The meeting was called to order at 11:15 AM by President David Luke. The following were also in attendance: Scott Springli, Dave Goyer, Maria Morris, Mark Mansour, John Maxam, and Joan Maxam. Regrets: John Mishoe, Joe Moffre, and Linda Smith.

The board accepted the resignations of both Erik Tondera and Ray Schmitz.

2009-2010 Season Review – Dave Luke

Overall this past season ran very smoothly with only 8 teams. The league had to deal with two match penalties (unusual event). We also had our first goal scored by a goalie! Dave G. was congratulated for the great job he did with scheduling. Dave G. also expressed his appreciation to all the team managers and coaches who were so easy to work with last season.

Action Item: Our website has received over one million “hits”. We still need a volunteer who can explore this untapped potential and turn it into a source of income for the League. Anyone interested, please contact Dave Luke.

2009-2010 Playoffs Review – Scott Springli

The skills competition that replaced the all star game on Friday night was very successful. We had more involvement by all teams and a large number of spectators. We will continue to have the 4 refs actively involved with the skills competition, but need to better coordinate with them to make sure things run smoothly. For next season, we will continue to keep D1 and D2 competitions separate and will try to add some kind of competition for the coaches to add to the fun of this event.

We will continue to ask players to sign in before each game and to provide a photo ID. Players without a photo ID need to have one of their parents verify identity for the League representative running the sign-in table.

We would still like to have more parents attend the banquet. Without parents to bid on auction items, our scholarship program could be in jeopardy. The silent auction and raffle brought in $1763 and $240, respectively. It was suggested that we take some of the silent auction items we receive next year and put them into a Chinese Auction for Friday afternoon and evening.

This year, we purchased hooded sweatshirts and baseball caps with the NEMHL logo embroidered on them to sell during the Playoffs. We spent $1801 and sold $678 in merchandise. This merchandise does not have any dates, so we can continue to sell them next year. It was suggested that we purchase another, less expensive item for next year (perhaps a static cling suitable for a car window or a bright colored plastic cup with the logo on it). We will also make these items available for order on our website prior to the Holidays.

The cost to produce the full color playoff program book is much too expensive for us to continue. We will have black & white copies of the schedule and Playoff rules available at the sign-in table.

Action Item: For next year, we will purchase walkie-talkies to help with communication within the two Saratoga rinks (cell phones do not work well from inside the rinks).

Action Item: Joan will try to have the Friday night skills competition moved to the Weibel Rink (instead of Vernon). The larger facility would make coordination of participants easier and increased space for spectators.

Action Item: Dave G. will find a professional photographer to take pictures during the Playoffs next year and make those photos available for purchase at the rinks.

2010-2011 Season – Dave L.

It would be very helpful in planning and scheduling for next season if we could get commitments from teams before our annual meeting in September. In an effort to increase the number of teams in the league next season, we will offer League teams a $250 credit against their Playoff costs if they bring another team into the League. Mark suggested that we also try to schedule a home and home weekend series between the CVMHL and the NEMHL New York teams which may lead some CVMHL teams to join the NEMHL in future seasons. Scott Springli will head a committee to review the League score sheet and make suggestions before Joan gets it printed for next season. The annual meeting will be on Saturday, September 11^th at 10 am to 2 pm in the Holyoke, MA area.

Action Item: Mark will draft a letter and e-mail to all Board members about the $250 deal and to hopefully get teams to make an early commitment to the League.

Action Item: Mark will also talk to the Seahawks and Middlesex organizations to see if they might be interested in returning to the league.

Action item: Scott to convene a committee of Joan, Dave L., and himself to revise the score sheets in time for next season.

Scheduling – Dave Goyer

Dave discussed how difficult his job becomes when several teams have their home ice slots at the same time and no one wants to try to trade that ice time with another team within their own organization. Additional teams in the League would help eliminate this problem. Otherwise, Dave may have to tell some teams that they will have to give up their home ice and play a game at another rink. Dave also said that he would like to have everyone’s home ice schedule as soon as possible.

It was suggested that we try to have a meeting with several of the regional midget leagues (VT League, Hudson Valley, Greater Springfield, CVMHL, NH Granite League, Metro Boston) to see if we could share information and learn from each other. Dave L. suggested that we start with the VT League, since several teams in their league belonged to the NEMHL a few years ago.

Action Item: Dave L. will contact Bill Diaek at Manchester to see if it is possible to set up a meeting with officials from the VT League.

Rules – Maria Morris

Maria suggested that the rule on eligibility needs to be reworked so that parents and coaches have a better understanding. We need to understand that one of the reasons for the League is to “give midget age players a place to play”, but also make sure that those players are not rostered on two teams at the same time.

Action Item: Maria will re-write this rule and present it to the membership at our annual meeting in September.

Treasurer Report – Linda Smith

Linda was not able to attend the meeting, so Dave L. reported for her. We ended up losing money from the Playoffs again this year. Part of this was from the cost of printing the full color program book. The banquet cost $6830. The board decided to eliminate the program book to help reduce the cost of playoffs. We currently have $5400 in the Scholarship account.

Executive Board Appointments:

Mark Mansour is appointed Director of Attract and Retain Teams for the South.

How does the NEMHL ensure Referee quality? – Maria Morris:

The League does not hire refs for our games, therefore we have no authority over them. We provide refs with the League rules as they differ from USA Hockey. Any problems/concerns with a specific ref should be brought to the attention of the organization that hired that ref.

There being no further business to come before the meeting, it was adjourned at 3:30 PM.

Respectfully submitted,

Joan Maxam, Executive Secretary

Northeastern Midget Hockey League

Annual Meeting

September 12, 2009

The Annual Meeting of the NorthEastern Midget Hockey League (NEMHL) was held on Saturday, September 12, 2009 at the Holiday Inn in Holyoke, Mass.

The meeting was duly called to order by President David R. Luke at 10:15 AM. He then stated that a quorum was represented and that the meeting was completely organized and ready to transact any business before it.

The following members and directors were present:

Affiliation Member/Director/Officer

NEMHL David R. Luke, President/Commissioner

Maria Morris, Vice President & Director of Hockey Operations

Joan Maxam, Vice-President & Executive Secretary

Dave Goyer, Director of Scheduling

Linda Smith, Vice-President & Chief Financial Officer

John Maxam, Director

Bay State Buccaneers Arnie Askwith, Head Coach

Clifton Park Eagles Joe Moffre, Midget Director

Griffin Flames Dan Allaire, Team Mgr

South Windsor Knights Paula Herlihy, Team Mgr

Albany Jr River Rats Ron Morello, Head Coach

Watertown Redwings Carl Bard, Head Coach

Cheryl Leveille, Team Manager

Mark Mansour, Former Team Manager

Saratoga Blue Knights and Northern CT Griffins will also participate in the League this year, but they had no representation at the meeting.

