TMHA Affiliated Player Guidelines
What is an Affiliated Player?
- An Affiliated Player (AP) is a player who is eligible to play on their own registered team, plus one other team of a higher age division or category.
- A player can affiliate for no more than one other team, ie. Once an AP has been rostered as such they cannot affiliate for another team in that season.
Reasoning for AP positions
- AP positions provide assistance to teams as a means to fill in for injured or absent players, or to bolster a short-staffed roster.
- The TMHA strongly encourages the signing of AP’s such that it maximizes opportunities for all players and recognizes that teams have access to different pools of players dependent upon their division.
Who can affiliate for a given team?
- In accordance with OMHA policy, affiliated players can come from either the same age division, lower category or the same category, lower age division. For example, from a local league perspective, a PeeWee LL player can AP for Bantam LL or PeeWee Rep.
- A player must fulfill their obligations to their registered team before participating as an AP with an affiliated team.
- A player must be eligible by residence under the terms of OMHA Regulations 3.3, 3.4, 3.5, 3.6 and 3.7 in order to participate as an AP on a Representative team.
- Players who do not meet the “Residential Qualifications” may only participate as an AP in a Local League team in the next higher age division, provided they have been approved on both electronic rosters.
Noted Exemptions
- A rostered Select team may not utilize AP’s.
- Players of Tyke or younger divisions may not be used as AP’s.
AP paperwork
- In order to participate in the AP program, a player must first be on an approved rostered with their registered team.
- An OMHA Offer of Affiliation form must be completed and signed by all of the following individuals: the coach offering the AP position, the coach of the player’s registered team, the player, the player’s parent and the association OMHA Representative.
- The player is then added to the affiliating team’s roster for approval by the OMHA.
- In order to be used as an AP in a game situation, the player must be on the approved roster of the affiliating team as an AP.
- The deadline for rostering an AP to a team is January 15th
Communication before signing
- Before the OMHA Representative signs an offer of affiliation, the coaches of the registered team and/or affiliated team will ensure that the player and the player’s family understand all options available to them before committing to a specific team.
- In the end, the parents and players have the right to choose to affiliate for any eligible team who gives them an offer.
Participation in games
- AP’s may only be permitted under the following circumstances:
a. When a team is missing one or more players from its approved roster due to illness, injury, suspension, vacation, work or personal business.
b. Where a team has a low number of rostered players. This will allow teams with low numbers of rostered players to use AP players up to the maximum roster size.
c. An AP may take regular shifts with an affiliated team.
d. If there are 2 goalies rostered to a team and one of the goalies is unavailable, the affiliated goalie may be brought up, but the rostered goalie must start the game.
e. If there is only one goalie rostered, an affiliated goalie can be called up but the rostered goalie must start the game.
- The decision of who will be an AP for any game is the discretion of the coach of the affiliated team through consultation with the coach of the registered team.
- Any player participating in a game as an AP must be indicated on the game report by having “AP” beside his name.
- To be eligible to play in OMHA Playdowns and/or League Playoffs with their registered team, a player affiliating to another team, including Junior, must have played in a minimum of 50% of the regular season League games played by the registered team
Participation in practices
- AP’s shall be allowed to practice with the affiliated team whenever possible to enable the player to become familiar with the affiliated team.