Sportsmanship and striving to win haven’t always been known to collide in the same sentence. Since Fair Play was implemented in 2004 though, youth hockey in Minnesota has been one place where players, coaches and parents can help their team achieve its goal of finishing first in the standings by approaching each game with respect for the opponents, the referees, and the game of hockey itself.
The Fair Play program was instituted with the premise of rewarding teams for displaying proper behavior and sportsmanship during competition. Under the Fair Play system, teams earn an extra point (Fair Play Point or FPP) in their district or league standings for staying under an established threshold for penalty minutes and avoiding inappropriate behavior by coaches or spectators.
While Fair Play does not impact the outcome of individual games, consistently good (or bad) behavior can have a cumulative effect on league standings and playoff seedings, encouraging players, coaches and parents to display positive behavior at all events.
Fair Play has been lauded by the medical community and in nationwide media for its approach and its ability to influence behavior. At Mayo Clinic’s recent Ice Hockey Summit III: Action on Concussions, one of the presentations shared data on Fair Play’s ability to reduce dangerous and aggressive hits, which in turn reduced injuries. When the summit released its prioritized action items, expanding Fair Play to all levels of hockey was included as one of the top recommendations for concussion prevention efforts.
Below are the official Fair Play penalty minute equivalents for each type of penalty and the penalty minute thresholds, by age level, which teams must stay under to earn their Fair Play point.
Level | Minutes | Level | Minutes |
---|---|---|---|
Squirt | 10 min | Girls 10U | 8 min |
Peewee | 12 min | Girls 12U | 10 min |
Bantam | 14 min | Girls 15U | 12 min |
Youth 16U | 16 min | Girls 16U | 14 min |
Junior Gold | 16 min | Girls 19U | 14 min |
Note: The minimum penalty for head contact, charging, checking from behind and boarding is a two-minute minor and 10-minute misconduct. For Fair Play purposes, these penalties count as 12 minutes towards each team’s PIM threshold.
Penalty Classification | PIM Equivalent |
---|---|
Minor or Bench Minor | 2 minutes |
Major | 5 minutes |
Minor & Misconduct (2 & 10) | 12 minutes |
Misconduct (10) | 10 minutes |
Mouthguard Misconduct | 2 minutes |
Game Misconduct | 10 minutes |
Match | 10 minutes |
Penalty Shot | Equivalent to penalty assessed |
The game scorekeeper is in charge of totaling HEP PIM equivalents at the end of each game and circling on the scoresheet whether each team earned their Fair Play point. Fair Play points are then reported through the normal reporting process in each league and appear on league standings. For a scorekeeper cheat sheet to Fair Play rules, click here.