FAQ (Coach)

Can my team wear their practice jerseys for a tournament?

No for any league, tournament, or exhibition games, team functions, teams must wear their AMHA Jerseys.   If your team purchases practice jerseys, no matter how nice, practice jerseys can only be worn for practice.

What does “bench staff” mean?

Bench staff are the team's head coach, assistant coaches, goalie coaches, trainers.  All bench staff have to be registered to your team and all have to have Respect in Sport Activity Leader Course.  Respect In Sport Activity leader must be completed before bench staff step on the ice for practices and games beginning on October 16, 2020.  The Parent Respect In Sport does not replace or can be used in place of the Respect In Sport Activity Leader. The head coach must have the required coach courses for their level.  You can find out which courses are required on the Hockey Alberta website under Coaches - Coach Education - Requirements.  Head Coach required Courses need to be completed by mid November 2020.  Also, each team must have one member of their bench staff that has a current Hockey Canada Safety Course.  It is up to the head coach to ensure that one of their bench staff has the course or take the course themselves.  All bench staff need to provide AMHA with a current Vulnerable Sector Police Check. We have a letter under the Coaches tab for you to take to the RCMP to get your police check for free.

I have just showed up for my teams practice and only two coaches will be available today, can one of our parents who have their skates help on the ice, as an on ice helper?

No. Only registered AMHA coaches can help at practice.  If a parent has their skates and they are registered to another AMHA hockey team then they can assist on your practice.

I have just showed up for my team's game and we only have 2 coaches available today, can one of our parents come on the bench to help?

No.  Only bench staff registered to your team can be on your bench for games.

I have two children in AMHA and I am part of the bench staff for one of my children's teams, can my other son come on the ice for my teams practice?

No. Only players listed on your team roster can go to your practice.  We do have a Junior Coach program and siblings or other AMHA registered players can become Jr Coaches.  Jr Coaches must be 2 divisions above your team in order to help with your practices. Jr Coaches cannot go on your bench for games.  If your team would like to have a Jr Coach please email the office staff to ask for details.

My team is short players for our exhibition game, tournament, or league game, can I just borrow a player from another team or bring a sibling of one of our players to play in our game?

No.  Only players listed on your roster can play in your teams games.  This would include properly registered affiliate players. (exception will be in initiation: teams may call their coordinator to ask if they can invite a player(s) (from their initiation division level (blue to blue and red to red only)to play in their exhibition, tournament, or league game.  The player(s) must be approved by the initiation coordinator in advance of the game.  

What is an affiliate player?

Affiliate players are players that are chosen according to our affiliation policy to be placed on your roster.  The Affiliation Policy can be viewed on our website under Information - Bylaws & Policies - 8.11 Affiliation Policy. Affiliate players are used to fill spots on your team for games or practices when you have sick or injured players and in some cases suspended players.  (CAHL does not allow teams to use affiliates in place of suspended players) You may not play an affiliate player until the office staff confirms that the player(s) have been registered to your team.

A parent on our team wants to buy our team apparel, but they want our team to wear colours that are similar to their business. (A&W orange)  Is this allowed?

All AMHA teams must follow our apparel guidelines listed in our 3.6 Apparel Policy found on our website under Information - Bylaws & Policies.  Specific brands, colours and logos are specified in the Apparel Policy.  No they could not buy A&W colours.

I took a few coach courses and they were expensive does AMHA reimburse me for these courses?

Yes. On our website under the Coaches tab we have this form  Coach Reimbursement Form. Follow the instructions on how to get reimbursed for your coach course fees.  We do not reimburse for the Criminal Record Checks.

One of my players received a penalty that may incur a suspension, and our team manager sent in the game sheet and incident report to the league or tournament liaison, but I have not heard back and we have a game in 30 minutes, can I assume there isn’t a suspension if we haven’t heard back yet?

No.  Never play a player that you suspect may receive a suspension.  If you are not sure it is best to err on the side of caution and not play that player.  If you play a suspended player you as the coach will face large suspensions. If you sit the player and they do end up getting a suspension than the game they sat will go towards it.

How can I find out about the rules for the league that I coach in?

Leagues post their rules and regulations on their website.  It is a good idea to read through these rules and regulations prior to the season start.  Also, print the rules and regulations so that you have them handy during games. It is also a good idea to read the Hockey Alberta rules and regulations.  You should also read the AMHA Respect Matters Policy and other applicable Policies. Of course ignorance is never an excuse when something goes wrong.  It is up to you as the team coach or bench staff member to know all of the rules.

One of the players or bench staff is suspended can they come to practice?

Yes suspensions are only for games.  When a player or bench staff is suspended in league for example and the next game your team plays is an exhibition game, your player cannot play in the exhibition game.  Suspensions can only be served in league or sanctioned tournament games.

My team is Tier 3 and we want to play an exhibition game with Tier 2 can we do that?

No AMHA does not allow our Tiered teams to play each other.  AMHA also does not allow our city league divisions to play teams in the higher or lower division. (example: Red teams cannot play Blue teams) If your Tier 3 wants to play a Tier 2 team from another association you can do that.

My team has been invited to play an HSL or non sanctioned team, can we do that?

No, minor hockey teams registered with Hockey Alberta can only play in sanctioned exhibition games and tournaments.  

What is a travel permit?

Travel permits are required to play any games(tournament or exhibition) outside of Airdrie that are not your regular league games. (league playoff games or provincial tournament games do not require a permit)  Your manager can apply for a travel permit. You need to apply for a permit approximately one week before your game or tournament. Travel Permit forms can be found under the Managers Tab, Resources (Forms).  If you forget to get a permit you can call the office and get advice on how to proceed.

