top of page

NFLH 2015-2016 Rules

updated Saturday, September 12, 2015

 

Rule modifications proposed for 2015 (Rosters, Rule Changes, Polling, Expansion/Contraction) as per email sent on October 21, 2014), will be addressed in the off season.

 

2015-2016 Important Dates
 

Weighted Lottery – TBD – Will take place once the league fees are paid.

Keeper Submission Deadline – October 1, 2015
NHL Regular Season Begins – October 7, 2015
NHL Trade Deadline – February 29, 2016
NHL Regular Season Ends – April 9, 2016 

 

IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM THE COMMISSIONER:

 

I do not scour the message list to see if anyone is asking questions.  For this season, please email me at commish@nationalfantasyhockeyleague.com for any questions.  If you have specific questions, please email me, and I will respond with the answer to the entire league.

 

This year, the site contains forms for submitting trades (that include a draft pick or in the off season), voting, and violations.  These must be used or the action will not be recognized.

 

These forms can be found at:  http://br0244.wix.com/nfhl#!forms/c92b

 

Overview

 

The league will be based on the Yahoo! Fantasy Hockey platform and consist of 16 fantasy hockey franchises. (With the exception of League G which has 12 teams).

 

League Format

 

The format will be Head to Head.  Head to Head style matches owner against owner who compete in a number of statistical categories over a week long period.  The winner is determined by whichever team wins more categories. 

 

Example:

 

If there are 13 categories, and you win 7, lose 4 and tie 2, then your record becomes 7-4-2. 

7-4-2 translates to 16pts.  2 points for a win, 0 for a loss and 1 for a tie.

 

Scoring categories are:

 

Players -> G, A, PTS, +/-, SHOTS, PIM, SHP, PPP, GWG

Goalies -> W, GAA, SV%, SO

 

Overall standings are determined by points.

 

Entry Fee

 

Each franchise must submit the following season’s entry fee ($100 or $150 depending on the league for the 2016-2017) by the entry fee deadline .  This year, the entry fee deadline will be September 11, 2015.

 

Example:

 

2015-2016                     2016-2017        

$100 or $150**              $100 or $150


**Already paid for continuing leagues.
 

Reasoning: Being a keeper league, if a certain franchise owner does not renew or is locked out, during the season or off season, the integrity of the league is lost.  By paying a year in advance, a new owner can take over that franchise and play the first season at no cost. This is because an owner who drops out or is removed would typically have a poor performing team.  The new owner would get a season to turn it around. The new owner has to pay the entry fee for every subsequent season.

 

Example:

 

Owner A

 

2015-2016        2016-2017         Total

$100                 $100                 $200

 

Owner A is in last place and drops out in the 2015-2016 off season.  Owner A loses his 2016-2017 entry fee.

 

Owner B assumes the franchise and plays the 2016-2017 season for free.  Owner B must pay the entry fee for the 2017-2018 prior to assuming the franchise.

 

Owner B

 

2016-2017        2017-2018         Total

Free                  $100                 $100

 

A replacement owner may take over a defunct franchise in season if approved by the Ownership Committee (which consists of the current franchise owners).  The above example still applies.

 

The Ownership Committee may increase subsequent year’s entry fee if 75% of the ownership committee is in favour.

 

Franchise fees may be paid via cash, cheque, interac money transfer (preferred) or PayPal (preferred).  Fees are to be submitted to Brian Kipp, and held in trust.  Fees will be held in an account and will be property of the league and its owners.  Transactions and balances will be posted at www.nationalfantasyhockeyleague.com for all owners to view. 

 

League Voting

 

The following vote percentages are required.  

 

Trades - 75% to veto (only managers not participating in the trade have a vote).

Fee Increases - 75%

Rule Changes - 51%  - All rule changed must be approved across all leagues in order to pass.

 

 

Rule Changes:

 

Rule changes involving modification to stat categories, league operation and procedures, or any other topic must take place during the off season; except in cases where the integrity of the league is in jeopardy (as determined by the Commissioner).