Welcome (David Luke):

David began the meeting by welcoming 8 teams into the League this year, including one new team (Northern CT Griffins).

He also reviewed the results from last season:

Division 1: Regular Season Champs Watertown Redwings

Playoff Champion Watertown Redwings

Division 2: Regular Season Champs Albany Jr River Rats

Playoff Champion Albany Jr River Rats

Division 3: Regular Season Champs South Windsor Knights

Playoff Champion South Windsor Knights

Changes from Executive Committee Meeting (April 2009):

Penalty minutes were used as the second tie breaker at last year’s playoffs. It will be moved to the number 3 spot this year behind head to head and least goals against. The all star game on Friday night of Playoff weekend will be replaced with a skills competition. The Executive Board has also worked on a clarification for the term “rostered” player. Fundraising was also a concern of the Executive Committee with the Silent Auction/Raffle at the banquet making only $902, down 57% from last year.

Treasurer’s Report (Linda Smith)

Our beginning balance was $14,854.59 which included $4791.50 of scholarship money. The scholarship money was removed from the checking account and put into a separate savings account for better accountability. Income for the year totaled $29,004.76, including $1,000 in fines and $1,730 in donations. Total expenses for the year were $34,295.23, which brought our ending balance in the operating account to $10,867.84.

Fundraising Activities:

The higher cost for printing the Playoff Program book in color resulted in a very small profit (less than $100) last year. It was decided that we should continue to print in color and also ask teams to help with soliciting ads, but charge a minimal fee ($1) to purchase a program and help defray some of the costs.

The poor results from the Silent Auction may have been the result of the poor economy, but also could have been the result of fewer parents attending the banquet. In reality, parents are the major contributors in the Silent auction bidding. The banquet is a celebration of the year and recognizes several of the best players and also the scholarship winners. It is hoped that more parents will take part in the banquet this year.

Another proposed fundraising activity is to sell merchandise with our logo on it. We will look at purchasing baseball caps, hooded sweatshirts, blankets, and perhaps travel mugs. We should have the merchandise available on our website before Christmas and for sale at the Playoffs.

Our website gets over 300,000 hits every year. It is a great place for a business to advertise. If you know of any business that might be interested, please have them contact Dave Luke.

Scheduling – Dave Goyer

Dave has received everyone’s home ice schedules and is working on the game schedule. He will schedule 30 games for each team. He notes that some teams will not be ready to start until mid-October, but others that are ready to play will be scheduled right away. We will decide on divisional breakdowns after each team has played 10 games. Everyone agreed that teams should be divided by skill level to prevent the dreaded blowout games.

Review of Rules (Maria Morris):

League game rules are published on our website (www.nemhl.org). All parents, coaches, and players should review these rules and be sure they understand them. Maria reminded everyone that when a player is expelled from a game, that player must be escorted to the locker room by a coach, assistant coach, or a parent. That responsible adult must stay with the expelled player until he/she is dressed and escorted to the stands where the player must stay for the remainder of the game or leave the arena. The Head Coach is responsible for making sure that an adult is available to monitor the expelled player. Any questions about the rules, please contact Maria Morris (maria0831@excite.com or MMorris@nystpba.org) or Erik Tondera (etondera@aol.com). Any questions or concerns that players or parents may have should be addressed to their team representative and that representative will bring any issues to the League President/Executive Board.

Suspensions are listed on the website. Each coach is responsible for verifying the roster of the opposing team. The home team should get a game sheet faxed to Dave Luke within 24 hours so that he can enter the game into the website and keep the suspension list up-to-date.

It was suggested that players be allowed to play 2 games at the Junior level as a way for some players to eventually move up into a more competitive environment. Everyone agreed that this would be good incentive for players and coaches, but the event must be fully disclosed to the League. We are also trusting the integrity of each coach to abide by the rule. Maria Morris and Arnie Askwith with work on the wording for this change and it will be sent out to all teams for vote.

On a motion made by Arnie Askwith, seconded by Dan Allaire, and unanimously approved, the members agreed to remove the bylaw that stated members of the Executive Committee could not have members of their family playing on League teams.

All teams must submit a copy of their USA Hockey rosters to the League, including their jersey # and position played.

Committee Reports:

Scholarship:

Every year, the League presents $500 scholarships to four players who will be continuing their education after high school. Academics are not the main consideration by the committee when evaluating candidates for this scholarship. The committee also gives special consideration for a player’s performance in the League (e.g., accrued penalties), community activities (volunteer activities, a part-time job), the player’s essay about what the League has meant to him/her, and the coach’s letter of recommendation.

Last year we received 18 applications and awarded 5 scholarships. John Mishoe is working on some changes to the application.

Playoffs:

League Playoffs will be held March 5, 6, and 7, 2010 in Saratoga Springs. With fewer teams in the League this year, we should be able to schedule all games at the two Saratoga rinks and avoid the confusion of traveling to other venues.

Banquet/Raffle Committee (Linda Smith):

On Saturday night, March 6^th, the League will hold a banquet. Players and a maximum of three registered coaches are invited to the banquet free of charge. Other family members may join them by paying the cost of the meal. Remember that the banquet is a time to celebrate the accomplishments of our players and the Board encourages parents to join in this celebration.

At the banquet, the League presents its annual trophies and scholarships. A silent auction/raffle will also be held to help fund the scholarship program. All teams are expected to donate at least one item for the silent auction/raffle to support the Scholarship Fund. Now that we have only 8 teams in the League, Linda will look into moving the banquet back to the Gideon Putnam Resort.

Election of Officers and Directors (John Maxam):

On a motion duly made by Carl Bard, and seconded by Cheryl Levielle, the current slate of candidates with the addition of Joe Moffre as Director, was accepted and unanimously approved as follows:

President/Commissioner David R. Luke

Executive Secretary; Vice President Joan Maxam

Vice President & Director of Hockey Operations Maria Morris

Vice-President, Chief Financial Officer & Director Linda Smith

Vice President & Director of Playoffs Scott Springli

Vice President & Director of Business Development Ray Schmitz

Director of Scheduling Dave Goyer

Directors at Large: John Mishoe

John Maxam

Erik Tondera

Joe Moffre

There being no further business to come before the meeting, on a motion duly made by Carl Bard, seconded by Joe Moffre, and carried, it was adjourned at 1:20 PM .

David R. Luke, President Joan A. Maxam, Secretary

Recipients of Outstanding Service to the League: Ron Vajnar, Lee Barsom, and John Leimonas (with Maria Morris).

Northeastern Midget Hockey League

Executive Board Meeting

April 25, 2009

Executive Board: First row - Maria Morris, Joan Maxam, and Linda Smith (L→R);

Back row - Scott Springli, Dave Goyer, John Maxam, John Mishoe, Dave Luke, Erik Tondera

The meeting was called to order at 11:15 AM by President David Luke. The following were also in attendance: Linda Smith, Scott Springli, Dave Goyer, Erik Tondera, John Mishoe, Maria Morris, John Maxam, and Joan Maxam.

