The Canadian Junior Hockey League held its Annual General Meeting on May 23 in Charlottetown, PEI, approving several new policies that will affect the Chilliwack Chiefs and the BCHL.
Many of the motions focused on how players move between various junior leagues in Canada, including the creation of a ‘not in good standing’ list for players who refuse to report to their new team after a CJHL player transfer.
THe CJHL is adopting an inter-league player-transfer freeze that will cut off movement from December 10 to January 1 each year, and a ‘return to team’ rule has been introduced for players returning from other levels of hockey, including NCAA, Canadian university and college and the major junior Canadian Hockey League.
Rumours of junior A teams providing financial inducements when recruiting has been addressed in another motion which introduces sanctions for payment of players in any manner that jeopardizes, or potentially jeopardizes, their (or their teammate’s) eligibility to participate in college or university hockey at any level.
The CJHL has clarified what determines import status for players. This was applicable to the Chiefs two years ago when David Bondra was brought in by Harvey Smyl.
No player having Canadian citizenship shall be classified as an import, and imports do not lose their import status in any subsequent season. The Chiefs and all other junior A teams are allowed a maximum seven imports for the 2013-14 season. The maximum will be six in 2014-15 and the CJHL will revisit that number before the 2015-16 season.
