Beyond the Scoresheet

Opening Day!

November 30, 2008 on 12:23 pm | In analysis | Comments Off on Opening Day!

This is my second try at writing this post, so forgive some brevity; the first draft got deleted.

Opening Day arrives tomorrow, so here are a few notes and my preseason Top 10.

1. Colonia, JFK Memorial, and Woodbridge seem intent on retaining their JV status for this season despite including several varsity opponents (notably the new Shore C teams) on their schedule. I will be doing my best to keep track of their results, but to the best of my knowledge, games against these teams will NOT count toward teams’ records or state tournament eligibility.

2. Opening Day games to watch: Gloucester Catholic-Paul VI (first game; southern private battle); Howell-Brick Memorial (Howell’s first game); Colonia-Woodbridge (school-district rivalry); Malvern Prep-Bishop Eustace (big-time private game); Mendham-Westfield (Cron Tournament); Ramsey-Fair Lawn (NBIAL Cup rematch); and West Orange-Livingston (teams celebrating 50th anniversary of NJ hockey).

3. There will be an update to schedules and whatnot later Sunday afternoon. Any changes/corrections can be emailed to me.
4. HNIB Preseason Top 10 (I had a lot of information but by no means all):

1. Delbarton (27-1-1)
2. Bishop Eustace (15-8-4)
3. Bergen Catholic (12-10-5)
4. CBA (19-4-2)
5. Don Bosco Prep (9-11-5)
6. Ridge (23-4-3)
7. St. Augustine Prep (17-7-3)
8. Seton Hall Prep (7-10-5)
9. Morris Knolls (15-11-1)
10. Red Bank Catholic (21-3-2)

5. So you’re aware, I will be out of the country on vacation from December 7-17 and will not be updating the site during that time. I will do my best to catch up when I return, so please continue sending scores to jty [at] njhockey.org. I will be in New Jersey Dec. 19-26, so I will get to see a few games during that time.

6. Enjoy Opening Day, and here’s wishing all the players, coaches, parents, and fans a safe and happy high school hockey season!

7. Some rules updates, courtesy of the occasionally helpful NJSIAA:

2008-2009 Ice Hockey Rules Modification

Rule 1-4 Goal Crease The NFHS goal crease shall not be required in a rink for a contest to be played. Contests shall be permitted to be played in rinks which have truncated “NHL style” goals creases. Contests played with “NHL Style” goal creases shall utilize the truncated crease for that contest.

Rule 1-9-2 Player’s Bench The number of team personnel permitted to occupy the team bench area shall be unlimited.

Rule 2-4-2 Starting Lineups Teams shall be allowed a one minute warm up skate between periods. During this warm up period, no pucks shall be allowed on the ice.

Rule 3-4-4 Protective Equipment A player who loses his/her dental guard during play shall be permitted to complete his/her playing shift without it. During the next stoppage of play, it shall be the responsibility of the player, and not the referee, to immediately retrieve their dental guard.

Rule 6-35 Start of Game and Periods/Pregame Warm-Up Ice resurfacing shall not be allowed between the pregame warm up and the first period. “Dirty ice” may be utilized for warm up however, the first period shall commence immediately after the conclusion of warm up. For violation of this rule, the offending team(s) shall be assessed a minor penalty and the incident shall be reported to the NJSIAA office.

Rule 6-37-3 Time of Game Upon completion of the second period or, at any time during the third period, if there is a ten goal differential, the game shall end immediately and will be considered complete.

Rule 6-38 Tied Games There shall be no overtime periods except in league playoffs, regular season tournaments, the NJSIAA state tournament or when playing out of state. For games that require a team to advance, a 15 minute overtime and shootout procedure must be used. For final or championship games, a 15 minute overtime must be used. A shootout shall not be allowed.