On a motion made and seconded, Dave Goyer was unanimously (with one member obviously removing herself from the vote) elected a member of the Executive Board.

2008-2009 Season Review – Dave Luke

Dave recognized each of the Executive Board members for their contributions in making this past season so successful. The League consisted of 12 versus 17 teams last season. There definitely were fewer complaints and issues this past year. Perhaps 12 is a more manageable number of teams for the League. The Executive Board regretfully accepted the resignation of John Leimonas.

Action Item: The NEMHL website has over one thousand “hits” every day during the season. We need a volunteer who can explore this untapped potential and turn it into a source of income for the League and reduce escalating administrative and playoff fees (Dave L).

2008-2009 Playoffs Review – Scott Springli

Playoff weekend concluded with three very competitive divisional championship games. It was suggested that we schedule the D1 championship game earlier in the day so that more players and parents might choose to attend this exciting game. The ID’ing of players at the Playoffs was discussed and the question of what to do when a player has no ID. We will continue to have multiple sign-in spaces on a single sheet next year (best practice for this last playoffs).

Action Item: We will put the requirement of bringing a photo ID to the playoffs on the home page two weeks before the playoffs so that everyone knows what is required (Dave L).

Linda reported that the Holiday Inn continues to be exceptionally easy to work with for the banquet. Less than $1,000 was raised between the raffle and silent auction.

Action Item: The Executive Board will decide within 30 days how to handle fundraising for the scholarship program at next year’s banquet (Joan).

Penalty minutes were used as the second tie breaker at this year’s playoffs. It will be moved to the number 3 spot next year. Playoff rules stated that running time would start in the third period with a 5 goal differential versus a 6 goal differential during the regular season. The Executive board suggested changing the regular season rule to the 5 goal differential. This rule change will be discussed at the annual meeting and needs approval of the entire membership.

It was again suggested that the All Star game be moved to a mid-season event. It was decided that we would not do this because it would be difficult to get players other than the all stars to attend. It was also suggested that players might enjoy having a skills competition instead of the all star game.

Action Item: Dave Luke will put together a format for a skills competition at the Playoffs and present at the annual meeting.

Scheduling – Dave Goyer

Dave will be taking over the scheduling this year.

Treasurer Report – Linda Smith

Balance at the end of the season is $10,512.64; with $7,446.05 in our scholarship account. We received $1,730 in donations. The League lost $4,253.60 on the Playoffs this year, as noted below.

Playoff Expenses Playoff Income:

Ice costs $7,249.25 Playoff fees 13,329.50

Referees 2,402.50 Banquet income

Trophies 886.70 (family members) 4,701.00

T shirts/jerseys 3,288.00 Program ads 1,500.00

Program printing 1,200.00

Banquet 8,754.65 Total $19,530.50

Total 23,784.10

The Executive Board members were concerned with the high cost of jerseys for the All Star game. It was suggested that one team wear their home jersey and the other team wear their own away jersey instead of purchasing special jerseys. Those players named to the All Star teams would be recognized at the banquet.

Action Item: Linda will look into the printing of certificates for the All Star players. It was also suggested that the All Star game be shortened to three 10-minute periods.

Rules – Maria Morris

There was discussion on whether to remove the current rule that members of the Executive Board cannot be the parent of a player in the League. In the past year, three members of the Executive Board have resigned and the remaining Board members could use some additional help. It was also suggested that it would be helpful to have a parent’s opinion on issues before the Board.

Action Item: Maria will present this item to the full membership for a vote at the annual meeting.

Several teams were confused about the League rule on banning a rostered high school or junior team player.

Action Item: Erik will write up examples of this rule to help coaches better understand the rule.

All League coaches must understand and adhere to the League rules. Any coach with a credible violation of a League rule will be suspended the first time it occurs. A second credible violation will result in the coach being removed from the League.

Action Item: Maria will send letters to two organizations (Falcons and Chiefs) informing them that their respective coaches cannot return to the League due to actions last year.

Action Item: Dave Luke will find out the results of the CHC hearing and report to the Executive Board

Action Item: John Mishoe IOC quote

There being no further business to come before the meeting, it was adjourned at 2:10 PM.

Respectfully submitted,

Joan Maxam, Executive Secretary

Northeastern Midget Hockey League

Annual Meeting

September 6, 2008

The Annual Meeting of the NorthEastern Midget Hockey League (NEMHL) was held on Saturday, September 6, 2008 at the Clarion Hotel and Conference Center in West Springfield, Mass.

The meeting was duly called to order by President Dave Luke at 10:05 AM. He then stated that a quorum was represented and that the meeting was completely organized and ready to transact any business before it.

The following members and directors were present:

Affiliation Member/Director/Officer

NEMHL David R. Luke, President/Commissioner

Joan Maxam, Vice-President & Executive Secretary

John Leimonas, Vice President & Director of Scheduling

Maria Morris, Vice President & Director of Legal Affairs & Chair of Rules Committee

Linda Smith, Vice-President & Chief Financial Officer

Scott Springli, Vice-President & Director of Playoffs

Ray Schmitz, Vice-President & Director of Business Development

John Mishoe, Director

John Maxam, Director

Bay State Buccaneers Erik Tondera, Head Coach

Clifton Park Eagles Joe Moffre, Midget Director

CT Chiefs Brandon Johnson, Head Coach

Griffin Flames Dave Gaudreau, Head Coach

Dan Allaire, Team Mgr

Ted Mathews, Asst. Coach

New England Jr Falcons Lincoln Flagg, President

Kevin Kilelee, Team Mgr

Saratoga Blue Knights Derek HasBrouck, Director

South Windsor Knights Alex Holmes, Head Coach

Paula Herlihy, Team Mgr

Troy/Albany Rivermen Gary Labelle, Head Coach

Mike Bennet, Head Coach

Tom Cooley, Head Coach

Watertown Red Wings Carl Bard, Head Coach

Mark Mansour, Director

West Hartford Wolves John Ritchotte, Head Coach

Jennifer Ritchotte, Team Mgr

Welcome (David Luke):

David began the meeting by welcoming 12 teams into the League’s eleventh year! David welcomed the following new teams: CT Chiefs, New England Jr. Falcons, and two additional Troy/Albany teams, including a Jr. River Rats team. He also reviewed the results from last season:

Division 1: Regular Season Champs Watertown Red Wings

Playoff Champion Bay State Buccaneers

Division 2: Regular Season Champs Albany Capitals

Playoff Champion Griffin Flames

Division 3: Regular Season Champs Hamden Dragons

Playoff Champion Wallingford Hawks

David noted that there were only 10 Abuse of Official calls last year while there were 77 the year before, likely due to the monetary fine imposed last season.

