the normal height of the waist of your opponent is prohibited. A double minor penalty may be assessed any player who makes contact or intimidates an opponent while carrying her stick above the waist of his/her opponent.
VIII. Players, pucks, equipment, etc. are not allowed on the ice surface until the zamboni doors have closed. Any team or player who enters the playing surface before the zamboni is off the ice and the doors are closed will receive a minor penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct or a misconduct penalty at the discretion of the referee.
IX. FACE-OFFS
• All face-offs will now be conducted at a designated face-off spot.
• All face-offs in the neutral zone shall be conducted at the designated face-off spots as dictated by reason for the stoppage of play. (The face-off location will be at one of the two face-off spots nearest the offending team's blue line, thus causing a loss of territorial advantage.)
• When a stoppage of play occurs between the end zone face-off spots and the nearest end of the rink, the face-off shall be the nearest end zone face-off spot, unless otherwise stated in the rules.
• Centre ice face-offs will be only conducted at the start of each period, following the scoring of a goal or premature substitution of the goaltender.
• Any other stoppage of play in any zone not caused by either team, the ensuing face-off shall be at the nearest face-off spot excluding the centre face-off spot.
X. CHECKING TO THE HEAD
• A Minor and a Misconduct penalty, or a Major and a Game Misconduct penalty, at the discretion of the Referee based on the degree of violence of impact, shall be assessed to any player who checks an opponent to the head area in any manner.
• A Major and a Game Misconduct penalty, or a Match penalty shall be assessed to any player who injures an opponent by Checking to the Head.
INTRAMURAL CONVENER’S NOTE: All minor penalties for Checking to the Head will result in a minimum Class 1 suspension.  All major penalties for Checking to the Head will result in a minimum Class 2 suspension.
XI. CHECKING FROM BEHIND
• A Minor and a Misconduct penalty, or a Major and a Game Misconduct penalty, at the discretion of the Referee based on the degree of violence of impact, shall be assessed to any player who intentionally pushes, body checks, or hits an opposing player from behind, anywhere on the ice.
• If a player is injured, a Major penalty and a Game Misconduct penalty must be assessed.
• A minimum of a Major and a Game Misconduct penalty shall be assessed to any player who is assessed a Checking from Behind penalty.
• When a player is high sticked, cross-checked, body-checked, pushed, hit or propelled in any manner from behind into the boards or goal net, in such a way that the player is unable to protect or defend herself, a Match penalty shall be assessed.
• As per Hockey Canada policies, it is the responsibility of the CHECKER to avoid contact from behind.
INTRAMURAL CONVENER’S NOTE: Referees are instructed not to substitute other penalties (i.e., Boarding) when a player is checked from behind in any manner.  This rule must be strictly enforced. • All minor penalties for Checking from Behind will result in a minimum Class 1 suspension.  All major penalties for Checking from Behind will result in a minimum Class 2 suspension.
XII. FIGHTING
• A Major penalty and a Game Misconduct penalty shall be assessed to any player that fights with an opposing player.
• A Minor penalty shall be assessed to any player identified by the Referee as being the instigator of the fight.
• A Minor penalty shall be assessed to any player identified by the Referee as being the aggressor in a fight.
INTRAMURAL CONVENER’S NOTE: All fighting penalties will result in a minimum Class 4 suspension, except in the case where a clear instigator and aggressor can be identified.  In this case, the non-offending player may be assessed a lessor suspension.
XIII. HARRASSMENT OF OFFICIALS
• A Minor penalty shall be assessed to any player or team official who challenges or disputes the rulings of any official during the game or who displays unsportsmanlike conduct (i.e., use of obscene, profane or abusive language or gestures; intentionally knocking or shooting the puck out of reach of an official who is retrieving it; etc.).
• If a player or a goaltender persists, they shall be assessed a Misconduct penalty and any further disputes will result in a Game Misconduct penalty being assessed to the offending player or goaltender.
• At the discretion of the Referee, a Gross Misconduct penalty may also be assessed.
INTRAMURAL CONVENER’S NOTE: All Misconduct penalties for harassment of a game official (including timekeepers) will result in a minimum Class 1 suspension.  All Game Misconduct penalties for harassment of an official will result in a minimum Class 2 suspension.  Any penalty relating to the physical abuse of an official will result in a minimum Class 5 suspension, indefinite removal of the offending team from its league, and the filing of an incident report with Campus Police.
XIV. GROSS MISCONDUCT PENALTIES
• A Gross Misconduct penalty shall be assessed to any player or team official who conducts herself in such a manner as to make a travesty of the game.
• Any player or team official incurring a Gross Misconduct penalty shall be ordered to the dressing room for the remainder of the game and shall be reported to the League Convener for further action.
INTRAMURAL CONVENER’S NOTE: The offending team will not be permitted to play further games until the case is reviewed by a disciplinary committee. All Gross Misconduct penalties will result in a minimum Class 3 suspension. The circumstances surrounding a Gross Misconduct penalty may be reported to Campus Police and other relevant parties.
XV. MATCH PENALTIES
• A Match penalty shall be assessed any player who deliberately attempts to injure or deliberately injures an opponent.
• Any player or team official incurring a Match penalty shall be ordered to the dressing room immediately, for the balance of the game, and will not be permitted to take part in any further games until his case has been dealt with by a disciplinary committee.
• At the discretion of the Referee, a Match penalty is grounds for ending the game, with the offending team being assessed a forfeit.  
INTRAMURAL CONVENER’S NOTE: The offending team will not be permitted to play further games until the case is reviewed by a disciplinary committee. A Match penalty will result in a minimum Class 4 suspension.  The circumstances surrounding a Match penalty may be reported to Campus Police and other relevant parties.

