The Tier II substitute choice application process, Squirt 10U through Midget 16U/18U will begin on July 19, 2019. All applications will be submitted online. The Tier II Committee will only have (3) three appeal hearings this year for those denied a substitute choice.  The dates for the appeals are August 8, August 28, and September 10, 2019 at 6:30pm at the North Shore Ice Arena. If denied, please email Gregg Chudacoff, AHAI Tier II Chairman, at  gregg.chudacoff@ahai2.org with your preferred appeal hearing date. The deadline for applying for a substitute choice will be September 15, 2019.

The 23rd Annual AHAI Foundation Golf Outing will be held at the Schaumburg Golf Club in Schaumburg, Illinois, Friday, August 9, 2019. The course is centrally located for everyone! The outing will be a shotgun tee off scramble at 10:30 a.m. followed by dinner at 5:00 p.m., and all golfers will receive a starting package filled with special items designed just for this outing.

The purpose of this event is twofold. First, it creates an opportunity for coaches, referees, administrators, parents and supporters of amateur hockey in Illinois to come together for a day of fun and relaxation to kick off the beginning of the new season.

Secondly, and most importantly, the revenues generated from this event are donated each season to specific charities as established annually by the AHAI Foundation, such as the Hornets Sled Hockey team, Chicago Blackhawks Special Hockey team, Chicago Blackhawks Blind Hockey team, the Hockey Is For Everyone Program for underprivileged kids, the Chicago Blackhawks Warriors and the Catastrophic Relief Fund for players and officials who have been catastrophically injured playing the sport we all love.
The AHAI Foundation Golf Outing is asking the hockey community to reach out to their favorite restaurants for a donation of dinner gift certificates to use in our raffles. We are also looking for donations of tickets to sporting events of any kind. Additionally, anyone with corporate connections that can get giveaways (i.e. water bottles, key chains, lanyards or any advertising leftovers, please ask them. We fill up every year with 144 golfers.

Send gift certificates , tickets (this may also be a pledge for tickets) and/or giveaways to Don Allord, Golf Outing Chairman, at 3 Roberts Court, Woodridge, IL 60517. Questions? Contact Don Allord at travelmore1017@gmail.com. Thank you in advance for your support! 

By Laura Johnson, AHAI Registrar

As you may know, the United States government enacted the Protecting Young Victims from Sexual Abuse and SafeSport Authorization Act of 2017 on February 14th, 2018. USA Hockey has been working on addressing the changes necessary for the USA Hockey SafeSport Program based on this Act.

Click HERE for a memorandum from Casey Jorgensen, USA Hockey General Council, which provides details about these changes.

The changes approved at the USA Hockey Annual Congress last week to comply with the government requirements will directly impact players in Illinois.

To comply with the government requirement, USA Hockey does not want players or officials turning 18 to become ineligible in the middle of a season.

Therefore, USA Hockey is requiring all players 17 years of age or older on or before December 31st of that playing season and who play on a team in a classification that allows minor aged players, to complete SafeSport Training before being added to a team and prior to participation with the team (on-ice or off-ice). This requirement applies to all teams in the age classifications Youth, Girls, High School, Junior Hockey, Flex Hockey and Disabled Hockey programs that allow both minor age and adult age players (anyone over 18 years).

Players in the group identified above that have not completed the SafeSport Training cannot be placed on the team’s roster in the USA Hockey registration portal (where rosters are created). The computer program will prevent the player from being added to the team until they have completed the training. Because the player is not on the Official Roster, they are prohibited from participating with the team until the training is completed and the player can be added to the roster.

We strongly recommend that players act on this new requirement NOW if they are currently 17 or older, or will be on or before December 31st.

The program takes about 90 minutes to complete online. Once the fall season is underway, players will be consumed with school, hockey, and other commitments. It is to their advantage to take the SafeSport Program NOW and not wait until it is time to be placed on a roster and games are starting.

The SafeSport Program is free. You must have a USAH Registration Confirmation Number to register to take the training. Players registered with USAH for the 2018/19 season can use the USA Hockey Confirmation Number from that season (which is valid until August 31, 2019) to register to take the training. They may also register with USA Hockey for the 2019/20 and use that confirmation number to register for the course. Effective September 1, 2019, registration for the program requires a 2019/20 USA Hockey Registration.

To take the SafeSport Program access the online program via the USA Hockey Website https://www.usahockey.com/safesporttraining. Or use this direct link to access the SafeSport site: https://safesport.org/authentication/register?token=71d4f2f9-bddb-4e6d-bb2a-37211b8999d9.

Like the requirement this year to complete SafeSport, we anticipate additional changes regarding screening in the 2020/2021 season. At the present time, for the 2019/20 season, there is not a requirement for these individuals to be screened.

Enjoy the summer, and if you are or know someone that meets the age requirement for this new rule, we hope you take advantage of using some of your time to complete the SafeSport program.

Questions about this new policy can be directed to the following:

John Dunne, AHAI Executive Director
jdunne@ahai2.org
224-636-3215

Laura Johnson, AHAI Registrar
registrar@ahai2.org
224-636-3233

Please click HERE to download/print the 2019 Tier I Midget Tryout Schedule. Good luck, players!

By Jack Weinberg, AHAI High School Committee Chairman

The most important new rule to be aware of in High School hockey this year is the minimum player requirement. All boys high school teams will need to have a minimum of 14 distinct skaters plus at least 1 goalie to qualify and receive a certified roster from the AHAI Registrar for the upcoming fall season. This increase came as a recommendation to the AHAI board from the High School Committee and was primarily adopted to help increase the safety of the players. There have been many instances where due to injuries and suspensions that available players for a game have diminished to an “unsafe” number. The minimum must be reached before the team plays their first game of the season or they may not play as they will not have a certified roster.

This year all combined organizations will have a thirty day period to file their complete Combined Applications. The electronic applications will available online beginning June 1st and will close June 30th. This application continues to develop, make sure you answer all of the questions including what is your home rink. This is important when the committee considers the distances that need to be traveled by players.

An exception has been added to the 7-up rule. A organization that has more than 2 teams may petition to bring up a player from a team below if they have dropped to an unreasonable number of players in the opinion of the High School Committee. If approved, the player must added to the certified roster and be approved by the AHAI registrar. If it involves league play, the addition must also be approved by the league. This may not be done to provide a team a competitive advantage. This is only for moving a player up, not down. The rest of the provisions of the 7-up – 7-down rules stay in effect.