To help with documentation as well as consistency for complaints/issues raised in the South Shore Women’s Hockey League, the following process has been created. The intention is for any complaint/issue raised, to be handled within a timely manner. The time frames indicated are to provide guidelines so that concerns can be handled efficiently; however, these are guidelines. If there is a delay at any step, communication will be provided to those involved.

At any point during this process, if player safety is of concern, the Disciplinary Committee and Board of Directors retain the right to restrict an individual player, players or team from playing until the safety concern is rectified and/or the process has been completed.

1. Individual player or team concerns/incidents will be submitted to the Disciplinary Committee (DC) and Board of Directors (BOD) via the Concern/Issue Google form found on the SSWHL website. Forms should be submitted within 1 week of when the concern/incident occurred.


2. Within 48 hours, the DC and BOD will contact the team that submitted the form to acknowledge receipt and review of the concern. The team manager of the team the complaint/issue was raised against will be notified of the complaint and informed that it is under review.


3. The DC and BOD will do the following within 1 week of when the form was received to review the incident/concern:
   • Review video footage (if available)
   • Hear or receive in writing from the referees (if needed)
   • Hear or receive in writing from the league appointed rink manager (if needed)
4. Within 1 week of being informed of the complaint (step 2), the team that the concern was raised against may provide in writing any information they feel would be useful pertaining to the concern/incident raised.


5. The DC and BOD will develop a plan outlining the next course of action within 2 weeks of the completion of steps 3 and 4. (The course of action will consider the severity of the infraction as well as the number of complaints received against the whole team or an individual player). The document will be shared with the team the complaint was against.
   
   Courses of Action may include, but are not limited to:
   
   
   1. No Disciplinary Action - Based on the findings, it was determined that there was no infraction made.
   
   
   2. Warning - In the event that the infraction was determined to be minor, a warning may be issued to the team informing them that there will be monitoring and if there are additional complaints received for the same infraction, additional action(s) may be taken.
   
   
   3. Written corrective course(s) of action -
      • A document generated by the team/player, DC and BOD that states what the team or player will do and how they will adhere to the plan.
      • The document will be constructed based on individual complaints/infractions and may include input from opposing teams.
   4. Suspension
   
   
   5. Expulsion
6. The team the complaint was against will be given one week to agree and sign the course of action presented. If there are amendments requested, the DC and BOD will review requested amendments and make agreeable changes within one week of the request.


7. Once agreed, the document will be signed by the team manager, representative of the DC and the League President.

Last Updated 9/27/2021

Below is a list of procedures we would like the timekeepers to follow. It is a good idea for the coach’s and/or team administrators to become familiar with them as well.

1. Game sheets will be available on the Schedule page for printing on the Friday or Saturday before games. These SSWHL game sheets have the team names as well as the date, time, site of the game, and rosters.


2. Senior teams are not required to have a non-playing coach on the bench so long as all members of the team are of the age of majority. If a senior team does not have a non-playing coach, a player acting as head coach must be clearly identified prior to the start of the game. It is strongly recommended that another player be identified as acting as an assistant coach, and must be done prior to the start of the game. These players identified as head and assistant coaches will bear all the responsibilities and duties that are normally carried out by non-playing coaches. That means that if a team receives more than the maximum number of penalties per team allowed (see league rules) during the course of a game, the player designated as head coach shall receive the game misconduct that is generally given to the head coach, and must leave the game. If the player designated as head coach is given a game misconduct, then the player designated as assistant coach will take on same responsibilities as a non-playing assistant coach.


3. Before the game starts, have the coach of each team review the roster and make the necessary changes before signing the gamesheet, making sure the changes are made to all copies. They must -

   · Cross out any player that will not play in this game (one line through the name will do).

   · Add any players that are not listed on the roster (remember to include the jersey number).

   · If there is a change in the jersey number for any player indicate the correct jersey number to the right of the player’s name. Indicate if it is a permanent change (any changes not marked as permanent will be considered a temporary change).

   · If the spelling of the players name is incorrect, please give the correct spelling.

   · If the player is to be removed permanently from the roster, cross out that player’s name and please indicate that the player should be removed from the roster (‘remove’, ‘delete’, ‘can’, ‘dump’, I’ll take anything).

   The coach should then sign the gamesheet. These gamesheets will be used to update the rosters.



4. If a team questions the validity of a player – see Disputing a Game.


5. Start the clock with 2 minutes once the Zamboni is off the ice and the Zamboni doors are closed.


6. Start the clock with 30 seconds after the horn sounds at the end of the first and second period.


7. Check off the players on the team roster as you see them participate in the game. If a player has not shown up by six minutes into the third period, cross that player’s name out (one line through the name will do).


