10/07/2024
VALHALLA HOCKEY CLUB RULES
All games will be played at Attucks park in Ponca City
Adult & YOUTH HOCKEY RULES 5 v 5
OVERVIEW:
Plastic Floor Hockey Balls will be used.
Ties during the Regular Season remain as a Tie
A running clock will be used for the entire game
Games played in (2) 25-minute halves with a half-time break
CO-ED RULES INCLUDE: NO CHECKING, HIGH STICKING ROUGHING ETC. Sudden Death overtime/Shootout will be used in the playoffs Players per side: 3 men/boys and 2 women/girls (3 men/boys max.) Ex. (2 forwards, 2 defensemen and 1 goalie) Only approved sticks will be allowed. Two time-outs, per team, per game
BEGINNING OF GAME
The ball will be dropped at center court by the referee.
Face-offs will be at center court unless otherwise noted by the referee
The referee may stop the clock at any time if he/she feels that a team is purposely stalling or intentionally delaying the game, or to prevent a possible injury.
TEAM SIZE
Each team shall field no more than 5 players on the court at one time. No more than 3 men may be on the court at one time. A legal game requires a team to have at least 2 females when playing with three males but teams may always have more women than men on the court. Teams may have as many players on their roster as they want. All rosters must be finalized by the second week of the regular season. Players that are not on the waiver after the second week will not be eligible for playoffs.
FORFEITS
Each team shall field no more than 5 players on the court at one time. Teams will have until 10 minutes past the designated start time to field a legal team. Teams forfeiting two or more times during the season may be ineligible for playoffs. Shorthanded teams may play a legal game with a minimum of 3 players, at least 1 being a female. Teams fielding less than 3 players or without any women will receive a forfeit. Exception: Teams with less than 3 players may still play a “legal” game but only with the opposing team’s consent. All teams consenting to play a legal game with less than the allowed minimum waive their right to a forfeit win.
SUBSTITUTIONS
All substitutions will occur on the fly unless the referee deems it unsafe. There is no limit on the amount of substitutions per team. During the course of the regular season teams are allowed to “pick up” players that are not on their roster in order to field a full team. In playoffs no non-roster players will be allowed to play.
GAME TIME
Play is divided into (2) 25-minute halves separated by a brief halftime break. There will be a running clock throughout the game. A running clock will be maintained by the referee. Each team is granted 2 timeouts per game.
PENALTIES
Time penalties are:
Minor – 2 minutes of actual playing time
Major – 5 minutes of actual playing time
Misconduct – 10 minutes of actual playing time
Game misconduct – Disqualification from the game
The offending player shall serve the penalty unless otherwise specified. That player shall go directly off the court and remain there until the referee indicates the penalty time has expired. If a game disqualification penalty is also imposed on the player, that player shall be represented by a teammate for the penalty and shall report to the referee.
Major and Misconduct penalties do not terminate when a goal is scored.
If the penalty time has not yet expired at the end of a period, the penalty carries over into the next regular period or sudden death play.
During sudden death play a team shall not be reduced by time penalties so that it has fewer than 2 players during first overtime and one player during second overtime.
High-Sticking – the official will call any stick raised above the back of the knee on the back swing and/or above the waist on the follow-thru. Depending on the situation, it will be assessed as a warning, minor, or major penalty.
Sliding/Diving to stop a ball is not allowed by any player other than the designated goalie. A 2 minute penalty will be assessed for interference.
MINOR PENALTY
A minor penalty shall be assessed for:
A substitute taking the court before the departing player is off the court (too many persons on the court)
Contacting a player who is ready to participate in a face-off
Lifting a stick on a face-off
Playing the ball above shoulder level with a stick
Holding an opponent’s stick
Stalling, trapping or holding the ball/puck
Interference
A goalkeeper interfering with opponent who is not playing the ball
Holding
Dangerous play
Intentionally displacing the goal
Returning to the court before penalty time expires
Tripping
Hooking
Boarding
Sliding/Diving
Unsportsmanlike conduct
Verbal abuse of an official
Stick checking or lifting sticks beyond blade vs. Blade
If any of the above are deemed excessive, a major penalty can be called and/or cause for removal from the game and/or league.
MAJOR PENALTY
A major penalty shall be assessed for:
Charging
Elbowing
Slashing
Roughing and over-aggressiveness
Checking
Spearing
Cross-checking
Refusal to obey a referee’s decision
Fighting- (fighting is not tolerated under any circumstances and will result in removal from the game and possibly the league)
OFF-SIDES AND ICING
There is no icing.
Offsides only occurs if the ball is thrown by the goaltender beyond the centerline and is touched by a teammate without first being touched by an opponent.
Offsides will receive warnings at the referee’s discretion, followed by a 2-minute delay of game penalty.
SCORING
Each goal will count one point.
A goal is scored when the entire ball:
Crosses the goal line.
Breaks the plane of the goal
-In cases where the net moves, it is up to the referee to determine if the ball would have gone in the net and thus been a goal. If the defense intentionally moves the goal it is up to the referee to continue play or to declare a delay of game penalty.
