Ice Hockey Rules

Participants should participate with the understanding that injuries do occur & realize that taking part in the Intramural Program is completely voluntary. Therefore, Northern Michigan University is not responsible for injuries happening during play.PARTICIPANTS SHOULD HAVE ADEQUATE HEALTH & ACCIDENT INSURANCE TO COVER ANY INJURY WHICH MAY OCCUR.

I.D.’S
Students must purchase a student recreation pass to be eligible to participate.  You must show the intramural staff your I.D. in order to participate.  Faculty/Staff and Community Recreation members must purchase a recreation membership in order to participate in I.M.’s.  Community members must be 16 years of age. Students who are found to be participating without a current rec pass will be automatically charged the semester rate of $70.00 to their student account.

MANAGER’S MEETING
The Intramural Manager’s Meeting will be done on-line.  An e-mail, which is in place of the manager’s meeting, will be sent to the manager the morning following the deadline.  It will be the manager’s responsibility to read the email and relay the information to the remainder of the team.

SCHEDULES
Your team schedule will be sent to the team manager the Friday after the deadline date.  Play could begin as early as the following Monday.  It is the responsibility of each of the team managers to check their e-mail on a regular basis for team schedules and updates.  The Intramural Office will not call team managers to notify them of their team’s first game.  It is the responsibility of the team manager to inform their team of the game dates and times. 

FORFEITS
Teams are expected to begin play on time. A team has 10 minutes to arrive after the clock begins. It the team is more than 10 minutes late, a forfeit will be declared and a $25.00 forfeit fee will be charged to the manager’s student account.  Teams who forfeit during the course of the regular season may not be eligible for tournament play.  Teams who forfeit twice will be dropped from further competition and be charged a total of $50.00. You may call the Intramural Office at 227-1692 at least 48 hours prior to your game time in order to avoid the late fee.  Make sure to leave your team name, game time, and league.

PROTESTS
➢ All protests must be filed by the team manager at the time the question occurs.
➢ Protests concerning the rule interpretations will be settled at the game site by the officials or the sport supervisor.
➢ If a team manager believes the decisions rendered to be in error, he/she must notify the officials and supervisors that the contest will continue under protest.
➢ A written protest and a $5.00 protest fee must be submitted to the Intramural Sports Coordinator by noon the following day.  The fee will be returned if the protest is upheld.
➢ A matter involving the official’s judgment is not subject to protest.
➢ A protest concerning a player’s eligibility can by made before, during, or after a contest.

1. If an eligibility question is before or during a contest, the player and team manager will be notified and given the choice of whether or not the player will play.
2. If the player chooses to play and is found to be ineligible, the contest will be forfeited and that player suspended from further participation for that sport’s season.
3. If the player leaves the contest and is found to be ineligible, the contest may be subject to review by the Intramural Sports Coordinator.
4. A protest regarding the eligibility of players must be made before either team plays its next scheduled game.
5. Eligibility questions after a contest will be investigated by the Intramural Sports Program.  Participants found ineligible will be penalized accordingly.
   

ELIGIBILITY
Varsity athletes may participate in those Intramural Sports which are not sports they represent at N.M.U.  However, no more than one-half the number of players allowed on the court or field at one time shall be varsity athletes/club players.  For ice hockey, six (6) players participate at any one time from each team, so only three (3) varsity athletes may be on the ice at any one time from each team.  Varsity athletes are eligible to play, provided they are not:  a varsity hockey player, a current red-shirt, a varsity hockey letter winner who has not sat out for one calendar year.No more than 2 members of a club team may participate in the corresponding intramural sport. A sport club member is defined as one who has practiced or played for the respective sport club during the current academic year and is officially registered with that club.

EQUIPMENTThe referee shall inspect and approve all equipment.  He/she shall not permit any player to wear equipment which in his/her judgment is dangerous to other players.  Elbow, hand, finger, wrist or armguard, cast, or brace made of any hard substance even though covered with soft padding shall always be declared illegal.Pucks and pinnies will be furnished by the Intramural Department.  Each team manager will be held responsible for any of the above equipment damaged or not returned. 

1. Goals are regulation ice hockey goals.
2. All regulation hockey equipment is legal.
3. All players must wear a helmet.
4. Helmets must have at least a ¾ visor

Mouth guards are highly recommended. 

The following shall be considered examples of illegal equipment, and cannot be worn:

1. Jewelry – e.g., rings, watches, necklaces, earrings, etc.
2. A cast of any type

These rules will not be waived!  If a player is wearing any illegal equipment, he/she will be unable to participate until the equipment is removed.

ACTIVITY AREA
Berry Events Center

PLAYERS
Six (6) players shall make up a full team, five (5) offensive players and a goalie.  One of these six players shall be designated as the captain.  The captain is the representative of his/her team and is the only one who may address an official on matters of interpretations or to obtain essential information, if it is done in a courteous manner.  All other players, coaches, etc., should ask their captains to discuss controversial decisions made by the referee. A game may start with a minimum of four (4) players.Only two (2) club players and no more than half the total number of players combined varsity athletes and club players are allowed on ice at a time.

THE GAME

1. Each game will consist of three (3) periods of twelve (12) minutes each.
2. The clock will run non-stop, except for official time-outs and during the final two minutes of the game.
3. Each team is allowed one (1) minute time-out.
4. Teams shall change ends after each period.
5. The game will be called if a team is up by seven (7) or more goals with only five (5) minutes to play.
6. Offside’s will be called.
   

