MYHA will follow all state, local facilities (e.g., FMC and VHL rinks) and MA/USA hockey protocols as outlined below.
Above all, in the current pandemic environment, MYHA seeks to promote the safety, health, and comfort of our participants and their families at rink facilities and during MYHA scheduled events such as practices and VHL scheduled games.
If your participant is not feeling well, is sick, is exhibiting cold or flu-like symptoms, or has been directly exposed* to someone that tested positive for Covid-19*, we ask that you hold your participant back - out of an abundance of caution - and refrain from participation in any MYHA events.
In the event of COVID symptoms, MYHA will embrace the following policies if a participant, parent, or Coach (participants) on any of our teams tests positive for COVID-19:
- If/when any participant tests positive, families of participants should notify MYHA immediately.
- Upon notification, MYHA will require all players on any impacted team to either a) self-quarantine for a period of 14 days (remaining symptom free) or b) receive a Covid-19 negative test result.
Participants must communicate negative test results to MYHA before returning to any MYHA events. - MYHA will notify the team(s) that the player is on; the facilities where the player skated; the Valley Hockey League; and the local board of health; for the purpose of providing contact-tracing information.
Re: Facilities and Protocols. We ask that all of our families and their participants familiarize themselves with individual rink facility safety protocols and follow accordingly. In the event that you are not comfortable with a given facility's protocols or enforcement and are not comfortable attending or having your participant attend the facility, please hold your participant back and notify your Coach accordingly.
MYHA will offer feedback to rink facilities and management based on collective program observations and/or specific parental feedback. MYHA does not manage facilities nor manage facility-specific enforcement, rather we will focus on advocating for community protocol adherence and the overall safety and comfort of our participants and their families.
*A potential exposure means having household contact or having close contact (within 6 feet) with an individual with confirmed or suspected COVID-19 for a prolonged period (over 15 minutes) while the person is symptomatic or 48 hours before symptoms developed.
Friday November 6, 2020
MYHA Community:
It looks like we are a go for a hockey restart this wknd. We were anticipating and hoping for additional guidance for much of this week… and some finally arrived this afternoon. Please read this note and see below. Notables:
- A requirement for full rosters and contact info submission to VHL/FMC for contact tracing. Thank you, parents, for completing VHL sign ups.
- Contact (checking) is back and now permitted
- Note: Locker rooms are closed
- Masks on and up everywhere by everybody – including on the ice
NOTE: We have procured 200 CCM mask-on-masks at MYHA that we will distribute to Head Coaches this wknd (starting tonight) so that our players do not have to purchase these masks. This will further promote and ease compliance on ice for our participants. These CCM masks are acceptable for on-ice play per Mass Hockey announcement.
As we head back to the barns, let’s all work together to set the best hockey community compliance example we can. Please review our MYHA protocols – as well as the Mass Hockey announcement – we greatly appreciate everyone’s efforts to date!
MYHA Community – Building on Our Culture of C-19 Compliance
- Keep the 6 – everywhere – and enforce
- Masks on, masks up… everywhere by everybody
- Into the rink, on the ice, anywhere off-the ice surface (and on the bench), leaving the rink etc.
- Come fully dressed, leave fully dressed – masks on and up - no bags into the rink (ex-Goalies)
- Get in, get out as fast as you can
- Use bench capacity spill over areas – keep the 6 – only two Coaches per bench (sometimes one in spillover area according to bench capacity)
- Locker rooms should be closed. So, spend no time in locker rooms – masks on and up when getting skates/helmet/gloves on
- Follow the flow - Enter at entrances, exit at exits… read and react
- In honor of a gap year (#56) take a St. Lambert knee between periods – while keeping the 6
- Encourage no-spectators at practices, and few, if any spectators at games – less in the rink is more
- And if you must spectate – MA hockey is allowing two spectators per participant (again, only if facility permits)
- Season goals: safety and health above all, structured practices, some social proximity/outlet, competitive play
FINALLY, and MANDATORY
- Use Team Snap for participant availability ahead of practices and games AND complete/sign off the My Health Check for your participant (available the day of) prior to events. Soccer has been/is doing this per event health check well and very successfully – we will follow suit utilizing the built in functionality of Team Snap.
More to come on practices/game impact against the 10PM curfew (Bantams/Midgets) as more info becomes available. For now – we are game on per schedule.
Please monitor, model, and enforce our collective MYHA compliance… let’s All “keep-the-6,” “masks on, masks up, at all times” and let’s keep our 2020/21 season going.
Thank you All for leading and supporting our culture of compliance,
-John Payne | President MYHA and with MYHA Board of Directors
MA Hockey Nov 6 Announcement
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MA Hockey Nov 5 Announcement
NOVEMBER 5, 2020 UPDATE FROM MASSACHUSETTS HOCKEY
We understand that there is a lot of anxiety and questions regarding the reopening of the rinks in Massachusetts. We want to let our players, coaches, officials and families know that we are in constant communication with the Commonwealth regarding the planned reopening of rinks as of 12:01 a.m. on Saturday, November 7, 2020. At this point, based upon our communications, all indications are that we reopen and that our players will be able to get back to enjoying youth hockey.
While we also anticipate some modifications to the existing guidance, despite what may be rumored to be happening, we have not been provided with any definitive guidance on what changes, if any, there will be to the current guidance. We will share that information as soon as we are provided with it, hopefully later today or tomorrow.
We can expect that contact tracing and the wearing of masks will be areas that the state will be emphasizing. The Commonwealth has indicated that they intend to deal with situations of non-compliance at the local level. However, it has also been stated that if there is wide-spread disregard for the rules, we can expect that the doors to the rinks will be closed again and likely for a much longer period.
When we do get back to the rinks, for the benefit of all players, coaches, officials and families, please use your best efforts to follow the guidance so that we can continue to play and enjoy the rest of this season.
Kevin Kavanagh, Executive Director
Bob Joyce, President
FMC Announcement Nov 5
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