 

Votes on such matters will take place after all owners have paid their league fees, and prior to the draft.   This period typically falls between September 15 and October 1 of any given year.  

 

Each qualified owner whose fees are current, must participate in all votes to guarantee a valid outcome. 

 

In order for a rule change to be enacted, 51% of NFHL (across all leagues) owners must vote in favor.  Any proposed changes that are defeated may not be tabled again until the following off season.

 

Any qualified owner may propose a rule change to be presented to the whole league.

 

In certain circumstances (integrity, administration, other) and with valid cause, the Commissioner has the right to execute rule changes without the participation of the owners.  

 

 

League Integrity

 

Anyone suspected of activity detrimental to the integrity of the league will:

 

  • Have any activities in questions reversed (if applicable). 

  • Have their account locked. 

  • Be exposed to a hearing of the remaining Ownership Committee.  The Ownership Committee will rule and a verdict handed out. 

 

Violations include (details below):

 

Ownership Collusion, Inactivity, Mass Player Drops, The NA Rule

 

Penalties will not be applied to reported violations that are older than 7 days.

 

 

Owner Rating (new for 2015-16)

 

In efforts to simplify the the violation system, we have introduced an Owner Rating system which replaces the previous violation/penalty process.

 

At the onset of each new NHL season, owners will begin with an Owner Rating of 100.   Each violation has an associated point penalty that will reducue the Owner Rating by a specified amount.  The current owner rating of any owner can be viewed on the league home page at www.nationalfantasyhockeyleague.com

 

Example Owner Rating 

 

Ownership Collusion

 

The objective of this league is to operate a fair, competitive and enjoyable fantasy hockey league.  Each owner should be acting only in the best interest in the success of their own franchise at all times. Should questions be raised concerning the intentions of an owner, the ownership committee will review and decide a course of action.

 

Franchise owners can only be associated with 1 franchise within the league.
 

 

1.0 Inactivity

 

Inactivity is the result of an owner not setting his active roster with active players with the objective of filling all active roster spots with participating players.  Exceptions include strategic benching for the purposes of holding a category.  Examples are GAA, SV% and +/-.

 

All teams must carry 25 active players at all times.  Failing to do so will result in an inactivity violation.  The only exception is when a currently held player goes on the IR or D2D when their 3 IR+ slots are already filled.

 

Should the situation arise that an owner is unable to set his active lineup, that owner has the responsibility of notifying the Commissioner via email at commish@nationalfantasyhockeyleague.com.  The Commissioner can then adjust the active roster to avoid violation; or the owner can make other arrangements to have their lineup set. Examples include vacation, computer issues, critical illness, etc.

 

See the Owner Rating section above for penalty details.

 

 

2.0 NA Rule


No team may occupy more than 2 spots with players designated as NA (these are designated NA spots - October 1 2014). Players on NHL mandated suspensions do not count towards the 2 NA positions.  Owners who hold more than 2 will be subject to the Inactivity rules.  

 

See Owner Rating section for penalty detail.

 

 

3.0 IR Rule

 

No team may occupy more than 3 spots with players designated as IR (these are designated IR+ spots - October 1 2014). Owners who hold more than 3 will be subject to violation. Owners who leave IR designated players in active slots while have available IR+ slots will also be subject to violation.

Owners may NOT add players who have IR or NA designations while they currently hold the max IR+ (3)  and/or max NA (2) designated players. 

 

Owners who have an active player placed on the IR while on their roster are not in violation.

 

See Owner Rating section for penalty detail.

 

 

4.0 Return Rule

 

Once the player comes off injury or NA designation, you must free up a spot on your active roster before he can resume play; failing to move an active player from an IR or NA spot within 3 days of his return will result in a violation.

 

See Owner Rating section for penalty detail.