OVERTIME
During the regular season, if the game is tied at the end of regulation time, the game remains a tie. During playoffs, if the game is tied after regulation time, a 5-minute sudden death period will be played.  If still tied after the five minute sudden death period, a shoot-out will begin. If the championship game results in a tie, a 5-minute sudden death overtime will be played (first team to score wins). Additional 5-minute periods will be played until a winner is determined. There will be no time-outs during overtime.

MOVEMENT, ADVANCEMENT, AND SHOOTING OF THE PUCK

1. The puck may be advanced by use of the stick only.
2. Shots may be taken by shooting or deflecting the puck with the stick, when the stick blade is held below the waist on the wind up and follow-through.  Shots which bounce off a player and into the goal shall be legal scores, as long as the puck’s contact with the person is accidental as determined by the officials.
3. A goal is scored when the entire puck is across the goal line and provided that the officials verify that a goal has been scored.
4. Goals will not be counted if:
   a. The stick blade is held above the waist level
   b. The puck is kicked in
   c. The puck is batted in by the hand. Any other offensive player other than the goalie is in the goal crease (NOTE:  If the puck is in the crease, an offensive player may make contact with the puck to score as long as he/she doesn’t make contact with the goalie.)
   d. If the shot is taken from the opposite half of the ice
5. 5. When the goalie catches the puck, he/she may hold it approximately three (3) seconds (official’s discretion) and have it remain in play.  If the puck is held longer than three (3) seconds, a face-off shall be called to the side of the net where the stoppage occurred.
6. The goalie can “freeze the puck” only when his/her body is in the goal crease area.  Any stoppage of play by the goalie while outside of the crease, shall be called delay of game and penalized accordingly.  Outside of the crease will extend to include an area 1 foot wide along the sides of the goal.  This is not part of the crease but is an area that a goalie may patrol without penalty.
7. Goalies are subject to all penalties, which are to be served by a teammate.  The goalie’s team shall play shorthanded in accordance with the rules.
8. There will be no icing.
9. When a violation occurs, a penalty shall be called if the fouled player is not in a position to score or if the offending player gains possession of the puck.  A penalty shall not be called, providing for continuation of play, only in the event of an obvious individual breakaway with an imminent scoring opportunity for the fouled player.  A delayed penalty will be assessed.
10. An automatic goal will be awarded if a defensive player throws a stick to prevent the puck from entering into an open net.  A stick may be laid on the ground as long as the player’s hands remain in contact with it.  Players will be penalized for diving in front of the puck.
11. A penalty shot will be awarded to a player who, in the official’s judgment, had a clear opportunity to score a goal and was prevented from doing so by an opponent tripping, throwing a stick, holding, etc. him/her.
12. When a stick is cracked or broken, the play is whistled dead until the stick is replaced.  The team that was in possession of the puck retains possession at that spot when the whistle was blown.  If it was a loose puck, play continues with a face-off.

PENALTY SHOT
All players except the goalie and the player attempting the shot shall move to the opposite half of the ice.  The puck shall be placed on the blue line with the shooter being permitted a shot on goal with or without an attack on the goalie.  Also, a face-off will occur immediately after a penalty shot whether a goal is scored or not.

PENALTIES

1. Minor penalties will last two (2) minutes.
2. Minor penalties include:
   a. Holding
   b. Tripping
   c. Charging
   d. Interference
   e. Diving on the puck
   f. Hooking
   g. Kicking a player
   h. High sticking
   i. Roughing
   j. Throwing a stick
   k. Boarding
   l. Delay of game
   m. Too many players on the ice
3. 3. Player fouls shall be recorded as in the game of basketball.  A player who receives five (5) fouls of any combination shall be disqualified from the remainder of the game.  In addition, any player who receives two (2) major fouls shall be disqualified.
   

PLAYER MISCONDUCT

1. Misconduct penalties will result in a player ejection.
2. Misconduct penalties include:
   a. Excessive use of profanity
   b. Extensive abuse of the facility and/or equipment (NOTE:  Players can be held responsible to pay for damage to equipment not associated with the normal wear and tear from playing.)
   c. Slashing
   d. Unnecessary rough play
   e. Fighting
   f. Deliberate roughing/checking
   g. Verbal or physical abuse towards an official, opponent, or supervisor
   h. Any unsportsmanlike conduct that in the opinion of the official warrants ejection.  Any player ejected from a game must make an appointment to discuss the situation with the Intramural Sports Coordinator before they will be allowed to participate in any Intramural activity.
   

MAJOR PENALTY

1. All major penalties will result in the player serving a five (5) minute penalty.  Play will start with an indirect free shot awarded to the offended team. 
2. Major penalty fouls include:
   a. Intentional tripping
   b. Elbowing
   c. Checking/roughness
   d. Intentional holding
3. Two major penalties will result in an ejection.
   **The severity and length of all penalties shall be decided by the official.  These penalties are undisputable!
   

ALCOHOL/TOBACCO  POLICY
ABSOLUTELY NO DRINKING is allowed before playing in Intramural Sports Activities!  If an official, for any reason, suspects that a player has been drinking prior to playing, that player will not be allowed to participate in the game.  If anyone is found using tobacco products or drinking he/she will be asked to leave the building and will be indefinitely suspended pending a meeting with the Intramural Sports Coordinator.