MSHSL Major Penalty Changes take effect 1/16

[Haute hockeymom]

The Minnesota State High School League will impose tougher penalties for three of hockey's most dangerous infractions after an illegal hit to a Twin Cities high school player.

Beginning with games Monday, players called for a check from behind, boarding or head contact will get at least a five-minute major penalty. The "major" designation puts the player's team at greater risk of being scored on because it must play shorthanded for the duration.

http://www.mnhockeyhub.com/news_article ... r_id=32770

[Defensive Zone]

The Minnesota State High School League will impose tougher penalties for three of hockey's most dangerous infractions after an illegal hit to a Twin Cities high school player.

Beginning with games Monday, players called for a check from behind, boarding or head contact will get at least a five-minute major penalty. The "major" designation puts the player's team at greater risk of being scored on because it must play shorthanded for the duration.

http://www.mnhockeyhub.com/news_article ... r_id=32770

MSHSL steps up! I can see teams on Monday working on their PP and PK a little more. Now we need MN Hockey to do the same thing.

[HShockeywatcher]

Couple quotes from the article:

"Now maybe you rub a guy out and stay away," Jokinen said. "It'll still be a physical game. It's just a smarter way of being physical."

The players can realize it too.

Andover's Manney believes the MSHSL's tougher penalties achieve that balance. They're aimed at dangerous plays that "weren't hockey to begin with," he said. "This was kids seeking vengeance on other kids."

This speaks for itself. The changes should make the game safer and take out dumb hockey plays.

The MSHSL made the change effective after Saturday's games, allowing the majority of the state's 280 high school teams two days to prepare. Most hockey teams will play their next game Tuesday.

Is there math a little off on the number of teams or is this girls and boys numbers together?

[northern_guy]

does the 5 min. major result in being ejected from the game also? i support some stiffer penalties.

[Iranger33]

does the 5 min. major result in being ejected from the game also? i support some stiffer penalties.

Sounds like it is a major and not the five and game, but a step in the right direction.

[The Enlightened One]

Just what a lot of people have been pushing for over on the youth side to control those injuries too. Now I hope that MN Hockey and USA Hockey have the same idea. Let's see if it gets called now by the refs.

[skiumah]

Just what a lot of people have been pushing for over on the youth side to control those injuries too. Now I hope that MN Hockey and USA Hockey have the same idea. Let's see if it gets called now by the refs.

Let's see how the fans react when a hit, where a kid gets his hands up, goes from 2 to 5 min. You know the check, the one that's not dangerous, but still hands hit the helmet. Now your team is down 5 minutes. I'm not talking about a head getting slammed into the glass- that's 5 min. How about that open ice hit we've all seen. Hands need to be down...but 5 min? That check will now become a 2 min high stick.

[Duluth 4]

Head contact to me is such a vague penalty. Now the fact that could result in a 5 minute major is not right to me. There have been head contacts called where I didn't even see a penalty, that coming as a fan and a player. I just hope this doesn't get taken to a level that changes the game and the outcomes to a point where it was not intended.

[SWPrez]

Just what a lot of people have been pushing for over on the youth side to control those injuries too. Now I hope that MN Hockey and USA Hockey have the same idea. Let's see if it gets called now by the refs.

Let's see how the fans react when a hit, where a kid gets his hands up, goes from 2 to 5 min. You know the check, the one that's not dangerous, but still hands hit the helmet. Now your team is down 5 minutes. I'm not talking about a head getting slammed into the glass- that's 5 min. How about that open ice hit we've all seen. Hands need to be down...but 5 min? That check will now become a 2 min high stick.

Skiumah - There will be a lot of these for the first three weeks....then kids will learn that they have to check the hands or their team pays dearly. Anyone who went through the interference/hooking/holding changes five years ago at the youth level can remember that they loaded up the penalty boxes in the first three weeks until the kids and coaches got it....then the game changed.

www.jackspledge.com launched on Thursday morning and within 48 hours we have seen the high school league make the steps needed to make the game safer. This swift action is to be commended.

