The Christmas Challenge

General Information/Standards

·         Please review Tournament Rule attachment for information relating to tie breaking formula, overtime line ups, mercy rule etc.

·         Seven (7) team divisions will be playing a modified round robin in which each team will play four (4) games. Although teams will not be facing the same opponents in this format, the points accumulated will determine the 1^st to 6^th place team that will advance to the playoffs.

·         Nine (9) team divisions will involve two round robin games for each team prior to the playoff round. Teams will then be separated into the Gold, Black and Red Pools and will once again play an additional two games. Please note that overtime will be utilized to break ties and points accumulated in the playoff round robin only will determine the finalists in each pool.

·         Team rankings 10 A1 – the 1^st place teams from each pool will advance to the Gold Pool of the playoffs. The remaining teams will be ranked from 5 – 14 as per the wins, ties, losses and GFA % when 2 or 3 teams are tied. Teams ranked 5 – 8 will advance to the Black Pool; teams ranked 9 – 12 will advance to the Red Pool; teams ranked 13 – 14 will advance to the Green Pool.

·         Cross-over games 11 A1. Results of cross over games may have a bearing on the final positions in a specific pool. Any ties in the standings of a pool will be broken by the tie breaking formula listed in the tournament rules document. Scores from cross over games will not be included in the tie breaking formula. The formula will only include the games played between teams in the same pool.

·         Temporary players – please follow the WMHA guidelines when utilizing a player from a lower level or age category. You do not need to contact the tournament chairman for authorization.

·         Treat all game officials with respect. Suspensions assessed during the tournament will be served in whole or in part in the Christmas Challenge. Any games that could not be served in the tournament will be carried over into league play.

·         Boston Pizza’s Hardest Working Player Award will be selected by his own team prior to the 4^th tournament game being played. The tournament supervisor will provide the coach/manager with a ballot prior to game 4 and it will be returned to the supervisor’s attention before the start of the game. The award will be presented either in the dressing room or during the medal/trophy presentation at the end of the game.

·         Gold, Silver and Bronze Medals will be presented to teams that were positioned in the Gold Pool. Trophies, only, will be presented to teams who are victorious in the Black, Red or Green Pools.

·         The sale of 50/50 tickets by individual teams is strictly prohibited.

·        For updates on scores and playoff positioning go to www.christmaschallenge.ca . It will be up and running by December 20, 2011.