MYHockey Game Rules

Overview - MYHockey Rankings well-established guidelines and rules were created to remove the ambiguity from 99% of possible game play situations. We recognize there may still be some gray areas and we will do our best to apply the game rules consistently and fairly in all situations.

The question, "What is considered a valid game?", is a core issue to MYHockey Rankings. MHR's guiding principle is that every game played during the fall/winter season should be considered valid unless it violated one of our game rules below or there was a verifiable coaches agreement in place. This includes "preseason" games, "exhibition" games, "scrimmages" and "tryout" games.

We understand teams may want to play a "non-counting" game for instructional or educational purposes. It's really easy. Simply have the coaches agree in writing (letter, text, email, etc.) prior to the start of the game to exclude the result from MHR. See #3 Coaches Agreement section below for more information.

  1. Season Dates - Important season start and end dates. Note that when a season start date starts on a weekend, the system will use the Friday prior to the standard start date.
    • June 1 - New season data is released
    • August 15 - Fall/winter season start date for USA Youth teams (boys & girls) Games played before August 15, 2024 are not eligible to be entered.
    • September 1 - Fall/winter season start date for Canadian girls teams. Games played before September 1, 2024 are not eligible to be entered.
    • September 15 - Fall/winter season start date for Canadian boys teams. Games played before September 15, 2024 are not eligible to be entered.
    • September 25 - The first team ratings and rankings are released.
    • October 15 - Fall/winter season start date for Minn-Kota town teams. Games played before October 15, 2024 are not eligible to be entered.
    • November 15 - Fall/winter season start date for New England Prep teams. Games played before November 15, 2024 are not eligible to be entered.
    • USA High School - State by state basis. Some start as early as the end of August and others start as late as mid-October. If one team considers the game a regular season game, then the game should be recorded.
    • Federation High School - State by state basis. No games played by high school governed by high school athletic associations (i.e. Federation) rules prior to the official start of their season are allowed if both teams consider the game "pre-season". If one team considers the game a regular season game, then the game should be recorded.
    • March 15 - Approximate season end date for USA teams not competing in USA Hockey State, District and/or National Championship tournaments.
    • April 5 - Approximate season end date for USA Youth teams (boys & girls) advancing to USA Hockey State, District and/or National Championship tournaments.
    • April 15 - Approximate season end date for teams competing in Canadian provincial championships
    • April 30 - Approximate season end date for teams competing in Canada girls and boys Midget AAA National Championships.
    • May 31 - End of 2024-25 season. Current season data is archived.

  2. Gender & Age Levels - Games between teams of the same gender and age level are considered valid (i.e. boys peewee team vs. boy peewee team). Mixed age level games (i.e. peewee vs. bantam) and mixed gender games (boys vs. girls), except at the 10U age level, are considered non-counting games. Non-counting games generally aren't entered into the system, but if one is entered for whatever reason, please note it does not impact either teams overall rating. Non-counting games are grayed out on the rating math tab.

    • Valid - Same gender & birth year (i.e 11U boys team vs. 11U boys team)
    • Valid - Same gender & age level (i.e. 11U boys team vs. 12U boys team)
    • Non-counting - Mixed age level (i.e. 12U boys team vs. 13U boys team)
    • Non-counting - Mixed gender (12U boys team vs. 12U girls team) except at the squirt age level.
    • Non-counting - Mixed gender & age level (i.e. 12U boys team vs. 14U girls team)

    Note: USA Hockey and Hockey Canada use slightly different age level naming conventions. For example, a 12U team in the US (2012 birth year) is the same age as a U13 team in Canada (2012 birth year). A breakdown of USA Hockey and Hockey Canada age level classifications can be found here.

  3. Coaches Agreement - The coaches of two opposing teams can agree prior to the start of a game to exclude the game from MYHockey. This agreement should be in writing (email) or recorded and time stamped in some verifiable way. This is typically done when the teams are using the game for instructional purposes and are not competing to win. Should the game be accidentally entered, we will remove it upon verification of the coaches agreement.

    Note: League games, showcase games and tournament games are considered valid by default. They will not be removed via a coaches agreement. No exceptions.

  4. Rosters - While we expect that most teams in MYHockey have official USA/Canadian certified rosters, we are not the roster police. The general rule is that games may be removed or moved to a separate "tournament team" if:

    1. A team is clearly altering their level of play by adding three (3) or more players for a game/event.
    2. One or more players that are not regularly on the roster play in the game/event AND the team's performance is 2.00 rating points greater than the rest of their season performance as measured by MYHockey. The one or more players must play a significant role in the team's performance.
    3. A team plays with a goalie not regularly rostered (opposing team, lower/higher level team in association, random team, etc.)

