Tournament Rules and Jury

Tournament Rules and Jury

Rules

Tournament Rules

The tournament follows the rules of the Finnish Ice Hockey Association (FIHA / SJL) for U14 and U15 juniors, with the following exceptions:

Divisions and Team Jerseys

The tournament includes the following age groups and divisions:

• U15: two divisions – AA and AAA
   
• U14: three divisions – AAA, AA and A

Number of teams:

• U15 AAA: 6 teams
   
• U15 AA: 10 teams
   
• U14 AAA: 8 teams
   
• U14 AA: 12 teams
   
• U14 A: 12 teams
   

Total number of teams: 48

Each team must have two separate sets of jerseys. The team designated as the away team must change jerseys if necessary.
Home jerseys are dark, away jerseys light.

Each team will play a minimum of five (5) games.

The team contact person must check in at the tournament office upon arrival and check out when leaving the tournament.

Game Days and Venue

The tournament is a three-day event, held Friday–Sunday, January 2–4.
Games will be played at the Practice Rink and Ilmatar Arena in Matinkylä, Espoo, located next to each other.

Overage / Mixed-Age Teams

Exceptions are possible but must be agreed upon in writing in advance with the tournament organizer.
Contact: Anna Elo – Blues12@kiekko-espoo.com

For combined teams, written permission from the tournament organizer is required.

Player Movement Between Levels

Loaning players from a lower-level team to a higher-level team is permitted, and players may return to their original team.
Each transfer must be reported in advance by email to the tournament office at blues12@kiekko-espoo.com.

A player may move up and down only once; after this, no further transfers are allowed.

Goaltenders may move more freely between teams, but this must also be agreed upon in advance with the tournament office.
Goaltenders may move:

• AAA → AA
   
• AA → A
   
• A → AA or AAA
   

If a situation arises where an AAA goaltender plays in an A-level game, a valid justification must be provided.

Game Time and Penalties

• U15 games: 2 × 20 minutes stop time, total game time 60 minutes
   
• U14 games: 2 × 15 minutes stop time, total game time 45 minutes
   
• Intermission: 1 minute

Preliminary round games may end during the second period if the total allotted game time expires.

For quarterfinals, semifinals, and medal games, 5 additional minutes are added to the total game time. Period lengths remain the same (2 × 20 / 2 × 15 minutes).
If needed, the winner is decided by a shootout.

Teams do not change ends between periods.

Teams must be ready at least 5 minutes before game time. Games start immediately after ice resurfacing or the previous game ends.
If a team is not ready at the scheduled start time, the game is forfeited 5–0.

Due to time constraints, timeouts are not allowed.

Penalty lengths used in the tournament:

• 1 minute
   
• 5 minutes
   
• 10 minutes
   

A game ends immediately if the goal difference reaches 15 goals.

The teams are not allowed to take time out.

Game Misconduct Penalties

Game misconduct penalties follow Competition Rules section 11 – Suspensions.

A game misconduct (GM) always leads to disciplinary review and may result in a game or activity suspension.
During the review process, the player may continue to play unless the accumulation of behavior penalties is reached or the GM is assessed late in the game.

A GM results in an automatic three (3) game suspension for team officials.
The disciplinary authority may impose a longer suspension if deemed necessary.

For U14 and U15, a GM assessed for violent conduct results in an automatic one-game suspension.
The disciplinary authority may impose a longer suspension.

A GM results in one entry in the player’s behavior penalty record.

Tournament Format

Due to varying numbers of teams, formats differ by division.

U15 AAA

• 6 teams
   
• Single round-robin (each team plays all others)
   
• Final: 1st vs 2nd
   
• Bronze game: 3rd vs 4th
   
• Placement game: 5th vs 6th
   

Minimum 5 games per team.

U15 AA

• 10 teams
   
• Two groups
   
• Top two teams from each group advance to semifinals
   
• Teams ranked 3–5 play placement games
   

Minimum 5 games per team.

U14 AAA

• Two groups of 4 teams
   
• Single round-robin (3 games per team)
   
• Quarterfinals based on group rankings (1A vs 4B, 2A vs 3B, etc.)
   
• Winners advance to semifinals → final / bronze game
   
• Quarterfinal losers play placement games
   

Minimum 5 games per team.

U14 AA

• Four groups of 3 teams
   
• Single round-robin (2 games per team)
   
• Quarterfinals and semifinals as per group rankings
   
• Third-place teams play a separate placement round
   

Minimum 5 games per team.

U14 A

• Same format as U14 AA
   

Minimum 5 games per team.

Points System

• Win: 2 points
   
• Tie: 1 point
   
• Loss: 0 points
   

Preliminary round games may end in a tie.
Placement games tied after regulation are decided by a shootout.

Each team selects three shooters. After that, sudden death applies.
The away team shoots first.

Standings Criteria (Preliminary Round)

1. Points
    
2. Goal difference
    
3. Goals scored
    
4. Head-to-head points
    
5. Head-to-head goal difference
    
6. Head-to-head goals scored
    
7. Penalty minutes
    
8. Draw
    

Detailed schedules and brackets are available in Game Results Online.

Officials, Major Penalties and Jury

1. Referees

Games are officiated by referees from the Helsinki Referees’ Association.

2. Penalties

Game misconducts are handled according to tournament rules.
If necessary, the Jury will be convened.

3. Tournament Jury and Protests

All protests are handled by the Tournament Jury, whose decision is final.

Protests must be submitted in writing within 10 minutes of the end of the game to the tournament office.
Protest fee: €200, refundable if the protest is upheld.

Jury members:

• Kati Saastamoinen
• Anna Elo (Tournament Director)
• Maria Koskela-Kansanen
• Lari-Pekka Ikonen
• Daniel Österholm (Referee)
   

The Jury may hear referees and/or teams if necessary.
A decision requires unanimous agreement.
The Jury is not obligated to explain its decisions.

8. Schedule Changes

The organizer reserves the right to adjust schedules and interpret these rules if special circumstances require.
Teams will be informed of any changes without delay.

9. Tournament Spirit – Fair Play

Teams, players, and officials are expected to demonstrate exemplary Fair Play behavior.
Spectators are asked to encourage positively and act as good role models for children.

The organizer may remove disruptive individuals from the arena.
Misconduct by team officials will be handled in accordance with FIHA rules.