Tournament rules · OHF rules apply
The rules, in plain words.
Every game is played under OHF rules. The ones that come up most at the rink are below; the rulebook has them all, and the rules on this website supersede any printed copy.
- Periods
- 12 · 15 · 15
- Warm-up
- 2 minutes
- Be ready
- 15 min early
- Roster
- 20 max, 3 goalies
On the ice
Game rules
The short version of the rulebook. Anything it does not cover is the call of the tournament directors, Tharindra De Silva and Cayla Tverberg, and that call is final.
Period lengths
Three stop-time periods of 12, 15 and 15 minutes in the round robin and the semifinals. Where a division plays quarter-finals they run 12, 12 and 15; every final runs 15, 15 and 15. No floods between periods.
Running time
If a team leads by five or more goals in the third period the clock runs until the gap is back to three.
Be ready early
Teams must be ready to play 15 minutes before their scheduled start without any warning — a game that is running early starts up to 15 minutes early. Pre-game warm-ups are two minutes.
Rosters and score sheets
Every team furnishes an approved, validated roster from its governing body. Every eligible player must be on the first game's score sheet — a maximum of 20, including three goaltenders.
Penalties
Minor penalties are two minutes and majors five, in every game. A match penalty is automatic expulsion from the tournament, the director's decision being final, and is subject to suspension from all OHF functions pending a hearing by the player's own association. There is no discussion on a coach's ejection.
Round-robin ties
There is no overtime in the round robin: a game that ends level is a tie for both teams. Timeouts are not permitted in round-robin games.
Playoff overtime
A tied playoff game goes to five minutes of 3-on-3 stop time, then a three-player shootout, then sudden death — every player shoots before anyone shoots twice. Each team has one 30-second timeout in a playoff game.
Playoff eligibility
A player must play at least one round-robin game to be eligible for the playoffs. Teams that met in the round robin do not meet in the first playoff round unless it cannot be helped, and there is no reseeding after the quarter-finals.
Defaults
A defaulted game is recorded as a 1–0 win for the team that showed and a 0–6 loss for the team that did not.
Body contact
Body contact is allowed in the 2013, 2012 and 2011 divisions — new this year for 2013, as the 2025 tournament stopped at 2012. The 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017 divisions are non-contact.
Equipment and jerseys
Mouthguards and neck guards are worn where your governing body requires them. Home teams wear dark jerseys, away teams white. Two-line passes, offsides, slap shots and the minimum number dressed all follow OHF rules.
Protests and the final word
No protests are accepted. The committee has the final word on interpreting these rules, and the tournament directors — Tharindra De Silva and Cayla Tverberg — on anything they do not cover.
Respect the officials
A referee-in-chief is available all weekend to talk through a situation with a particular official — they cannot change a call. Our referees treat coaches with respect and expect the same: swearing, screaming or gesturing at an official is not tolerated.
- The rulebook (PDF)The 2025 edition, until the 2026 rulebook is published. The rules on this website supersede any rules in print.
After the round robin
The tie-breakers
A regulation win is 2 points, a tie 1, a loss 0. Teams level on points go through these in order until one is ahead. With three or more teams tied, a step only applies if every tied team qualifies for it — if they have not all played each other, head-to-head is skipped.
- 01Head-to-headThe result between the tied teams.
- 02Most games won
- 03Best differential formulaGoals for ÷ (goals for + goals against), with any one game's spread capped at six — a 10–1 win counts as 7–1.
- 04Fewest goals against
- 05Most goals for
- 06Fewest penalty minutesOver the whole tournament.
- 07Coin toss
Still a question?
The event-day answers are on the Rinks page.
Game length, the GameSheet code, trading, vendors — and the director's email for anything else. Each division's playoff format is on the Playoffs page.