What is an exhibition game permit?

Your team needs to apply for an exhibition game permit when you are the home team for an exhibition game.  If you have booked ice outside of Airdrie, (Beiseker for example) the home exhibition game will serve as your exhibition game permit and your travel permit, you do not have to apply for both.

It is your responsibility to ensure your team manager is aware of the fact that travel and exhibition permits are required.

Our team wants to attend a tournament outside of Canada, is this allowed?

Yes, your team can attend a tournament outside of Canada as long as it is sanctioned by the Country’s governing body.  You will need to provide this sanction number when you apply for a travel permit. Also, make sure your team has the required documentation to cross borders.  It is normal to have to provide special documentation at the border if only one parent is taking a player. The other parent has to sign a form and the form needs to be notarized and accompany the traveling parent and player.

I want my team to go to a tournament but they said it is too expensive, can I just enter them and insist we go?

All teams meet at the beginning of the season to decide on the number of tournaments, maximum distance away from Airdrie they would like to go, extra activities such as dryland, team functions etc.  Teams must vote on items that will cost families extra money. It is also usually decided at the team meeting what percentage of voters need to agree in order for a function to be approved. (Example would be that the team decides that at least 12 of the 17 families must vote yes so there will be enough players to play in the games)

Can my team book a bus to go to our game?

Yes your team can book a bus as long as the team decision is yes.  You must follow our 10.1 Seatbelt Policy, located under the Information tab - Bylaws & Policies tab, and the bus company must be approved by AMHA.

Our team did fundraising and we have a lot of spare funds and the season is ending soon, can we buy the players expensive gifts like sticks etc.?

Please make sure to review the AGLC rules regarding how team fundraising funds can be spent.

I have a player who continuously misses practices, is there a way to discipline this player?  I know it is the parent that is not bringing the child so I am hesitant to discipline.

Players can be sat shifts at game as a discipline measure.  You can review our Ice Time Policy, coming soon to Policy page on our website.  Communication is key regarding discipline.  If you plan to sit a player at a game because of missed practices communicate this to the family of the player prior to the game so they are not surprised or confused at the circumstances.  Be reasonable when discussing the missed practices and allow for homework situations, sickness, etc.

A parent on our team was displaying very poor behaviour at one of our games, how can I deal with this? 

You should report any inappropriate behaviour of parents, players etc. to your division director.  It is key to report any incident in a timely manner so the behaviour is documented. If you feel that you can deal with the behaviour with a simple discussion to the family you can do so, but wait 24 hours before speaking to the family so that both parties have had time to review their behaviour.

I am having difficulty with a parent on my team and I have already reported this to my division coordinator but it seems nothing is being done, what should I do?

If you are not receiving help from your coordinator, you can contact your stream director and after that you can speak to one of the executive members.  The office staff can also be called for help.

After my practice I have an event to attend, can I shower in the dressing room with the players?

It would not be appropriate to shower with or in the same room as the players.  If you need to shower after a practice, you could use the ref room shower or wait for all players to leave the dressing room and shower then.

Who is responsible for the dressing room cleanliness?

As the head coach you should be the last person to walk through the dressing room and ensure that the dressing room clean and nothing is broken or destroyed in any way.  This would be for home and away games. If you have to leave and cannot do the walk through then please assign an Assistant Coach to take on this responsibility. It is a good practice to address dressing room expectations with your players.  Players should have the utmost respect for facilities in our home arena and also dressing rooms in visiting arenas. Teams that leave dressing rooms untidy or have caused destruction of property will be liable for fines or fees that are sent to AMHA. Please refer to the 10.3 Locker Room Policy located under the Information tab - Bylaws & Policies on our website for more information.

I have heard people talk about the “2 Deep Method” in the Locker Room, what is it?

AMHA believes that consistent monitoring inside of the locker rooms and changing areas will insure the most effective way to prevent incidents. There should always be two adults (that are certified /screened) in the dressing room (“Two Deep Method” supervision).  If this is not practical, supervisor(s) must be within hearing distance of the locker room in order to protect the players. Please do not have your players come to the rink an hour early if your bench staff can not be at the rink to monitor. 

I have noticed that some of my players are vaping in the dressing room, what should I do? 

Please communicate team rules to your players.  The City of Airdrie arenas do not allow vaping, smoking, drugs or alcohol, nor does AMHA or Hockey Alberta allow players or bench staff to partake in these behaviours in the arena.  If you are part of an AMHA bench staff, it is advised that you refrain from vaping, smoking, drugs, or alcohol at any team events. (before or after) As a bench staff member your actions are the best example of proper behaviour  to our young impressionable athletes.

My team has dryland do the bench staff members need to attend?

It is not mandatory for bench staff to attend dryland, but it is advised that at least one of the bench staff members attend to help to supervise the players.  It is a learning opportunity for all coaches when they attend dryland.

I am a novice or initiation coach, am I required to bring skates to the game sessions?

Yes please always have your skates available for all team sessions.  There may be times when coaches are needed to wear skates to help to place bumper pads and remove bumper pads for games

We are at our game and the refs have not shown up, can I call a referee that I know?

No. Only referees assigned by the Airdrie Referee association can ref league, exhibition or tournament games.  There is a hockey Alberta rule that if no refs show up and both teams agree, coach from each team can ref the game, but please review the Hockey Alberta rules to ensure this rule is valid.  You can also try to get in touch with the referee assignor (rod@airdrierefs.com) and they may be able to help you.  Try to call the ref assignor at least 15 minutes or more before the game begins.

What coaching tools are available for me to use?

AMHA has coaching boxes at the arenas that have coaching tools inside.  Pylons, tires, parachutes, balls, etc.