STOPPAGES
The following stoppages of play will be followed by a face-off
Goals
Penalties
Injuries
Time-outs(two time-outs per team, per game)
Dead ball (out of play)
A freeze in play where the goaltender holds on to the puck
GOALTENDERS
A goaltender will be allowed to handle the puck with his stick or hands within the designated zone, which will be determined by the referee for each particular venue (possible example: the free throw lane in front of the goal). If the puck is picked up by the goaltender, the goalie must be allowed a clear amount of space to put the ball back in play. A goalie may call for a “freeze” of play in which case the ball will be turned over to the referee and a face off will ensue at center ice. If the goalie is clearly delaying in putting the puck in play, the referee may stop the clock at his/her discretion and have a face-off or if it persists it will be a delay of game penalty.
The goaltender can put the ball back in play by rolling it to a teammate on his/her side of mid-court or passing the puck with his/her stick.
Offensive players may not enter the crease without the ball or without the ball being in the crease(this is interference)
EQUIPMENT
STICKS- all referees will determine what is and is not a “legal” stick. Floorball sticks are not permitted. PROTECTIVE GOGGLES/HELMETS-MUST BE WORN AT ALL TIMES – everyone must bring his or her own
Baseball mitts/catching gloves are allowed.
Gloves, shin guards, mouth guards, elbow & knee pads are RECOMMENDED
VHC WILL provide all equipment for the first 2 seasons. after that it will be the players and parents responsibility to provide equipment. VHL will have an online shop you can purchase equipment from.
GOALIE EQUIPMENT- It is the responsibility of the team to provide equipment for their goalie if they choose to. (in most cases. VHC will provide a certain amount of goalie equipment however it is the teams responsibility to ensure that their goalie has any specific gear they choose to use.)
PLAYOFF OVERTIMES If a playoff game ends in a tie after regulation play, the following will occur:
A 5 minute sudden death overtime
If it is still tied after one overtime period, then a penalty shootout will follow:
Both teams will get 5 penalty shots. The teams must state which 5 players are going to shoot, however, they do not have to state in which order they will be shooting. No more than 3 men may shoot for either team. There is no male- female shooting order rule. Shooters will start at mid-ice and get one shot on goal. If the goalie, in the eyes of the referee “takes a player out” this will result in a goal.If it is still tied after the initial 5 penalty shots, then sudden death penalty shots will follow. The same players from the initial 5 penalty shots may shoot again. The teams must state which 5 players are going to shoot. No more than 3 men may shoot for either team. There is no male-female shooting order rule. If one team scores during the round of sudden death shots and their opponent fails to score, then that team is the winner. During the sudden death round the same 5 players must continue to shoot until there is a winner, there will be no substitutions
LEAGUE POLICIES
GAMES:
During the regular season one game will be played within time allotted (warm up time is included). The game will use a running clock throughout the game. Games will be divided into two 25-minute halves with a brief half-time break. During the regular season, games will end in a tie and no overtime will be used. Each team is awarded 2 time-outs per game.
REFS:
Valhalla Hockey Club will provide a paid referee for each game. The referee has the power to remove any player(s) from a game or the facility if deemed necessary.
FORFEITS:
If your team forfeits a game during the season, the following rules apply:
First Offense: Loss of game.
Second Offense: Loss of game and staff reserves the right to remove team from playoffs.
Third Offense: Removal from the league
Any team that forfeits more than once also forfeits any guarantee or right to a certain number of guaranteed games.
If you know in advance that your team is going to forfeit a game, we encourage you to call 580.485.1365 or reach by email: [email protected], so as to help us schedule a game for your opponent. This does not mean that your team will not receive the loss as a forfeit.
Teams have until ten minutes past the designated start time to field a full squad (or the league minimum of players required according to rules). If at that time a team is unable to field a legal team, it will be up to the staff and the opposing captain to determine whether a team will receive a forfeit win or if a team will allow the opposing team to play a legal game with less than the league minimum of players required according to the rules.
STANDINGS:
The updated standings will be posted weekly starting after the third week of play. The standings will display each teams rank within its skill level. Rank is based on winning percentage. Stats will also be posted.
PLAYOFFS:
Playoffs will begin immediately following the end of the regular season and will typically last between 2 and 3 weeks. After teams have been seeded according to their records all captains will receive an email or call with the 1st week of playoff game times roughly 3 days before their league. Teams will not receive a call for any other weeks of playoffs! It is the responsibility of ALL TEAMS to check the playoff brackets at the league or online to find out what time they will be playing the following week if they win. In playoffs it is not uncommon, (and in some cases will be necessary), for teams to have more than one match in a given night. No substitutes will be allowed during playoffs. All players must have signed the waiver by the second week of the season in order to be eligible for playoffs. All eligible teams will make the playoffs. Playoff eligible teams will be determined on a league by league basis. Teams that have violated the forfeit policy during the course of regular season will not be eligible for playoffs. In certain situations teams at, or near the bottom of the standings may not advance to the playoffs. Check with the VHL league coordinator to see if this applies to your league. Playoffs are single elimination.
TROPHIES:
There will be a Frist place trophy which will have the winning teams name engraved on it. There will also be a Second & Third place Trophy. Also there will be a Trophy for Top Scorer, Top Goaltender, and playoff MVP!
Seeding: Teams are seeded based upon a points system, and strength of schedule.
Teams may play more than one game per day/night, and/or play games on days/nights other than your regularly scheduled league day/night if necessary. VHC reserves the right to schedule playoff games on days other than teams regularly scheduled league night. Any questions regarding rules, policies, or eligibility of players must be addressed before the start of the game. Any team that would like to challenge the eligibility of an opposing player must do so before the start of the game. No protests will be considered valid after a game has started.