Changes from Executive Committee Meeting (May 2008):

The League will divide teams into two divisions by November 1^st instead of waiting until January 1^st. This will be done to prevent too many games with a large goal differential and make the games more competitive and interesting for the players and coaches. The League Playoffs will be held the weekend of March 13, 14, and 15, 2009 in the two Saratoga rinks with some games played in other nearby rinks. The League will not schedule any games the weekend before the Playoffs.

The Executive Committee was concerned about the high cost of gasoline and the long distance travel between some of our teams, and has asked John Leimonas to target the number of required NEMHL games to 30 for the season. John will also target scheduling teams to only two long distance weekend trips. Teams will be allowed 8 blackout dates to accommodate the newly formed Connecticut Valley Midget Hockey League.

Team commitment to the League:

There was robust discussion at the meeting about how to handle teams who cancel a game at the last minute and leave the home team unable to cancel or re-schedule and thereby incurring expenses for referee fees and ice time. There is a procedure outlined in the League rules that simply needs to be enforced to correct this problem.

The other topic of concern was how to make sure that all teams are committed to staying with the league for the entire season. Consensus was expressed that each organization should submit a monetary bond of $2,000 at the beginning of the season to ensure each team's commitment. Any team that leaves the League either by their own desire or as the result of a serious rule violation as determined by a majority vote of the Executive Board, will forfeit its bond and the money put into the League’s scholarship fund. Teams who finish out the season, would use their bond money towards help pay for the playoff fees. The membership voted unanimously to have the Executive Committee design the details of this new rule which will be effective on October 1, 2008.

Treasurer’s Report (Linda Smith)

Total income for the year was $40,631.60, including $1,715 in donations, $1449 from the silent auction, $661 from the raffle, $1,150 in penalty fees and $2,350 in program ads. Total expenses were $35,530.49, including $1,114.64 to maintain our website, banquet costs for players and coaches $4,139.91, and total costs for playoffs (ice, refs, banners, trophies, T shirts and jerseys) $16,031.

Website (Dave Luke):

Late last season, a Suspension List was added to the website. Now teams can review this list before a game to find out if anyone on the team they will be playing is serving a suspension and know who should not be playing that game. The new website also allows teams to put photos of each player on their team. Watertown has already used this feature in the past season.

Our website is a great place for businesses to advertise. Space is available for only $500 annually. Between August 3 and September 3, our website had over 23,000 hits and a total of 463,500 hits in less than one year. Also, all statistics of all games for the past 10 seasons have been populated into the website and available to review player statistics and game results/standings.

Fundraising Activities:

Ray Schmitz will be publishing a playoff program again this year. The sale of advertising for last year’s program netted over $2300. Each program had a team picture and roster, along with advertisements. This year’s program will be a smaller version in color versus black and white. Books will be available free of charge at the Playoffs. Ray will be sending out information about the program and the advertising he expects each team to secure.

We have been approached by the New York Islanders with a partnership opportunity to participate in their Pucks into Bucks. They will sell us a discounted game ticket which we can re-sell with a $10 profit per ticket. Team members thought this would be a great idea and we should try it. Joan will make arrangement to purchase 54 tickets (enough to fill one bus) and assess how difficult it is to sell the tickets and a bus seat.

Review of Rules and Bylaws (Maria Morris):

The League By-Laws need to be reviewed, modified, and presented at the Annual Meeting next season. Maria is looking for volunteers to help with this task. Anyone interested in helping, please contact Maria directly.

League game rules are published on our website (www.nemhl.org). All parents, coaches, and players should review these rules and be sure they understand them. Maria reminded everyone that when a player is expelled from a game, that player must be escorted to the locker room by a coach, assistant coach or a parent. That responsible adult must stay with the expelled player until he/she is dressed and escorted to the stands where the player must stay for the remainder of the game or leave the arena. The Head Coach is responsible for making sure that an adult is ready to take care of this incident for every game. Any questions about the rules, please contact Maria Morris or Erik Tondera. Any questions or concerns that players or parents may have should be addressed to their team representative and that representative will bring any issues to the League President/Executive Board.

Scholarship Committee (John Mishoe):

Every year, the League presents $500 scholarships to four players who will be continuing their education after high school. Academics are not the main consideration by the Scholarship Committee when evaluating candidates for this scholarship. The Committee also gives special consideration for a player’s performance in the League (e.g., accrued penalties), community activities (volunteer activities, a part time job), the player’s essay about what the League has meant to him/her, and the coach’s letter of recommendation.

Scholarships are funded by the money raised from the silent auction that is run during the banquet on playoff weekend. John asked everyone to encourage their high school senior players to submit an application. Applications are available on the website (www.nemhl.org). Application deadline is February 15^th, but applications can be submitted at any time.

Playoff Committee (Scott Springli):

League Playoffs will be held March 13, 14, and 15, 2009 in Saratoga Springs. Scott will make sure that each game has 90 minutes of playing time with 10 minutes of Zamboni time set aside between games. Championship games will have two hours of playing time.

Banquet/Raffle Committee (Linda Smith):

On Saturday night, March 14^th, the League will hold a banquet at the Holiday Inn in Saratoga. Players and a maximum of three League registered coaches are invited to the banquet free of charge. Other family members may join them by paying the cost of the meal. Remember that the banquet is a time to celebrate the accomplishments of our players!

Election of Officers and Directors (John Maxam):

On motions duly made, seconded, and unanimously approved, the following were elected Officers/Directors to serve for the 2008-09 season:

President/Commissioner David R. Luke

Executive Secretary; Vice President Joan Maxam

Vice-President, Chief Financial Officer & Director Linda Smith

Vice President & Director of Scheduling John Leimonas

Vice President & Director of Playoffs Scott Springli

Vice President & Director of Legal Affairs &

Chair of the Rules Committee Maria Morris

Vice President & Director of Business Development Ray Schmitz

Directors at Large: John Mishoe

Brian Testani

John Maxam

Erik Tondera

There being no further business to come before the meeting, on a motion duly made, seconded, and carried, it was adjourned at 1:20 pm.

David R Luke Joan A Maxam

David R. Luke, President Joan A. Maxam, Secretary

Executive Board Meeting

West Springfield, MA

May 3, 2008

The meeting was called to order at 9:40 AM by President David Luke. The following were also in attendance: Lee Barsom, John Leimonas, Linda Smith, Scott Springli, Ron Vajnar, Maria Morris, John Maxam, and Joan Maxam. Karen Ring, Brian Testani, and Ray Schmitz submitted regrets.

2007-2008 Season Review – Ron Vajnar

The League provided a safe environment for 17 midget teams (~300 players) to play hockey with a playoff tournament and banquet at the end of the season. The increase in League size resulted in growing pains for the League. We were disappointed by the number of non-players who approached the League with “their own agenda” instead of working for the good of all players. We also noticed an increase in team apathy with the number of cancelled games. The Executive Board recognized Lee Barsom for his hard work and dedication to the League in dealing with the thousands of e-mails he received over the season and rendering hundreds of decisions in response to disciplinary issues.