Now, fans and coaches need to sit back and take a deep breath as the referees are being asked to call stuff they were letting go up until yesterday. This is a big change for the better and folks need to be patient.

BTW - we have a bunch of high school, Division I, and Division III teams that have taken Jack's Pledge. If your team hasn't, we recommend they stop by, register, and get on board this movement. It isn't just the referees making calls - this calls for player, parent, and coach participation to make these changes.

[Pens4]

The refs have always had problems with the "head shot" call. This is often the call when a puck handler with his head down gets hit...too hard. We have rules in place ...its either elbowing, cross checking, high sticking or charging. A major-called for a shoulder check on man with his head down will alter the games...maybe for the better...maybe not.

[Oldtimehockeyguy23]

Don't get me wrong here, great intentions with this rule and it will clean up the game. But there is no doubt going to over-refereeing by these refs and kids will get 5 min majors for otherwise not dirty plays at all.

[SPUDNUT]

does the 5 min. major result in being ejected from the game also? i support some stiffer penalties.

No - ejection is a separate call, but can be issued with any major penalty.

[HShockeywatcher]

Just what a lot of people have been pushing for over on the youth side to control those injuries too. Now I hope that MN Hockey and USA Hockey have the same idea. Let's see if it gets called now by the refs.

Let's see how the fans react when a hit, where a kid gets his hands up, goes from 2 to 5 min. You know the check, the one that's not dangerous, but still hands hit the helmet. Now your team is down 5 minutes. I'm not talking about a head getting slammed into the glass- that's 5 min. How about that open ice hit we've all seen. Hands need to be down...but 5 min? That check will now become a 2 min high stick.

Personally, I have a huge issue with this line of thinking. To say there is a safe way to hit someone in the head is just...silly.

I will agree though, that there should be some responsibility on the offensive player to keep their head up. It drives me crazy that it's a penalty for a defensive player in the NFL to hit head first, but it's okay for the offensive player to run with their head down.

[Oldtimehockeyguy23]

Is it just me or does anybody find it troubling that the MSHSL can basically do whatever it wants? Why can't we have the coaches sign off on something like this??? It is a MAJOR change that should not just be made quickly with no approval.

Taking checking out of Peewee hockey, and now this drastic rule change is making the case more and more to me everyday, the hockey world has lost its mind. They are probably soon going to ban fighting in the NHL and more and more injuries will result of these actions!!!

Why can't people understand that point? You make these kind of rules it sends the message to the players "you will NOT get hit dangerously, so don't worry about getting hurt and do NOT protect yourself."

Instead, we should the message of "Hockey is dangerous, you will get punished for stupid, dangerous hits, but at the same time you NEED to protect yourself."

Hockey legends and greats are turning over in their graves today, and it is a sad, sad day for the state of hockey in Minnesota.

[Tigers33]

That is the message being oldtimer

You hit someone from behind you sit now and your team is severley penalized.

Go back to the 30's and play

[HShockeywatcher]

Is it just me or does anybody find it troubling that the MSHSL can basically do whatever it wants? Why can't we have the coaches sign off on something like this??? It is a MAJOR change that should not just be made quickly with no approval.

Taking checking out of Peewee hockey, and now this drastic rule change is making the case more and more to me everyday, the hockey world has lost its mind. They are probably soon going to ban fighting in the NHL and more and more injuries will result of these actions!!!

Why can't people understand that point? You make these kind of rules it sends the message to the players "you will NOT get hit dangerously, so don't worry about getting hurt and do NOT protect yourself."

Instead, we should the message of "Hockey is dangerous, you will get punished for stupid, dangerous hits, but at the same time you NEED to protect yourself."

Hockey legends and greats are turning over in their graves today, and it is a sad, sad day for the state of hockey in Minnesota.

