OHF PLAYER MOVEMENT POLICY UPDATE
Further to the Ontario
Hockey Federation’s (OHF) recent announcement on Player Movement, we wanted to
expand on our December 17th response to this significant change.
The Newmarket Minor Hockey Association (NMHA)
has a long history of providing a high level of hockey programing for our
athletes. For almost 70 years our vision has been to provide
a fun, healthy and competitive experience in organized hockey for all talent
levels.
The recent decision from
the OHF to allow families and players to play where they want, regardless of
where they live, will result in a significant shift in the way minor hockey
associations will operate. NMHA is ready and prepared for this change!
NMHA is committed to
continuing to provide the incredible experience that our Newmarket players and
families have come to expect while we prepare to implement these new policies. The
NMHA firmly believes in ‘Hometown Hockey’ at all levels, from House League to
AA. NMHA thrives from the
strength of our volunteer base. Our amazing volunteers continually step up to
give our athletes the best hockey experience possible! Our on ice-officials, our arena
employees and all others who make our programs happen are some of the best in
the business!
The Hockey landscape
has long predicted that eventually resident borders would open. NMHA has been preparing and building up our
programs over the last few years to ensure we position ourselves to be the place
where our athletes want to stay and a desirable destination to attract talented
new athletes.
Our Commitment
to Hometown Hockey
NMHA believes
that our Renegades teams should be comprised primarily of Newmarket
residents. As we continue to build and
develop competitive teams based on great programs, contributing to our players growth
on and off the ice, we feel that our athletes will want to remain Renegades and
develop lifelong friendships. We will be directing our Coaches to prioritize
Newmarket residents. We will also give some flexibility in selecting players
from outside Newmarket to keep our teams competitive within the league, however
at this time we will not provide a specific number as the NMHA executive is
continuing discussions.
As a Renegade you are a part of an organization that provides:
Strong Core
Values
· To
be a Renegade is to experience hockey the way it should be!
· Our
association has always been driven by doing the right thing to ensure all of
our athletes and families from HL to AA have an amazing experience. The association is led by dedicated hockey
people. We believe in strong
communication, transparency, and building great people on and off the ice.
Rep Hockey at a
Reasonable Cost
· All Rep team budgets are scrutinized to ensure costs
are kept reasonable.
· We encourage sponsorship and fundraising efforts that
help keep costs lower
· Our player costs to play Rep hockey in Newmarket are
among the lowest in the GTA and we provide the BEST Rep hockey programming!
· The most any family will pay as part of a Rep team
budget is $3,500 per player. Sponsorship and/or fundraising proceeds may lower
this cost.
The BEST Coaches
· We
believe that the Head Coach selection decisions are the most important decisions
we make. Our Coaches are carefully
selected to ensure we have a roster of the very best. While we are always open to non-parent coaches,
we have found great success with Parent Coaches who want to give back to the
game of hockey and do this for the ‘love’ of game. Our goal is to hire Coaches that are serious
about development and growth while keeping costs reasonable for families.
· Our Coaches
are one of the main reasons why our athletes want to continue to choose
Newmarket and why many others will want to join our teams.
· Our Coaches
will have all certifications and training as mandated by Hockey Canada and
access to funding for these certifications and continued training.
· Our Coaches
will have access to our Coach Mentor, Peter McBride. Peter has an incredible background and coaching
pedigree at the Junior A and University sports level. Peter is also a presenter
with Hockey Canada and works with our Coaches throughout the season providing
support and guidance, both on and off the ice.
· Our Coaches
have access to many Coaching tools, including CoachThem and The Coaches Site –
provided by the association.
· We
will announce our Coaches for the 2025-2026 season on Saturday, February 15th
on the OHF Coach Announcement Day.
· For
any non-parent Head Coaches, we will cover basic team related expenses.
· If
you are interested in being a RENEGADES COACH please click here.
2025-2026 Coach Application
Deadline for Coach Applications is Friday, January 10th, 2025 @ 10:00PM EST
Elite
Development
· Our
teams will get up to 3.5 hours of on-ice practice per week
· Association provided skills development sessions
provided by certified professionals
· Off-ice
fitness training with our partners at Blood, Sweat, Train.
o
Our
players will have access to guided hockey specific training.
o
Fully
equipped gym.
o
Highly
educated trainers.
· Access
to video development sessions using the HUDL platform.
· Access
to sports phycologists
The BEST Facilities
· Geographically
we are centrally located within the York Simcoe Minor Hockey League boundaries.
This significantly reduces the travel time for away games.
· All
games and practices will be at our modern town owned facilities:
o
The Magna
Centre with four ice pads
o
Ray
Twinney Complex with two ice pads
· Access
to our NMHA Hockey Boardroom at the Magna Center for team meetings and video
sessions.
Town of Newmarket Facilities
The BEST Tournaments
· Host
team for International Silver Stick Boys Minor Finals.
o
Our AA
and A teams at U10, U12, U14 and U16 qualify as HOST teams.
o
One
of the toughest tournaments in minor hockey to win, with some of the best teams
from across North America coming to town every year.
· 4
local tournaments hosted by the NMHA in partnership with Weekend Hockey.
o
Newmarket
Early Bird Tournament
o
Newmarket
Spring Thaw
o
Kirk
Kelly Memorial (U10 & U11)
o
Newmarket
House League Tournament
Affiliation with
York Simcoe Express
· The
Newmarket Renegades are a local affiliate for the York Simcoe Express (YSE)
· YSE
is one of the top AAA organizations in the OMHA.
· Along
with the open boarders, the affiliation rules have also changed to allow
players to AP to the local AAA team where they choose to play.
We have always taken
pride in our hockey association and our ability to stay ahead of the challenges
faced each year. While these changes bring about some uncertainty and concern within
our hockey community, we want all our Renegades families to know that we will
continue to develop and evolve our programs to best serve you and we genuinely
appreciate you choosing the NMHA for your child to enjoy the growth and
development that comes with playing hockey.
Under the new OHF rules, none of Newmarket’s Coaches,
Assistant Coaches or team parents can talk to any player or parent of a player
about playing for NMHA next year, who is not currently playing for the Renegades, until the completion of the OHF Championships in April.
For those that like
what we have shared and are interested in competing for a spot with the
Renegades for next season, we will be announcing our Evaluations Schedule and
Registration information in line with the OHF regulations. You are welcome to
attend our evaluations when registration is launched.
We look forward
to another amazing season in 2025-2026!
See you at the rink!!
Chris Neale
President