2007-2008 Playoffs Review – Scott Springli

Playoff weekend concluded with three very competitive divisional championship games, especially Division 1 which required overtime and a shootout to determine a winner. Some parents complained about having too many venues, but this is not easy to fix with the large number of teams we had in the League and limited available ice times in the Saratoga area. The League will continue to look at possibly moving the playoffs to either NESC or Olympia, but are concerned about the increased cost of ice and availability of volunteers to keep everything running smoothly during the games. Another option would be to play the first round of games the weekend before the Playoffs at various rinks used by League teams.

It was suggested that the All Star game be moved to a Veterans’ Day or Christmas showcase tournament. The Board decided to leave the All Star game as part of the Playoffs. The Board also wants to encourage Coach Johnson to continue with his plans to organize a Veterans’ Day or Christmas showcase tournament and encourage League teams to attend, but does not want to make attendance a requirement, nor have the games count in the standings. However, the Board will encourage scouts of Junior teams to attend the showcase tournament to apprise opportunities for Midget players.

2008-2009 Season Review – Dave Luke

The CHC is starting their own midget league this year and is requiring all Connecticut organizations to be a part of this new league. NEMHL teams are allowed to play in other leagues (such as Griffin has done for several years), but they must give priority scheduling to the NEMHL. Ron will draft a letter to all current teams explaining our situation and seeking a tangible commitment to the League for next season (including the $500 membership fee by May 31, 2008).

The deadline for making the divisional cutoff will be moved from December 31^st to November 1^st to match up teams by skill level and prevent the blow outs we have experienced in the past. Hopefully, this will also cut down on the number of cancelled games.

The Annual Meeting will be held on Saturday, September 6^th at the Clarion Hotel in West Springfield. Playoffs will be on the weekend of March 6, 7 & 8, 2009. (Post-meeting note: Linda Smith discovered that the Holiday Inn will not be available this weekend and we may need to move the playoffs to March 13 dependent upon number of teams and venue voted upon by the general membership at the Annual Meeting).

We were approached by a team from Saugerties asking to join the League, but would need to have some high school players included on their roster. The Board voted to not accept this team but advised that they should join with Bethlehem to roster a non-HS team.

Scheduling – John Leimonas

Concerns about the high price of gasoline will mean several scheduling changes. We will reduce the number of games for each team to 30. This will give teams more room to schedule other non-League games. John will be asking teams to provide at least 20 home ice slots to schedule 15 games to give him greater flexibility in scheduling. He will return any unused ice slots to the team so they can schedule other games. He will schedule a maximum of two long distance weekend trips (e.g., a CT team going to NY or vice versa). Each team will be allowed 8 blackout dates.

Rules – Lee Barsom

Each team in the League is responsible for self-monitoring of the rules. There is no NEMHL official present to make sure everyone adheres to the rules. Lee will share ruling decisions with all teams next year so they can all see how the rules are applied in difficult situations in the spirit of transparency and opportunity for player development.

The Board voted to continue using two officials at a game instead of three. The cost of three puts an unnecessary financial burden on member teams.

The Board also voted to continue the 8 goal differential rule. Stronger teams know in advance that they will be playing a weaker team. Coaches should be in control of these games and remind their players of the difficult situation they will be in if they score 8 goals in the first period. The change to November 1^st to initiate intra-divisional play should significantly reduce the number of “blow-out” games.

Lee noted that the abuse of official penalties decreased from 77 last year down to only 10 this year – likely a result of the monetary fine established by the Executive Board and ratified by the general membership prior to the start of last season. Sportsmanship is still the hallmark of the NEMHL.

Treasurer Report – Linda Smith

Balance at the end of the season is $15,194.97; $7,327.50 of which are monies raised for the scholarship program. We received $1,715 in donations. The League lost $2,695.11 on the Playoffs this year, as noted below.

Playoff Expenses Playoff Income:

Ice costs $7,149.00 Playoff fees 15,125.80

Referees 3,005.00 Banquet income

Trophies,Banners (family members) 8,167.50

T shirts/jerseys 5,877.00 Program ads 2,350.00

Banquet 12,307.41 Total $25,643.30

Total 28,338.41

There being no further business to come before the meeting, it was adjourned at 2:10 PM.

Respectfully submitted,

Joan Maxam, Executive Secretary

Northeastern Midget Hockey League

Annual Meeting

September 8, 2007

The Annual Meeting of the NorthEastern Midget Hockey League (NEMHL) was held on Saturday, September 8, 2007 at Stewart’s Corporate Headquarters in Malta, New York.

The meeting was duly called to order by President David R. Luke at 10:15 am. He then stated that a quorum was represented and that the meeting was completely organized and ready to transact any business before it.

The following members and directors were present:

Affiliation Member/Director/Officer

NEMHL David R. Luke, President/Commissioner

Ron Vajnar, Vice-President & Director of Hockey Operations

Joan Maxam, Vice-President & Executive Secretary

Lee Barsom, Vice President, Chair of Rules Committee, & Director

John Leimonas, Vice President & Director of Scheduling

Maria Morris, Vice President & Director of Legal Affairs

Linda Smith, Vice-President & Chief Financial Officer

Scott Springli, Vice-President & Director of Playoffs

John Mishoe, Director

Dick Bernardo, Director

Brian Testani, Director

Adirondack Black Bears Giselle Giguere

Albany Capitals Don Torrico, Head Coach

Rick Finkel, Team Mgr

Bay State Buccaneers Erik Tondera, Head Coach

Duane Adams, Assistant Coach

Bethlehem Eagles Gary McCann, Team Mgr

CD Comets Patrick Crowley, Head Coach

Clifton Park Eagles Joe Moffre, Midget Director

CT Riptide Joel Jolles, Team Mgr

Bridgeport Riverhawks Cindy Lavoie, Team Mgr

Greater New Haven Warriors Nick Coppola, Head Coach

Tom Roche, Midget Director

Griffin Flames Dave Gaudreau, Head Coach

Dan Allaire, Team Mgr

Hamden Dragons Rick Orser, Head Coach

Chris Bukos, Assist Coach/Team Mgr

Middlesex Red Devils Mike Satagaj, Head Coach

John J. Smith, Assistant Coach

Saratoga Blue Knights Brian Sweeney, Head Coach

SEC Seahawks Scott Busey, Head Coach

Mike Meakem, Team rep

South Windsor Knights Alex Holmes, Head Coach

Paula Herlihy, Team Mgr

Troy/Albany Rivermen Mark Lahey, Head Coach

Wallingford Hawks Bob Vitale, Head Coach

Watertown Red Wings Charlie Mordenti, Team Mgr

Mark Mansour, Director

West Hartford Wolves John Ritchotte, Head Coach

Jennifer Ritchotte, Team Mgr

Welcome (David Luke):

David began the meeting by welcoming 20 teams into the League this year. This is the NEMHL’s 10^th anniversary season and a new patch has been designed to recognize this milestone. This new 10^th anniversary patch will be worn on the right shoulder of every NEMHL player, replacing the usual NEMHL patch worn by players in the past. David noted that both the Griffin Flames and Saratoga Blue Knights have participated in the League every season.

