New minor hockey rules mean changes for OHF and GTHL players

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On Tuesday, the Ontario Hockey Federation announced six changes to its player travel regulations. The most notable changes are improved player movement and increased penalties for tampering.

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The new regulations come into force for the start of the 2025-26 season.

What does it mean for players to change associations?

Any player above the U10 level can now play anywhere within the OHF associations. From Windsor to Wawa, the door is wide open.

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“(We want to) offer players a choice and give them the opportunity to identify the programs that best match their values ​​and what they want from hockey (in order) to have a fun and positive experience,” said declared the general director of the OHF. Phillip McKee told Postmedia Sports.

The only restriction would be for an association to impose a limit on the number of players it can accept outside the geographical limits of its municipality.

“An association can no longer say you have to play here because of where you live,” McKee said. “The (associations) must offer an attractive and beneficial program for the players.”

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What is falsification?

From the OHF’s perspective, tampering occurs when a player, coach or parent attempts to influence a player from another team or organization.

“If I ask my assistant coach to go out and talk to a player, invite him to consider being on our team, that’s tampering,” McKee said. “If I ask a parent on my team to go out and ask player ‘X’ to be on my team next year, that’s tampering. If I’m skating and invite a bunch of kids from other teams, that’s potentially tampering.

What sanctions could coaches or parents face in the event of tampering?

“There are potential suspensions for the coach for his involvement in this violation, a player would not be eligible to participate with this team and there would be a fine for the association,” McKee said. “If this becomes systemic from the association’s perspective, then additional sanctions could be put in place.”

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Parents are warned if they get a little overzealous when crossing the line into tampering. McKee says if a parent is found in violation, possible sanctions include revocation of tournament privileges for the team the parent is associated with.

Why make these changes now?

The OHF debated making these changes in the new year, but the associations needed time to implement these changes for next season.

“We originally considered making the decision in February and we received feedback that was far too late for the associations to prepare for the upcoming season,” McKee said.

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What are these new rules for?

The regulations on player movement have been changed to allow greater freedom of movement and more choice.

“There are opportunities and choices and that’s what parents want to have, and it’s clear from our data that parents wanted more choices and opportunities,” McKee said.

Fines, suspensions and revocation of tournament privileges were designed to keep coaches focused on the current team.

“We want our coaches to refocus on what they have and we don’t want them to look at their team for next year as they continue to provide a positive experience on the ice,” McKee said .

As mentioned on the OHF website, what is the current “culture” when it comes to recruitment?

“We’re making a cultural shift to say, ‘While you’re in our season, you (should) focus entirely on the players on your team’ while making sure they have good development and a great hockey experience , fun and positive,” McKee said. “That’s the goal, the priority and what we want our coaches to focus on.”

Will everyone be happy with these changes?

Apparently, not everyone.

“OHF’s new hockey rules on player movement and tampering are the exact opposite of what is needed to grow the sport and keep it local, accessible and profitable,” Amy Stuart said on X. “It also puts the coaches (mostly parent volunteers like me) in an impossible position. Shame.”

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Stuart is co-author of Mats Sundin’s memoir At home and away.

How does this impact girls-only hockey organizations?

These changes will have no effect on women’s hockey, as the Ontario Women’s Hockey Association has its own regulations on player movement.

For more information on the regulatory changes, click here: https://ohf.on.ca/player-movement/

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