Parent Information

Registration

It is never too late to start playing hockey!  We regularly see players join their first hockey team at all ages from 5 to 17.  Registration typically opens between mid-June and early July, and soft closes at the end of August.  Occasionally Crowfoot may be able to accept registrations after the end of August deadline.  Contact us if you missed the deadline.  We ask for your cooperation in having your registrations completed as early as possible.  Early registrations both receive a discounted program fee, and allow us to better plan for a smooth transition into our upcoming season. Financial assistance may be available.

Click Here for more information on registration in our hockey program.

Each Community Hockey age division has variations on the rules and format.  For information on the changes involved at each age division, please visit our Community Hockey webpage.

Season Overview

From September through to early October, teams are formed through a player evaluation process.  It is the responsibility of the family to ensure they regularly check the evaluations webpage for their assigned evaluation times, and attend all assigned evaluations.  Younger players (U7 to U11) begin evaluations in early September, while our older players (U13 to U18) typically begin mid to late September.  Where possible, Crowfoot may offer optional pre-evalation ice times (at no additional fee) to help get back into the swing of things following the summer break.

Shortly after evaluations, players are placed on a team.  Teams are coached and managed by volunteers.   You will be contacted once teams have been formed by your Head Coach and your intial team schedule will be made available through TeamSnap.  The full season schedule will not be immediately available.  Blocks of schedule are released regularly as we move through the various stages of our season, such as the seeding round, EMHW, regular season, city championships.  In a typical week, you can expect 2-3 ice times with a mix of practices and games.    U7 typically has a set schedule of Wednesday evenings and Saturday mornings.

For U11 and older, the Hockey Calgary Standings page publishes the results of recent games and the league standings for the teams in your age division / tier.

Many teams will decide to do some combination of fundraising and cash calls throughout the season.  A cash call is generally used to enter tournaments, play exhibition games, and other social events.  Often teams will ask for an early cash call in order to have the funds at hand to enter tournments, and follow that up with fundraising with a goal of returning the full cash call to the family at the end of the season.

Volunteering

Crowfoot Hockey is a volunteer run organisation.  Without volunteers our program simply cannot run.  Crowfoot requires each family to provide a minimum of 10 hours volunteering in approved roles for each registered athlete.  Alternatively you can choose to pay $300 per registered athlete to avoid the volunteer requirement.

If you are interested in coaching, please fill out our coaching application form.

While there are many opportunities to volunteer at the team level, we are always looking for volunteers to help run a smooth program.  If you are interested in volunteering at the Board of Director or Coordinator level, please email:    VPoff-ice@crowfoothockey.com

Click Here for full details on our Volunteer Policy.

Respect in Sport for Parents

The Respect in Sport Parent Program is an effective and informative online training program for parents of active children. This one hour online certification program reinforces a parent's role in a child or youth's activities, encouraging positive sport behaviours, and providing insight into the various roles other individuals (such as coaches and officials) play. This program empowers parents to ensure the safety of their children, encourage positive and effective communication, and to enhance a child's fun and camaraderie of the activity.

Hockey Calgary requires one parent of each registered child to complete the Respect In Sport (RIS) Parent Course. This online course takes about an hour to complete.  Re-certification is required every 4 years.

Click Here to take the Respect in Sport Course. There is a $12.60 fee which the parent must pay.

Code of Conduct

Membership in the Crowfoot Minor Hockey Association, and participation in its activities, brings with it many benefits and privileges that are balanced by member and participant responsibilities and obligations.   The CMHA Code of Conduct defines the parameters for these responsibilities and obligations, and thus identifies a standard for behavior that is expected of all members and participants.  All families must agree to abide by our Code of Conduct at registration.

Click Here for full details of Crowfoot's Code of Conduct and Discipline Policy

Fair Play Code for Players

  1. I will play hockey because I want to, not just because others or coaches want me to.
  2. I will play by the rules of hockey and in the spirit of the game.
  3. I will control my temper - fighting and “mouthing off” can spoil the activity for everybody.
  4. I will respect my opponents.
  5. I will do my best to be a true team player.
  6. I will remember that winning isn’t everything - that having fun, improving skills, making friends and doing my best are also important.
  7. I will acknowledge all good plays and performances - those of my team and of my opponents.
  8. I will remember that coaches and officials are there to help me. I will accept their decisions and show them respect

Fair Play Code for Parents

  1. I will not force my child to participate in hockey.
  2. I will remember that my child plays hockey for his or her enjoyment, not for mine.
  3. I will encourage my child to play by the rules and to resolve conflicts without resorting to hostility or violence.
  4. I will teach my child that doing one’s best is as important as winning so that my child will never feel defeated by the outcome of a game.
  5. I will make my child feel like a winner every time by offering praise for competing fairly and trying hard.
  6. I will never ridicule or yell at my child for making a mistake or losing a game.
  7. I will remember that children learn best by example.
  8. I will applaud good plays/performances by both my child’s team and their opponents.
  9. I will never question the officials’ judgement or honesty in public.
  10. I will support all efforts to remove verbal and physical abuse from children’s hockey games.
  11. I will respect and show appreciation for the volunteer coaches who give their time to coach hockey for my child.

Communication Pathways

For general Crowfoot registration inquiries feel free to contact the Crowfoot Hockey Administrator.

During the season, your first point of contact for questions and concerns should almost always be your Team Manager and/or Head Coach.

  • If you have concerns regarding your Head Coach, and feel uncomfortable discussing the matter directly with either the head coach or team manager to resolve the matter, you may contact your Age Division Coach Coordinator to discuss the situation.
  • If you have concerns regarding your Team Manager, and feel uncomfortable discussing the matter directly with either the head coach or team manager to resolve the matter, you may contact your Age Division Coordinator to discuss the situation.

Only in rare situations should you contact a member of the Board of Directors prior to discussing the matter with either the Age Division Coordinator or Age Division Coach Coordinator.

Hockey Equipment for Players

Players require full equipment for all games, practices and evaluations, as below.

  • CSA approved helmet and full-face shield
  • Neck guard
  • Shoulder pads
  • Elbow pads
  • Hockey gloves
  • Practice jersey (see below)
  • Hockey pants
  • Athletic cup and support
  • Hockey socks
  • Shin pads
  • Hockey skates (see below)
  • Hockey Stick (see below)
  • Mouth guard (U9 and older)

As well, the following optional equipment may be recommended:

  • Hockey bag
  • Water bottle
  • Hockey sock tape
  • Hockey stick tape
  • Skate towel
  • Garter belt

Practice Jerseys and Hockey Socks:

Players will need to bring their own jersey to wear for practices and evaluations. Some coaches may request both a light and dark coloured practice jersey be available.  Players are required to wear Crowfoot (Pittsburgh Penguins) coloured jerseys and socks to all evaluations.

U7 / Timbits are given a jersey to wear throughout the year for all their ice times, but this jersey will not be available for the first few sessions.

Skates

Skates should be properly fit for the player and not too big. Improperly fitting skates are a big impediment to skating development. Depending upon the brand of skate, due to differences in the sizing scales, it is not uncommon for a skate that is one to two sizes smaller than the players shoe size to be a proper fit (ie player normally wearing a size 13 runner may typically fit a size 11 skate). Some extra attention during the sizing of new skates will payoff with a much more enjoyable experience for your player. Get them sharpened and throw in an extra pair of laces just in case you break one when you tighten them up. Bring a towel to dry off your blades after you get off ice.

Hockey Stick

Cut the shaft of your stick so that it is up to the player's mouth when standing on their tip toes (as though he/she were on skates). Tape the top hand grip and the stick's blade.