You're so right; blame the victim, great idea.
Why didn't anyone think of that earlier?

[Duluth 4]

Is it just me or does anybody find it troubling that the MSHSL can basically do whatever it wants? Why can't we have the coaches sign off on something like this??? It is a MAJOR change that should not just be made quickly with no approval.

Taking checking out of Peewee hockey, and now this drastic rule change is making the case more and more to me everyday, the hockey world has lost its mind. They are probably soon going to ban fighting in the NHL and more and more injuries will result of these actions!!!

Why can't people understand that point? You make these kind of rules it sends the message to the players "you will NOT get hit dangerously, so don't worry about getting hurt and do NOT protect yourself."

Instead, we should the message of "Hockey is dangerous, you will get punished for stupid, dangerous hits, but at the same time you NEED to protect yourself."

Hockey legends and greats are turning over in their graves today, and it is a sad, sad day for the state of hockey in Minnesota.

I'm with you here, hockey is a dangerous sport, and you risk it all every time you step on the ice. As a player you know that, tragic things happen, and they are very scary. Everyone hopes for a full and quick recovery but hockey is not a sport you play knowing nothing will happen, this is a high speed sport and accidents happen.

[shotpassskate]

This is a very good first step. I like the 5min major. Would have liked to have seen them also add a game DQ along with the major call. I hope that the NFHS will look at the rule over the summer and tweak it more and make it stronger and better for the safety of the players, and so all coaches understand it and the refs use it the correct way and the refs are not scared to make the call no matter who the two teams playing have as coaches on the bench.

Now let's get a move for USA Hockey to put checking back into the game at the squirt level and have coaches teach the correct way to take the body, and take the players hands away. This year 1st year pee wees that will in 2 years play bantams have the chance of being hurt because they don't know how to take a hit or take the body of the puck.

This is a good 1st step, but more needs to be done. IMO

[skiumah]

Just what a lot of people have been pushing for over on the youth side to control those injuries too. Now I hope that MN Hockey and USA Hockey have the same idea. Let's see if it gets called now by the refs.

Let's see how the fans react when a hit, where a kid gets his hands up, goes from 2 to 5 min. You know the check, the one that's not dangerous, but still hands hit the helmet. Now your team is down 5 minutes. I'm not talking about a head getting slammed into the glass- that's 5 min. How about that open ice hit we've all seen. Hands need to be down...but 5 min? That check will now become a 2 min high stick.

Personally, I have a huge issue with this line of thinking. To say there is a safe way to hit someone in the head is just...silly.

I will agree though, that there should be some responsibility on the offensive player to keep their head up. It drives me crazy that it's a penalty for a defensive player in the NFL to hit head first, but it's okay for the offensive player to run with their head down.

I never said there's a safe way to hit someone in the head.

Are all slashes equal? No.
Is all contact to the head equal? Apparently so.

If you're a HS hockey watcher than you know what type of check I'm talking about. Where the kid initiates the hit and his hands follow through high. I'm not talking a big blow, just a glove in the face mask. It's illegal and should be a penalty. But should it be 5 minutes?

[HawkeyPower]

I like the new rules that are being put in place and think that they are long over due. I personally feel alot of this would not be needed if the rules were enforced from the beginning. Just yesterday we were at a Jv game and a kid was checked from behind into the boards. Both sides parents thought the kid would be sitting for a while and all he got was a cross check. I hope this removes any interpretation of the rules and referees will call it the way it should be. Hockey will survive without all the crushing hits. The idea of the body check is to seperate the player from the puck not his teeth.

[woodley]

Who on this board saw a head contact penalty called before two years ago???? Now we make it a major to touch a helmet. Watch the dives that are about to begin!!!

I don't know if it is the right thing to do. . . the problem is, neither do MSHSL administrators. I would be surprised if they have studied the number of penalties for head contact along with the related injury rate, etc, rather, due to a tragic incident, we have an immediate, rash, reaction. If they have the studies, I suspect they would have been cited in the press release.

