Hockey Canada introduces new junior-level rules in western pilot project

By JAMES TUBB on July 12, 2024.

The Canadian Press

Hockey Canada is trying out a series of changes in the western provinces in an attempt to streamline the development of junior players.

The new rules are part of the Western Canadian Development Model pilot project for the 2024-25 season that the national sport organization announced on Thursday. It was created following an extensive proposal submitted to Hockey Canada by its four western members, their respective junior A leagues and the Western Hockey League.

“The unity between Hockey Canada and the 10 organizations that led the development of the pilot project has never been stronger, and we are grateful for the tremendous work by the members and leagues that led to today’s announcement,” said Pat McLaughlin, chief operating officer and executive vice-president of strategy for Hockey Canada. “We all must continue to evolve to meet the needs of Canadians looking to participate in our national winter sport in a system that operates with an athlete-centred approach and ensures their development and safety on and off the ice is at the forefront of everything we do.”

Medicine Hat Tigers head coach and general manager Willie Desjardins says his takeaway from the pilot project is the collaboration from all of Hockey Canada.

“They’ve got everybody under the same umbrella and we’re all working the same way, which really helps everybody,” Desjardins said.

That includes mandating that junior A players under the age of 18 must continue to wear full-face protection, in line with the International Ice Hockey Federation. Players over 18 may now choose to wear half-face protection.

The pilot project also allows WHL teams to have up to nine 15-year-old players play up to 10 games in a season. That is up from the former limit of five affiliate players on the roster for only five games.

Desjardins says the extra slots for younger players doesn’t help them this season as much as it would have the last couple of campaigns.

“We’re at the point now where we do have a bit older lineup, in previous years we were really young,” Desjardins said. “So that would have made a big difference in those years. Now, we’re getting into a little bit more of an older lineup so I don’t think it’s going to change many things for us.”

WHL clubs can also now dress two 15-year-old affiliate players if the team is unable to field a full lineup otherwise. That is an increase from the previous limit of one.

That rule change would have been beneficial for the Tigers last season, as they played with a shorthanded lineup for a stretch due to the limit of one 15-year-old.

“We could have had both Rucks playing,” Desjardins said. “So we could have brought them in and both could have played and that would have been a big advantage.”

All participating western Canadian junior A leagues will adopt the WHL Rule Book, except for a handful of sections.

The pilot project will be reviewed on an ongoing basis during the 2024-25 season, and it is anticipated that its scope will expand in future seasons.

“By increasing flexibility for junior hockey players and families in Western Canada, we anticipate that we will see higher quality competition on the ice, all the way up to the national team level when Canada is competing internationally in the years to come,” said McLaughlin.

Western Hockey League commissioner Dan Near says the new project further enhances the WHL as a destination for players.

“This unprecedented collaboration between the WHL, Junior A leagues and the Western Branches is an unmistakably player-first approach and is one that responds in a substantive way to the evolving demands of players and their families,” commented WHL commissioner Dan Near. “Each of these organizations share a common priority – developing players on and off the ice. The Western Hockey League sits atop the development pyramid for elite players in the West and we will always look for ways to enhance our delivery to players and their families.”

With files from the Medicine Hat News, Western Hockey League.

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