David is in the process of loading 10 years worth of history into our new website designed by SportsZone. When complete, a player search engine will be able to locate stats for any player who has participated in the League over the past 10 years. David also noted that both South Windsor and the CT Riptide have included information about the NEMHL on their own team websites.

Review and approval of revised League Rules (Lee Barsom):

Lee, Ron Vajnar, Maria Morris, and Jen Ritchotte have spent a great deal of time reviewing and rewriting the League rules so that they are not as voluminous and more understandable. The League will hold coaches accountable for upholding and following the rules. As was discussed at last year’s meeting, all NEMHL coaches must have their level 3 certification (as required by USA Hockey).

Lee then proceeded to review the rules, line by line, and answer all questions and concerns. League score keepers also need to understand the League rules. Jen Ritchotte pointed out that it is extremely helpful (especially for new teams) to have a representative from both teams in the scorekeeper box during the game to make sure that everyone understands and enforces the rules.

On a motion duly made, seconded, and passed by the member teams, an NEMHL League game will consist of three 15-minute stop time periods, except as noted otherwise in the rules.

On a motion duly made, seconded, and passed by the member teams, the revised rules are accepted with the amendments that were discussed. The Rules will be published on the website.

Review of ByLaws Change (Maria Morris):

During the April Executive Committee meeting, there was a discussion about whether it was advantageous to consider a change in the bylaws to restrict members of the Executive Committee to only people who do not have a child currently on a team in the League. Maria took a look at the current bylaws and discovered that the original bylaws were not the same as those on the website.

On a motion duly made, seconded, and approved, the member teams accepted the bylaws as they were originally presented by Bill Yoquinto at the organizational meeting on September 7, 2002 and with the modifications currently listed on the NEHML website.

On a motion duly made, seconded, and approved the proposed amendment to Article IV (13) as follows:

“The board, by resolution adopted by a majority of the entire board, may designate from among its members an executive committee and other committees, each consisting of three or more board members. Each such committee shall serve at the pleasure of the board. The Executive Committee shall consist of all elected league officers and up to five directors at large. Executive Committee members cannot have an active player on a League team, unless waived by a simple majority of the Executive Committee. The Executive Committee will meet at least annually following the season in preparation for the upcoming season.”

Donations and Tournaments (Joel Jolles):

Joel presented several fundraising options he has been exploring with different businesses, including Dick’s Sporting Goods and Harrow Sports. Joel presented a sports bag from Dick’s for all the Head Coaches in the League. Harrow has agreed to provide sticks for NEMHL players with their name and team name on the stick for around $100 with 5% of the cost being donated to the League.

Joel is also working on a Thanksgiving Tournament in Newington that will be centered on the League with all League teams given priority at a cost of $1075. He also has secured numerous items for a player’s gift bag. He is planning to have 22-24 teams in the Tournament.

Scholarship Committee (John Mishoe):

Every year, the League presents $500 scholarships to four players who will be continuing their education after high school. Academics are not the main consideration by the committee when evaluating candidates for this scholarship. They also give special consideration for a player’s performance in the League (e.g., how many penalties they may have), community activities (volunteer activities, a part time job), the player’s essay about what the League has meant to him/her, and the coach’s letter of recommendation.

Playoff Committee (Scott Springli):

End of the season playoffs will be held March 7, 8, and 9 in Saratoga Springs. Format will be a 3 game round robin with semi-final and final games in each of three divisions (anticipated with 20 teams in the League). All teams will participate in the playoffs. Scott has already secured ice in Saratoga for Sunday’s games, but needs to find additional ice locally.

Banquet/Raffle Committee (Linda Smith):

On Saturday night, March 8^th, the League will hold a banquet. Players and coaches are invited to the banquet free of charge. Other family members may join them by paying the cost of the meal. With 20 teams, Linda anticipates there will be around 800 people attending the banquet. She is still looking for a suitable location.

League Schedule (John Leimonas):

John will send out a schedule through the end of September as soon as he gets everyone’s open ice slots. He will then submit a schedule through the end of December. He will attempt to have each team play all the other teams in the league in this time frame. On December 31, all teams will be divided into three divisions based on their abilities and then John will submit the remainder of the schedule with teams playing mainly other teams within their Division.

Election of Officers and Directors (John Maxam):

On motions duly made, seconded, and unanimously approved, the following were elected Officers/Directors to serve for the 2007-08 season:

President/Commissioner David R. Luke

Vice President & Director of Hockey Operations Ron Vajnar

Executive Secretary; Vice President & Director of Sales & Marketing Joan Maxam

Vice-President, Chief Financial Officer & Director Linda Smith

Vice President & Director of Scheduling John Leimonas

Vice President & Director of Playoffs Scott Springli

Vice President & Director of Legal Affairs Maria Morris

Vice President, Chair of the Rules Committee & Director of

Coaching Development Lee Barsom

Vice President & Director of Business Development Ray Schmitz

Directors at Large: Dick Bernardo

Karen Ring

John Mishoe

Brian Testani

John Maxam

New Business:

Maria Morris suggested that the League look into the possibility of selling baseball caps and T shirts with the logo on them. Dick Bernardo and Dave Luke will explore this idea.

There being no further business to come before the meeting, on a motion duly made, seconded, and carried, it was adjourned at 3:01 pm.

David R. Luke, President Joan A. Maxam, Secretary

Northeastern Midget Hockey League

Executive Board Meeting

April 28, 2007

Best Western Hotel

West Springfield, MA

Top (L-R): Dick Bernardo, Ron Vajnar, Lee Barsom, John Leimonas, Scott Springli, John Mishoe.

Lower (L-R): Maria Morris, Linda Smith, Joan Maxam, John Maxam, Dave Luke

The meeting was called to order at 10 am by President David Luke. The following were also in attendance: Lee Barsom, John Leimonas, Linda Smith, Scott Springli, Ron Vajnar, Maria Morris, John Maxam, Joan Maxam, John Mishoe, and Dick Bernardo. Karen Ring, Brian Testani and Ray Schmitz were absent.

Financial Report – Linda Smith

Our balance at the end of the season, after setting aside $2500 to pay this year’s scholarships, will be $8,633.21. That is $4,090.36 more than last year. We also received $2850 in Donations this year. Expenses for the playoffs were $23,428.25 (ice time, referee fees, banquet cost and trophies). Playoff income (team playoff fee and other family members buying banquet tickets) was $23,494.

All Board members were encouraged to find website sponsors (only $250 per year) with over 150,000 “hits” last season.

New Teams for the 2007-08 Season – Dave Luke

The Executive Board approved applications from Troy/Albany Rivermen (returning after a one year absence), Greater New Haven Warriors, CT Riptide, and Greater Bridgeport Youth Hockey.