B. EQUIPMENT & UNIFORMS

• All skaters must wear CSA approved helmets, full facial protection, and full protective equipment (i.e. shoulder pads, elbow pads, protective pants, protective cup, shin-pads and neck-guards). Any violation of this rule will result in a minor penalty for illegal equipment. 
• A game misconduct penalty will be assessed to any player who is caught with illegal equipment more than one time in the same game.
• All skaters must provide their own equipment.
• The goaltender must wear a regulation set of goaltender's equipment, including throat protector.
• They must wear Canadian Standards Association (CSA) approved helmet and mask combination.
• All goaltender’s must provide their own equipment. 
• All teams must have identical sweaters and individual numbers for each player.
• A player cannot play unless he/she meets these requirements.
• Any team which does not have a complete set of sweaters (including the goalie) by the specified deadline will be assessed a minor penalty at the beginning of each game thereafter.
• Any player, spectator, or coach must wear a CSA approved helmet with full facial protection at all times when they are on the team bench.
• All players, spectators, and coaches must provide their own equipment.

C. OVERTIME PROCEDURES

• There is no overtime process for regular season ties.
• In the result of a tie in the playoffs, the game will proceed directly to a shoot-out. Three players from each team will alternate taking shots. In the event that it is still tied after the three shooters from each team, it will move to a sudden death shoot-out.
• Each player present on the team must shoot before a player can shoot again (with the exception of goalies, players serving a penalty at the end of the overtime session, and players who have been ejected from the game) regardless of the number of players on the opposing team.

D. PLAYOFFS

• Format will be determined by the Intramural sport convener based on number of teams and rink availability.

• Intramural staff has full authority to suspend/cancel games if they believe the playing conditions are unsafe.  Games will be rescheduled, if possible.
• In the event of a problem with lights or leakages, captains will be notified and games will be rescheduled, if possible.
• When in doubt, players should expect the game to be played and arrive at the indoor facility on time. If games get/are to be cancelled the sport convener will send out a message to those affected as soon as the decision to cancel has been made.

I. Cancelled Games (due to weather, space conflicts etc.) will be rescheduled whenever possible to ensure you get the Intramural experience you paid for, however facility availability is limited, and games may not always be able to be rescheduled.
II. Team Requests for a Reschedule - Unfortunately, once our schedules are released online we only make changes due to facility closure, etc.
III. If you need to reschedule a game, email your opponent to gain their permission to a possible rescheduling. Only if the opponent agrees to a change of game time can you email your Intramural sport convener at least 48 hours prior to the game with your request (and proof of opponent’s agreement). Requests will be accommodated when possible, but are not guaranteed. If you wish to swap game times with another game in your division, you must contact the captains of all teams involved in the game swap. The swap can only occur if all parties agree. This must be completed at least 48 hours prior to the originally scheduled game. Proof of all agreements must be sent to the Sport Convener before the game time swap can be executed.
IV. Forfeit the game: If you give at least 48 hours’ notice to your sport specific convener that your team won't be playing and that the game is a ‘forfeit’. You will lose the game, but not your Performance Bond.