Coaches, please note - you must register for clinics

through your own HCR Account - our Risk Management

does not register you.

Open your account and click on clinics - follow the

prompts.

PCMHA Risk Management Bench Staff Document

Risk Management: Who needs what?

All volunteers at all levels - Coaches, assistant coaches, and managers

registered with any minor hockey team or association must

complete the Hockey Nova Scotia screening process of Criminal

Records and Vulnerable Sector ( completed at your local police station)

checks must be resubmitted every 3 years.

All volunteers at all levels - Coaches, assistant coaches, registered with

any minor hockey team or association must complete the Respect in

Sport online course.

Coach Certification: What do I need?

Certification Requirements:

·       All Coaches, including  assistants, at the (Competitive Levels) U9,

U11 ‘AA’, ‘A’, ‘B’, U13 ‘AAA’, ‘AA’, ‘A’, ‘B’,’ U15 ‘AA’, ‘A’ ,‘B’, U18 Minor,

‘AA’, ‘A’, ‘B’ within HNS must be certified at the N.C.C.P. Development

Level I Clinic.

·       All instructors at IP -Initiation division (players aged 4, 5 & 6) are to

be certified with a minimum Intro Coach Program.

·       All coaches at the U9 (players aged 7 & 8) are to be certified with a

minimum Intro Coach Program.

·       All  coaches at Recreational / C level from U11, U13, U15, U18 must

certified in the minimum Intro Coach Program or old Initiation Program.

NCCP DEVELOPMENT I is acceptable for Recreation / C level coaches. 

·       All head coaches of Major Bantam and Major Midget teams are to

be certified with the High Performance 1 Certification. All assistant

coaches at Major Bantam and Major Midget levels are to be certified with

a minimum NCCP Development 1

NOTE: Coaches at the ‘Competitive Levels’ ARE required to take NCCP

Development 1. It is NOT NECESSARY to complete the ‘Intro Coach’

level. Coaches who are coaching IP and Novice will not be permitted to

take NCCP Development 1 until they complete the ‘Coach Level’. This

higher level of coaching is NOT necessary for introductory levels of

hockey. Coaches and instructors must register in the clinic established

as appropriate to the age grouping of the players they are

coaching/instructing.

·       All bench coaches, including assistants at the “AAA”, “AA”, and

“A” and Rec divisions at all levels must be certified in the Hockey

Canada Safety Program. This certification must be renewed every three

years and coaches are responsible to verify their currency annually. 

·       All Initiation Program U7 and U9 / Groupings must have at least one

coach certified in the Hockey Canada Safety Program

NOTE: The Hockey Nova Scotia deadline for registration of coaches of

all ‘AAA” level teams is October 15 th  annually. The registration deadline

for all remaining REP teams (AA, A, B) coaches is October 31 st  annually.

These dates are in place to afford Hockey Nova Scotia the opportunity to

advise associations, teams and clubs early in the season when their

respective coaches do not possess the necessary certification and allow

them to attend clinics as scheduled.

Starting this season 2023/2024 HNS is implementing that ONE of the

bench staff must have a Valid CSA Basic First Aid( often called

Emergency First Aid by providers), CPR (level C),and AED certification

Any team official who is found to be in violation of any section of HNS-

Regulation #11- Coach Certification will be suspended indefinitely until

certification for that official has been approved by HNS and it has been

added to the HCR. The minimum suspension for a first offence is five [5]

games, a second offence will result in the team official being suspended

for one full calendar year.  HNS, HNSMC and HNSFC reserve the right to

lengthen these suspensions depending on the circumstance involved in

each violation.

NEW for 2015-16: Any Canada Registry(HCR) with any team and was not

approved due to lack of the following, Respect in Sport Volunteer

Program(RIS), Criminal Records Check(CRC) and Vulnerable Sector will

NOT be eligible to be registered with any team until these are obtained.

This includes on ice or off ice activities. This regulation would not

include Team Officials that have been approved in the past but their CAR

or CRC have expired. These Team Officials would still have until

December 1st to obtain their renewals.

Definitions:

Coach or Assistant Coach

·       A person who is both on the bench during games and is on the ice

during practices.

As of the 2023/2024 season the Head Coach of the team may choose 2 to

3 assistant coaches to assist him/her on the bench. There will be no

Trainers rostered on any team.

 Manager

·       A person who volunteers to help out a team, submitting tournament

applications and making travel plans, coordinates team budgets and

fundraising events. This person does not go on the bench during games

and does not go on the ice during practice.