 

 

5.0 Games Played (Goaltenders)

 

Teams will be required to have a minimum of 2 goaltending appearances during a calendar week of play. Failure to do so will result in the goaltending categories being forfeited and the points awarded to the challenging team. Failure to meet the minimum games played may be reviewed by the league and may be subject to additional disciplinary actions. In certain circumstances the Commissioner may intervene.  

 

See Owner Rating section for penalty detail.

 

 

Mass Player Drops

 

Any team that drops players without proper justification will have their team locked immediately and the ownership committee will review and determine next steps.

 

 

Condition for Appeal

 

A violating owner can appeal to the commissioner on an incident basis to reverse a violation if there are extenuating circumstances.  If the reasoning is acceptable, the owner will not be charged with a violation.  Appeals will be held on a case by case basis.

 

Policing

 

Policing of this rule is the responsibility of the entire league.  Infractions must be submitted to the commissioner via the forms on the www.nationalfantasyhockeyleague.com site. 

 

Violations will be recorded and posted on the site as well.

 

 

Rosters

 

Rosters will be composed of 12 active forward (F) positions, 6 active defense (D) positions, 2 active goalie (G) positions and 5 bench (F, D or G) spots; totaling 25 available roster spots.  Each team will be required to carry a minimum of 12 (F), 6 (D) and 2 (G) in active or bench roster spots. Failure to do so in an inactivity violation.

 

There will be 3 x injury reserve (IR+) spots for injured players and 2 x NA spots for NA players as designated by Yahoo!.  These 5 spots do not count against your 25 active roster spots. Once the player comes off injury or NA designation, you must free up a spot on your active roster before he can resume play; failing to move an active player from an IR or NA spot will result in an inactivity violation. 

 

Rosters are set daily and players must be placed in active spots prior to game time.

 

Goalie Starts Requirement

Teams will be required to have a minimum of 2 goaltending appearances during a calendar week of play.  Failure to do so will result in the goaltending categories being forfeited and the points awarded to the challenging team.  Failure to meet the minimum games played may be reviewed by the league and may be subject to disciplinary actions.  In certain circumstances the Commissioner may intervene.

 

See Owner Rating section for penalty detail.

 

 

Drafting

 

If the league is in its initial season the draft order is randomized and the snake draft method is used.

If the league is in subsequent seasons, the following draft methodology is used:

 

Major changes have been made to the draft and trading procedures.  Please read this section carefully and email question to commish@nationalfantasyhockeyleague.com.

 

There will be a weighted lottery to determine the top 4 drafting positions in the current year’s draft. The lottery involves the teams that finished 13th-16th respectively. (In League G, it will be teams 9 through 12 respectively)

 

The weighted lottery will be conducted as follows.  There will be 10 ballots placed into a container from which they will be randomly drawn.  The 16th place team will receive 4 ballots, the 15th place team will receive 3 ballots, the 14th place team will receive 2 ballots and the 13th place team will receive 1 ballot.  The first ballot drawn will determine the first overall pick.  The second ballot drawn will determine the second round pick.  The third ballot drawn will determine the third and fourth round picks.  Should the ballot of a team be drawn that has already had its pick determined; that ballot will be discarded and the lottery continue.   

 

The table below shows the draft order structure:

 

2015-2016 Draft Order

Subsequent rounds will be conducted using the traditional draft method.

Live participation is mandatory for all owners.

 

 

Keepers

 

At the end of the year you may keep as many of your players as you desire.  Keepers must be submitted to the commissioner via email no later than the posted keeper deadline.  Players failing to submit their keepers by the deadline will be forced to keep their entire roster, less the players residing in their IR spots at the end of the previous season.

 

Keepers DO NOT affect your position in the upcoming draft; however, the more players you keep the less number of draft eligible spot you will have.

 

At the end of each season, you will have a maximum of 30 players in your potential keeper pool.  (12F, 6D, 2G, 5B, 5IR)  You can choose to keep from 0 to 25 players for draft purposes.  The more players you keep, the less eligible draft spots you will have. 