    A team will have to bring a specific situation to MYHockey's attention. We will investigate and take the necessary appropriate action(s). Games played by teams made up of a tryout roster or rosters that include alternate players coached by the regular coach, after the start of the fall/winter season should be included in MYHockey unless the game violated another game rule or there was a coaches agreement in place.

  5. Referees - Must be non-team affiliated individual(s) who are certified (sanctioned) by their respective governing body.

  6. Game Play - No coaches on the ice. No extra stoppages or timeouts for instructional purposes. No pre-planned powerplay, penalty kill, 4v4, etc. In general, the game must look like a real game to any casual observer.

  7. Game Time - A game must have at least 30 minutes of stop time OR 40 minutes of running time. All minutes played are counted. Curfewed games are valid if the time minimums are met. All tournament games, even some midget games that are as short as 30 minutes, are valid. Any game terminated early based upon tournament rules (i.e. 6 goal rule) that dictate a game end early when the score reaches a certain point, is valid.

  8. OT/Shootout - Any game tied at the end of regulation where an overtime (OT) or shootout (SO) is completed with one team being acknowledged as the OT/SO victor, should be recorded in MYHockey as a one goal victory by the OT/SO winning team. Our general rule is, "if it's worth playing, it's worth counting". Each game in MYHockey can have only one final score. We acknowledge the victor by awarding them a one goal victory. The two exceptions to this rule are:

    1. When a game ends regulation with a clear victor. If a shootout happens at the end of a game that already has a winner, then the OT or SO period does NOT count towards the final score. We see this happen occasionally when the teams have extra ice time and want to use it.
    2. When an OT and/or SO period is played at the conclusion of a game as part of a league or tournament that has rules explicitly indicating that the OT and/or SO period should not have been conducted. We have seen this scenario occur a couple times when it's early in the season and the teams do not know their league rules and in tournaments.

  9. Forfeits - A forfeit does not reflect the true playing ability of either team and should not be entered into MHR (there is one exception below).

    In the event a forfeited game is at risk of being entered as a counting game result, such as a league game or a tournament game, it should be recorded as 1-0 L for the forfeiting team and noted with an (f) after the game score. Only a MHR admin team member can mark a game as a forfeit so please submit a game correction request if a forfeited game is not marked appropriately as a non-counting game. Forfeit games are considered non-counting and do not impact either team's rating. If marked properly by an admin team member, it will appear grayed out on the rating math tab.

  10. Level of Play - MYHockey Rankings covers all youth travel hockey teams and leagues. We have recently expanded to cover competitive house and recreation level hockey, where these teams regularly play in tournaments outside their league. Games played by travel teams against non-qualifying teams are not entered into MYHockey unless requested by a MYHockey Member.

  11. Unique Teams - Teams that are rostered under two different team names (or organizations) will be identified as one team in MYHockey. This includes teams that use spring/summer rosters after MHR's fall/winter season start date. For two teams to be considered unique and truly deserving of two different names, they both must contain at least three (3) uniquely rostered players.

  12. Spring/Summer Hockey Teams - MYHockey Rankings does not follow spring/summer hockey teams. The one exception is spring/summer teams that play in fall/winter events after MHR's fall/winter season start date. Rule #11 or #13 will be applied in those scenarios.

  13. Tournament Teams - A tournament team is typically defined as a team of players that is not a regularly rostered team or regularly assembled to practice and play, but instead, a set of players assembled for one or more weekends. Tournament teams will receive a team rating but will not be included in the rankings. Games against tournament teams count like any other game. This also includes all teams from outside of North America.

  14. Roster Integrity - MYHockey Rankings reserve the right to remove any team from the rankings, and/or make them a tournament team, if the team's conduct jeopardizes the integrity of the rankings. Team conduct includes, but is not limited to, roster manipulation, gamesheet manipulation, and playing with un-rostered players. Teams who are not forthcoming about roster changes when asked will be treated differently than those who are open about their actions. Repeat offenders will not be tolerated.

Bottom Line - We want every statistically relevant game added to MYHockey unless it violates one of our rules above. Any disagreements on this issue are left to the discretion of MYHockey. We will do our best to apply the game rules consistently and fairly in all situations.

Rules Version 2024.06