Action Item: Dave Luke will contact the Northern Cyclones in Hudson, NH to determine

if they are still interested in making an application to join the League.

Several teams expressed their frustration with the officiating at Adirondack’s home games.

Action Item: Lee Barsom will contact Bruce Geddes and Mike Defuria to ask their

assistance in scheduling referees for Adirondack home games next

season.

Rules – Ron Vajnar and Lee Barsom

Ron, Lee, Maria, and Jen Ritchotte will meet to re-write the League rules. They will have a draft ready for the Executive Committee to review by July 1^st and it will be issued to all the teams to review by August 1^st. Their goal is to have fewer exceptions to USA Hockey rules while still maintaining League standards of good sportsmanship.

The committee will be including a rule on game forfeitures that will discourage teams from randomly canceling games without proper notice to the home team. They will also consider some way to compensate the home team for the cost of ice time and referee fees.

Action Item: A draft set of rules will be distributed to the Executive Board by 1-July.

Lee will set up mandatory meetings for all coaches to review the rules. There will be one meeting in New York and another in Connecticut.

USA Hockey has mandated that anyone on the bench must be certified as Level 3 coach. Each team must send proof of level 3 certification to Lee Barsom.

Action Item: Joan Maxam will e-mail all teams to remind them to send level 3

certification to Lee and to notify teams about the upcoming coaches’

meeting with Lee.

Playoffs – Scott Springli

The Playoffs are scheduled for the second weekend of March 2008 (March 7, 8, & 9). There will be no games scheduled the first weekend of March (Feb 29, Mar 1, & 2) to allow time to get ready for the Playoffs. We will again schedule the All Star game as the final game on Friday night. We will use a similar format as last year, depending on how many teams are in the League next year.

Scholarships – John Mishoe

The Executive Committee is looking for ways to generate more interest in the scholarship program. It was suggested that information about the scholarship program be posted on the stats page of the website, where all the players will see it.

Coach of the Year Award – Dave Luke

Each coach will be asked to nominate three coaches who serve as a model of a good youth hockey coach other than himself/herself. The coach who receives the majority of votes will be named the Coach of the Year at the Annual Banquet.

Annual Meeting – Joan Maxam

This year’s annual meeting will be held on Saturday, September 8^th at 10 am at Stewart’s Corporate Headquarters in Saratoga Springs. Every team must send a representative to the annual meeting or they will not be part of the 2007-08 season. Each team must bring their member dues ($500) to the meeting, along with their ice schedules. Packets of score sheets will be available for each team. Lunch will be served, along with the newest Stewart’s ice cream flavor for Dick Bernardo to enjoy!!!

Silent Auction Options – Joan Maxam

We have been looking for some option that would make the closing of the silent auction more efficient in order to expedite departure from the banquet for teams who have early games. John Mishoe had suggested that we try a modified raffle (Chinese Auction). Participants would purchase raffle tickets and put their tickets in the buckets of those items they would like to win. At the close, a winning ticket would be selected from each bucket and the winner would take that item home. We may still have some items available for bid, like the framed photos or hockey sticks which have historically attracted significant donations for the scholarship fund.

Remember that we need every team to donate an item for the auction/raffle so that we can continue to raise the $2500 necessary to continue awarding scholarships.

Other Business:

To maintain the Executive Board’s neutrality, it was decided that Executive Board members should not have a family member playing on a League team.

There being no further business to come before the meeting, it was adjourned at 2 pm.

Respectfully submitted,

Joan Maxam, Executive Secretary

Northeastern Midget Hockey League

Annual Directors Meeting

September 9, 2006

Stewart's Corporate Headquarters

Saratoga, NY

The Annual Meeting of the NorthEastern Midget Hockey League, Inc. (NEMHL, Inc.) was held on Saturday, September 9, 2006 at Stewart’s Corporate Headquarters in Malta, New York.

The meeting was duly called to order by President David R. Luke at 11:10 AM. He then stated that a quorum was represented and that the meeting was completely organized and ready to transact any business before it.

The following members and Directors were present:

Affiliation Member/Director

NEMHL David R. Luke, President

Ron Vajnar, Vice-President & Director

John Leimonas, Vice-President & Director

Joan Maxam, Executive Secretary & Director

Lee Barsom, Vice-President & Director

Maria Morris, Vice-President & Director

Linda Smith, Vice-President & Director

Scott Springli, Vice-President & Director

John Mishoe, Director

Dick Bernardo, Director

Kaitlyn Luke, Intern

Adirondack Black Bears Giselle Giguere, Manager

Shondra Hayes

Albany Capitals John Leimonas, Manager

Bay State Buccaneers Erik Tondera, Head Coach

Bethlehem Eagles Lili Bishop, Manager

CD Comets Patrick Crowley, Head Coach

Clifton Park Eagles Scott Springli

Jim Sullivan, Head Coach

CT Clippers Matt Giuffre, Manager

Jack Horak, President

Griffin Flames Sheldon Severs, Manager

Hamden Dragons Joel Jolles, Manager

Rick Orser, Head Coach

Mass/Conn Braves Dan Greeley, Manager

Saratoga Blue Knights Jim Naples, Manager

SEC Seahawks Scott Busey, Head Coach

Mike Meakem, President

Randy Craig, Head Coach

South Windsor Knights Kevin McConnell, Head Coach

Alex Holmes, Head Coach

Troy/Albany Rivermen Rick Finkel, Manager

Tom Gladd, Head Coach

Wallingford Hawks

Watertown Red Wings Charlie Mordenti, Manager

Mark Mansour, President

West Hartford Wolves Jennifer Ritchotte, Manager

Review of 2005-06 Season (David Luke)

David began with recognitions and recap on past award recipients and scholarship recipients.

Team Additions for 2006-07

The League welcomed six new teams: Adirondack Black Bears, Bay State Buccaneers, Hamden Dragons, South Windsor Knights, Wallingford Hawks, and the West Hartford Wolves. Columbia Cougars, Mass/Conn Braves II, and Troy/Albany Rivermen will not be returning.

League Website

David announced that our website host, Fournierware, has been dissolved. GoDaddy will be the new website host. The website is not currently up to speed, but anticipates it will be soon. We need to find additional sponsors (only $250/year to place an ad on our website, which receives over 200,000 hits per year).

Treasurer’s Report (John Leimonas)

Total income for the year was $32,986.90. For the season, the expense total was $28,090.99 and the net balance is $4,859.91.

Divisional Alignment of Teams (Ron Vajnar)

For the past several years, the first half of the schedule provided an opportunity for all teams to play against each other and by the end of December there is a clear distinction for dividing into two separate groups. For discussion purposes only, Ron discussed some alternative alignment options (New York/New England, teams that have tryouts/no tryouts, or geographic alignment). There was also some discussion on possibly having three vs. two divisions. Three divisions would help the weaker teams have a better (more fun) season.