 

Keepers are assigned to fill your draft eligible spots beginning from you last draft pick and moving towards the first.  If you keep all 25 players, you will use up all of your eligible draft spots, however you can still trade your eligible draft picks even if you choose to keep all 25 players.  Your eligible spot is transferred to the team receiving the draft pick and your keeper player is assigned to fill your roster at the end of the draft.

 

Example:

 

  2014-2015 Final Roster  |  Keeping 16 Players          |  Resulting Draft Scenario   |  Result Trade Scenario (33) 

Trades

 

Trades (of players and subsequent years draft picks) can be executed at anytime during the season, or off season, except during the non movement period.

 

During the season, trades will be approached in the following manner.  Trades will be processed manually by the commissioner.  All trades MUST be present (in accepted status) for a minimum 48 hours before being processed.

 

If a draft pick is part of an accepted trade, the entire trade MUST be submitted to the Commissioner via the trades form on www.nationalfantasyhockeyleague.com.  Failing to do so will result in a reversal of the trade; or the removal of the draft picks from the trade.

 

If a trade is disputed within the first 48 hour period (with a valid written reason to the commissioner), the trade will be subject to vote on by the Ownership Committee. If the trade is passed, it will be processed at the next trade processing period.  If the trade is denied, it will be reflected immediately.  All reasons for dispute and individual voting will be public to the entire league (viewable on the www.nationalfantasyhockeyleague.com website). 

 

A trade will be considered vetoed if 75% of the ownership committee votes against it.

 

Example:

 

There will be a maximum 14 available votes for any trade.  (the 16 owners minus the 2 owners involved in the trade).  11 of 14 owners must vote against a trade for it to be vetoed.

 

Franchise owners will have multiple roles; owner, coach, general manager, etc.  All disputes will be put before the Ownership Committee and voted upon.  The Ownership Committee is comprised of all franchise owners in the league.  Each owner has the equivalent of 1 vote into the outcome.  If there is a tie, the commissioner casts the deciding vote.

 

Trading Draft Picks

 

Owners must be aware of how trading draft picks will affect their future drafting.  Please refer to the keepers section for more detail.  Owners may trade their eligible pick from any round in the following seasons draft.  Owners may also trade acquired picks from other owners.

 

Add/Drop

 

There will be a 50 transaction limit on the number of players a team can add or drop.

 

There will be a maximum 4 moves per week.

 

Waiver claims go by waiver priority.

 

Players are on waivers 2 days before they can be claimed.

 

 

Determining a Winner

 

The winner of the league will be determined by who is ranked #1 at the conclusion of the final week of play.

 

Prizes [Leagues A and B]

 

1st Place     

$1650.00

2nd Place

$600.00

3rd Place

$150.00

 

Prizes [Leagues C, D, E, F and H]                                                       

 

1st Place     

$1100.00

2nd Place

$400.00

3rd Place

$100.00

 

Prizes [League G]                                                       

 

1st Place     

$800.00

2nd Place

$300.00

3rd Place

$100.00

 

Prizes will be paid out within 1 week of the conclusion of the regular season.  Payouts will be the above prize amounts minus $150 or $100 for the following year entry fee.  Some delays may be experience through PayPal or bank latencies.

 

 

If you have any questions or comments regarding the above information, please contact me at commish@nationalfantasyhockeyleague.com.

 

 

Notes about the Owner Rating:

 

  • Owner Rating reset to 100 each season.

  • Penalty point values double in the last 3 matchups in the season.  (week 23, 24, 25)

  • Any owner who falls below 60 by the end of the season will be voted on by the league for dismissal.  If approved, the dismissed owners is not entitled to any reimbursement of fees. **

  • Any owner who falls below 50 by the end of the season will lose their team and will not be entitled to reimbursement of fees.**

 

** If approved by the league, the violating owner may re-purchase the team, but will be subject to 2 years of entry fees.

bottom of page