All players are required to show a form of identification (driver’s license, state ID, or student ID) to the VHL Staff responsible for checking in players. VHL Staff will be stationed in front of assigned rink. You must sign in with your correct jersey number. Any player that arrives late must sign in with the scorekeeper by providing a form of identification (driver’s license, state ID, or student ID).
All teams must have a minimum of five Military Active, Reserve or Veterans on their fulltime rosters.
All rosters will be frozen by the 3rd game and no additions will be allowed. No exceptions
All rostered players must play in 5 regular season games in order to be eligible for the playoffs.
Teams must have 5 players and a goalie to start the game. The game clock starts after the warmup (that team can take their 1:00 minute time out). Teams will NOT be allowed to continue to warm up during this time. After 5:00 minutes of running clock, the game will be forfeited. If that team is ready to play before the clock reaches the 10:00 minute mark, the clock will stop, the offending team will be assessed a delay of game penalty, and now the game can be started.
All scheduled games are to be played on the assigned dates. No changes to the schedule will be allowed.
Forfeited games will not be rescheduled.
All scheduled games will be played unless the rink suffers a mechanical breakdown or closes due to extreme weather conditions. If either of these occur, the VHL will make their best efforts to contact the team captains and officials.
Game format:
- (3) 15-minute stop time periods. Running clock in the 3rd period if the goal differential is 5 or more. Stop time will resume once the goal differential is reduced to 3 goals. If both teams agree, running clock can be granted at any time before the 3rd period if the goal differential is 5 or more. Each team has (1) 1:00 minute time out that can be used in regulation or overtime.
- Blue line icing.
- Overtime format: 5-minute running clock, 3 on 3. Once the time expires then we go to a 3-player shootout.
- Any player that is assessed 4 penalties in one game will receive a game ejection but will be eligible to play the next game.
- Any player that is assessed a major and a game misconduct for fighting will receive a 3-game suspension.
- Any player that is assessed a match penalty will receive a minimum 30-day suspension.
- Clock will remain running during a fight until the officials decide to stop it.
- Once 15 penalties have been assessed during a game, the clock will go to running time for the remainder of that game.
- No "official's misconduct penalties" (GFOs) will be assessed. No exceptions. USA Hockey progression for unsportsmanlike conduct will be followed. Unsportsmanlike conduct (2:00 minutes), misconduct penalty (10:00 minutes), game misconduct, then match penalty.
- Abuse of officials will not be tolerated.
- The Referee in Chief’s and the VHL suspension decisions are final.
- All teams must have matching jerseys with numbers. Players with no jersey number will not be allowed to play. The league must be able to properly track goals, assists, and penalties.
The Veterans Hockey League reserves the right to remove any team that is found in violation of the set rules or found to be non-compliant to the VHL Mission and Goals.
