NCRHA Rule of the Week ? Roster Changes

With the end of the first semester approaching, we felt it would be valuable to make clear what types of roster changes are and are not permitted at the semester break. The format will be a question and answer, and if you have questions that are not answered by this, email [email protected] with your topic. 1) When can we begin to make changes to our roster? The second semester ?Open Roster Period? is from January 1st to February 15th, during that period, changes may be made regarding locked players, or you can add and drop players from your master roster. Before January 1st and after February 15th, absolutely NO ROSTER CHANGES will be permitted. 2) Can we change the players who are locked on our A team? Yes, during the open roster period, nobody is technically locked on the A team.* By February 15th, the list of 8 locked players must be submitted to the proper authority (if you have a B team), and all games played after that by the B team must not include locked players. * The exception to this involves players that have already dressed in 9 A games, or goaltenders who have appeared in 6 A games. They are considered A players for the entire season once that happens. 3) How many players can we add or drop? It?s possible that your region has limits on how many transactions can be made (ask your Regional Director), but nationally, there are no limits. There are no limits on the number of people that can be rostered during the season, and there are no limits on the number of transactions. Theoretically, you could have an entirely different team in the second semester than the first. Game rosters, however, are limited to 15 players (including 2 goalies) and 3 coaches/managers. Event rosters have a limit of 20 players. 4) Can we change our coach during the open period? Yes, you have every right to change your coach, but it must happen before February 15th, or they will not be able to be on the bench in the national championships. 5) Can a player who graduates this winter and now has a job play for us? Yes, as long as that player was eligible to participate in the fall semester, and graduated from your university in the winter, they are allowed to play in the spring semester. Someone who just stopped going to school without graduating, however, is not eligible to participate in the second semester. 6) What about someone who is working in an internship or co-op? Yes, they may play also, as long as it is a school recognized internship or co-op. 7) How many games does a player have to play in order to be eligible for nationals at the end of the season? To be eligible for either regional or national post-season play, a player must have played in SIX games for the teams they are rostered on. For example, if a player is not locked on the A team, and plays 7 games during the season, only for the A team, they would be eligible to participate for either the A or B team in a post-season event. It?s also true that if the person had played 7 games only on the B team, they would be eligible to participate in the post-season on the A team. It?s probably better to say that a person must play at least six games for a particular school to be eligible to participate in post-season play on either that school?s A or B teams. Again, once a player has played 9 games on the A team (6 games for goalies), they would not be eligible to participate in B team post-season play. For any references or clarifications, see Section 2 of the NCRHA rulebook regarding rosters, check out the News section of the NCRHA website, or talk to your Regional Director. Again, if you have additional questions not answered above, email [email protected] and they will be added to the article. Also remember that your region may have more strict standards regarding roster movement, and you should check your region?s league manual for regional rules. As always, if you have questions, contact a director or go to www.collegerollerhockey.net to have them answered. Good luck finishing the first semester and closing out the season next semester.