Understand, I'm not talking about the checks from behind near the boards. We all agree those are dangerous. I've seen a bunch of head contact penalties this year, not one of which had the "victim" (only for lack of a better term) hurt in the slightest.

In terms of the "crime," we've just made these serious felonies. . . how many people are paralyzed on the road EVERY YEAR by drunks, but we don't even think about imposing serious penalties.

I know I'll be trashed over this post, but am very concerned that this is a rash reaction by MSHSL!!

[Oldtimehockeyguy23]

Who on this board saw a head contact penalty called before two years ago???? Now we make it a major to touch a helmet. Watch the dives that are about to begin!!!

I don't know if it is the right thing to do. . . the problem is, neither do MSHSL administrators. I would be surprised if they have studied the number of penalties for head contact along with the related injury rate, etc, rather, due to a tragic incident, we have an immediate, rash, reaction. If they have the studies, I suspect they would have been cited in the press release.

Understand, I'm not talking about the checks from behind near the boards. We all agree those are dangerous. I've seen a bunch of head contact penalties this year, not one of which had the "victim" (only for lack of a better term) hurt in the slightest.

In terms of the "crime," we've just made these serious felonies. . . how many people are paralyzed on the road EVERY YEAR by drunks, but we don't even think about imposing serious penalties.

I know I'll be trashed over this post, but am very concerned that this is a rash reaction by MSHSL!!

Won't be trashed by me. Good points made here.

[Oldtimehockeyguy23]

That is the message being oldtimer

You hit someone from behind you sit now and your team is severley penalized.

Go back to the 30's and play

The rule is actually ANY head contact, boarding (which can be a hit from the front) so it is not just hits from behind. Hits from behind are dangerous!! I never said they weren't. And they should be punished! but ANY head contact is a 5 min major? Going to enjoy just watching Powerplays the whole game the rest of the season...

[HShockeywatcher]

Understand, I'm not talking about the checks from behind near the boards. We all agree those are dangerous. I've seen a bunch of head contact penalties this year, not one of which had the "victim" (only for lack of a better term) hurt in the slightest.

There's no long term damage from being hit in the head? Hmmm, I guess science has it wrong. There are also concussions that go unnoticed/undiagnosed right away.

I never said there's a safe way to hit someone in the head.

Are all slashes equal? No.
Is all contact to the head equal? Apparently so.

If you're a HS hockey watcher than you know what type of check I'm talking about. Where the kid initiates the hit and his hands follow through high. I'm not talking a big blow, just a glove in the face mask. It's illegal and should be a penalty. But should it be 5 minutes?

You know the check, the one that's not dangerous, but still hands hit the helmet.

Okay, so explain to me what the different between "not dangerous" and "safe" is...

Yes, I do; the checks were a player is hit in the head illegally.

You admit it's illegal, well hopefully this stops it from happening. Personally, I wouldn't have minded if this were only for checks to the back, but I'm fine with this.

[HawkeyPower]

That is the message being oldtimer

You hit someone from behind you sit now and your team is severley penalized.

Go back to the 30's and play

The rule is actually ANY head contact, boarding (which can be a hit from the front) so it is not just hits from behind. Hits from behind are dangerous!! I never said they weren't. And they should be punished! but ANY head contact is a 5 min major? Going to enjoy just watching Powerplays the whole game the rest of the season...

The head contact rules are for concussions. I think the players from the past may not be able to remember the rules that they had from getting hit in the head so often. If a player can't keep his hands down to hit someone then he should sit for five. Crosby, Pronger, Lattendreise, Bouchard... how many players in the NHL are out because of head contact and concussion issues. It gets back to my earlier post in that these new rules will take out the gray area of some refs calling it one thing and not the other. Not all head contact will lead to concussions and not all Boarding penalties result in someone getting paralyzed. But I think the repetitive contact to the head results in too many concussions down the road.