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Secret ballot sees Calgary Hockey's pee wee body checking ban defeated

CALGARY — ALLAN MAKI, The Globe and Mail, Jun. 23 2012

When the time came, there was no discussion, just a secret ballot vote. And with that, Hockey Calgary’s plans to remove body checking at the pee wee level were over turned.

At its 2012 annual general meeting Saturday, Hockey Calgary’s 24 associations voted against two motions put forward by the board of directors: the, first would have removed body checking for all players 11 and 12 years old effective for the 2012-2013 season.

The second motion, to remove body checking below the Division III level in midget and bantam beginning in 2013-2014, was also defeated.

Hockey Calgary president Todd Millar was asked to announce the actual vote counts on both motions but said that was not permissible under the organization’s bylaws.

Hockey Calgary’s controversial motions stirred much dissension over the last few months.

The board had assembled a body checking committee to investigate the matter and produce recommendations then decided what should be taken to the membership for voting.

That spiked emotions and produced wide-spread discussion and even hostility.

Grace Lane, the president of Westwood Minor Hockey, said she’d “never heard the [minor hockey] presidents yell or berate each other as much as they have over this issue … People are very passionate on both sides of the issue.”

Calgary’s minor hockey presidents had met multiple times over the past five weeks to determine which way to proceed.

When the first motion was defeated Saturday, it brought about cheers and applause.

Hockey Calgary had reviewed a study done five years ago that compared pee wee injuries in Alberta to those in Quebec, where hitting is not allowed at that level.

The study showed there was a 33 per cent increase in injuries in Alberta and a higher risk of concussion.

While Hockey Calgary chose to retain body checking, the Pacific Coast Amateur Hockey Association voted in favour of banning hitting in its house league games. (Body checking will still be allowed in the rep leagues by more advanced players.)

The Pacific Coast Association, which oversees Vancouver-area kids, was 76 per cent in favour of no-hitting in its “fun leagues” in the hopes of reducing injuries.

Dean
M.Ed (Coaching)
Ch.P.C. (Chartered Professional Coach)
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