How does the league minimize player violence?
Over fifteen years ago we recognized that for some players the penalties that USA Hockey imposed were not enough to deter them from playing in a reckless, physical and abusive manner. We felt there was a need to add another layer of extra penalties for infractions that had the potential to cause injuries. A list of the additional penalties can be viewed if you click on the link for ADDITIONAL PENALTIES. We also realized that even with additional penalties some players cannot play in a controlled, responsible manner. For those players who habitually play in a violent and abusive manner we have had no choice but to bar them, and in some cases their teammates from league play. Many of these players later surface in other leagues where they continue to play in the same reckless manner. We also continue to ask the refs to call the games as tightly as possible. We would rather have the refs call ‘borderline’ penalties than have a game spin out of control because of seemingly lax penalty call