8. At the start of the third period, use the following table to set the clock:



Minutes until next game	Set game clock to	Run/Stop time
More than 18	12 Minutes	Stop time
15, 16, 17	10 Minutes	Stop time
Under 15	12 Minutes	Running time at start of period, then stop time for the last two minutes if:
		There is more than 8 minutes left
		There is less than a 3 goal deficit

9. When a goal is scored, or a penalty assessed, check to make sure that the jersey number given by the referee is on the gamesheet. The team’s roster on the gamesheet will be in numerical order to make it easier to find. If you cannot hear the referee, please ask them to speak up or repeat the numbers. Many gamesheets have come through with question marks in place of the player’s numbers on the scoring list.


10. If a player receives a game misconduct, make sure it is clearly marked on the gamesheet as such. A game misconduct penalty caries and automatic one game suspension and the player will not be allowed to play in the next league game. Make sure the jersey number for a game misconduct is included in that team’s roster.


11. If you have any suggestions that you would like to add to this list that may help out the other timekeepers, just put your suggestions on a separate paper and put it with the gamesheets, or email the suggestion to labels@sswhl.org (re: Suggestion). Our desire is only to make things run more smoothly, and your help is appreciated.

REMINDER: These gamesheets are used to determine whether players have participated in the appropriate number of game for tournaments. They are also used for statistics. Please write legibly. Whether or not a player gets credit for playing in a game (and for statistics on goals and assists) is determined by the tournament official’s ability to read the gamesheet. Illegible gamesheets may result in players being denied participation in a tournament, even though they may have in fact played the required number of games. If we can’t read the gamesheet, we can’t give them the credit.

NOTE TO COACHES:

If a team feels that their opponent has an ineligible player on their roster, ineligible defined as:

that team (the team questioning the eligibility of a player) may protest the game. The following is an example of how a team should go about protesting the game, the scorekeepers recommended response, and the responsibilities of those involved.

1. The captain of Team A brings the possibility of an ineligible player to the attention of the timekeeper.
2. The scorekeeper brings this challenge to the attention of Team B (the offending team) and in the presence of Team A’s captain.
3. Team B must then immediately prove that the player is eligible (see Proving Eligibility below).
4. If Team A accepts the proof, then the game will continue.
5. If Team A does not accept the proof, then the timekeeper must then notify the teams of their options:

The offending player may be removed from the game, and the game results will stand.

The offending player will be allowed to play, but Team A may play under protest.

If Team A chooses to protest the game, a note MUST be made on the gamesheet, and the league will research the matter and render a decision as to the validity of the complaint. Neither team may take further action in the form of refusing to play.

If the league ruling goes against Team B, then the game will be forfeited in favor of Team A. The league reserves the right to administer further action against Team B depending upon the severity of the offense. For example, the disciplinary action may be made more hash if it is found that the player has not been USA Hockey registered versus just not rosetered on the team.

The above should not take more than a few minutes: 1) Team A questions; 2) Team B is notified; 3) Team B immediately proves validity(or not); 4) Team B is notified as to the consequence of an adverse ruling; 5) Team B is allowed to remove the player or continue using the player. 6) Team A registers a protest on the gamesheet. Simple. No debates, no lengthy discussions, just protest or don’t protest. And the league will look into the matter at a later date.

Proving Eligibility of a Disputed Player

If they are questioning whether the player is rostered on the team the offending team can offer as proof the teams copy of the USA Hockey roster with the appropriate signatures of the Registrar. If proof is not available at game time, the team must produce the proof to a league official within 10 days.

If they are questioning whether the player is USA Hockey registered, the offending player may offer a USA Hockey membership card, or a USA Hockey roster as proof. If the paperwork is not available at game time, the team must produce the appropriate paperwork to a league official within 10 days.

If they are questioning the identity of a player (they don’t think #10 Jones on the gamesheet is really Jones) then the players drivers license, or any picture ID, can be given as proof. If the player does not have proof as to their identity at game time, theyshall sign the gamesheet, making sure either their name is printed near their signature, or there is a clear indication as to which player on the roster is in question. She must then bring positive identification a league official within 10 days.

The proof must be to the satisfaction of Team A (the team questioning the validity of the player), and it must be immediate. Anything that will take any amount of time can wait until the end of the game.

Eligibility of a goaltender (see League Rules).

If a team would like to report poor officiating, they may do so by notifying the league president within 24 hours of the game. You must be specific in your complaint…”the refereeing was lousy” will not be accepted unless specific examples are given.

There is an unofficial rule among the team/program administrators that they will not recruit players currently playing on another team in the league, and that an active player in the league must make the first contact. For the most part, the coaches/administrators in the league respect this agreement. But when a player does decide to change teams, they are required to get a "release" or "waiver" from their previous season's team. This is done to prevent players from moving from team to team, and leaving a wake of unpaid bills. It is not meant to keep players from moving to another team. A sample waiver would be:

As long as the player has fulfilled their financial obligation, they must be given a waiver, and allowed to play for another team.

The league president maintains a list of players that have an outstanding balance with a program. You should contact the league president to see if any new players are on this list.