For this year, we will continue our practice of all teams playing against each other with divisional alignment at the end of December. The deadline for submitting final rosters to David is December 15^th.

Rules Committee (Lee Barsom/Ron Vajnar)

League rules are posted on our website (www.NEMHL.org) for everyone to read and review. Not knowing the rules is no longer an acceptable excuse. Each team received a packet of quick reference cards with the basic rules highlighted. These cards can be given to parents and referees. Also packets of new score sheets were passed out to each team. The new score sheets have a place for each coach to sign. There is also a note on the new Scoresheet that any misconduct call must be explained in the space provided. If there is no explanation given, it will be assumed to be an unsportsmanship (abuse to official) call. Coaches are responsible for verifying rosters and should cross out any player on the score sheet that is not present for the game.

Score sheets must be faxed to Dave Luke (860-464-2701) within 2 days of completion of the game. If a coach disagrees with something on the score sheet, he should attempt to resolve that issue at the end of the game with the referees and the other coach. If the issue is not resolved, Ron Vajnar must be contacted within 48 hours of the game (ronvajnar@charterinternet.com or (860) 642-6145).

In light of the recent rule changes by USA Hockey, there was some discussion on whether or not the League’s 3-penalty rule should be changed. With a vote of 8-3, 2 teams voting on the 4 penalty rule and one seeking abstention, the members voted to continue enforcing the 3-penalty rule. Any player who gets three minor penalties in one game will sit out the remainder of that game. This player must have an escort to the locker room and wait for the player to dress and go to the stands.

All league coaches will be required to be certified at level two (minimum) for this season and level three for next season. Every coach and assistant coach needs to carry their card to every game. Also, you need to have the coach’s name and number on all roster sheets.

Scholarship Committee (John Mishoe)

We are on target to award $500 scholarships to four players this year. Awards will be announced at the annual banquet in March. Names and identifying characteristics are removed from the applications before they are reviewed by the six members of the Scholarship Committee. The Committee considers grades, community service, letters of recommendation, and the essay explaining what the candidate has learned from participation in the League. We are hoping to have a bigger turn out this year and it was voted that it should be based more on community service.

Playoffs Committee (Scott Springli)

Scott reviewed his proposal of having three different divisions for the championship and the best way to control costs. Ice has been reserved at the Saratoga rinks for the weekend of March 9, 10 and 11, 2007.

Banquet/Silent Auction (Linda Smith)

This year’s banquet will be held on Saturday, March 10^th at the Saratoga Holiday Inn. Linda would like each team to have one parent from their team collect all the banquet money and then submit it to her instead of each individual sending out checks. More information will follow. We will also be holding a Silent Auction to support our scholarship program. Joan will need help from all teams to make this event a success.

Housekeeping Items (Kaitlyn Luke)

All members are reminded that our main communication vehicle is through email (all contact email addresses are posted on the website). There were 206,000 hits in one year on the NEMHL website (www.nemhl.org). Lastly, sponsors are needed for the website. It is $250 per advertisement.

Election of Officers and Directors (John Maxam)

On motions duly made, seconded and unanimously approved, the following were elected Officers/Directors to serve for the 2006-07 season:

President/Commissioner David R. Luke

Vice-President & Director of Hockey Operations Ron Vajnar

Executive Secretary; Vice-President & Director of Sales & Marketing Joan Maxam

Vice-President & Chief Financial Officer Linda Smith

Vice-President & Director of Scheduling John Leimonas

Vice-President & Director of Playoffs Scott Springli

Vice-President & Director of Legal Affairs Maria Morris

Vice-President & Chair of Rules Committee Lee Barsom

Directors: Dick Bernardo,

Karen Ring, John Mishoe,

Ray Schmitz, Brian Testani

There being no further business to come before the meeting, on a motion duly made, seconded and carried, it was adjourned at 3:01 pm.

David R. Luke, President Joan A. Maxam, Executive Secretary

Executive Board Meeting

6-May-2006

Present: Lee Barsom, John Leimonas, Dave Luke, Kaitlyn Luke, Shannon Luke, Linda Smith, Scott Springli, Ron Vajnar

Regrets: Dick Bernardo, Joan Maxam, John Maxam, John Mishoe, Maria Morris, Karen Ring, Brian Testani

Financial Report – John Leimonas

After this year’s scholarships are disbursed ($2,000), the balance is $5,005. Donations were not solicited from WalMart and Stewart’s during the past season. It was agreed that a $500 donation would be solicited each year from WalMart and due to the generosity of Stewart’s Shops in holding the Annual Meeting, solicitation for a donation will only be done if the League experienced a financial need.

Procurement of website advertisements at a cost of $250 each will be championed by Scott Springli. Targeted businesses include local hotels which house visiting teams and sporting goods stores. Proceeds from any ads will go to the general fund.

ACTION: Scott Springli to investigate potential sponsors of website advertisements. Timeline: Throughout the summer months and prior to the Annual Meeting.

Unruly parents

There were a few instances of unruly parents during this past season and at least one case during the playoffs. It was agreed that unruly behavior should not be ignored. It was decided that each team should police their own parents and that the ice officials would be responsible for removing unruly spectators.

Playoffs – Scott Springli

The playoffs will be held March 9 thru 11, if ice and a banquet site can be procured for that weekend. It was decided not to have a week off between the end of the season and the playoffs. All teams will participate in the playoffs.

Scott Springli will discuss with John Mishoe to see if Saratoga wants to continue to provide volunteers for scorekeeping, time keeping, and the snack bar OR NEMHL parents will be tasked with these functions. Scott will also investigate if we should contract directly with Saratoga to procure ice or if we should continue to work through Saratoga Youth Hockey.

There was discussion regarding the championship games if either ends in a tie after three periods. The total time of our ice slot precludes us from just allowing the game to continue until someone scores the winning goal. It was decided we would continue with the same format as adopted for the past playoffs, i.e., play four on four for 5 minutes in a sudden-death fourth period and then go to a 5-player shootout. If still tied, single-player, sudden-death shootout without repetitive shooters until completion of the non-goalie roster and then the same rule applies for a second and subsequent single player, sudden-death shootout.

The difference between brackets and pairings based on team standings was discussed. It was agreed that all plans should exclude byes. Scott will work on a new playoff structure for this season that will be based on point totals per game. The tie breakers will also be reviewed by Scott.

ACTION: Scott Springli to work with John Mishoe about the potential of Saratoga hosting the 2006-2007 playoffs. Timeline: A report on the new structure will be available for review by the Executive Board by end of June.

All-Star game – Dave Luke

It was decided to schedule the all star game as the last game on Saturday, just before the banquet. The format will remain New York vs. New England.

There was much discussion about how to select the all star teams. Because some teams have more skilled players than other teams, it was decided that each coach would select two all stars from his team, and the league would fill in the balance of the roster based on the regular seasons statistics.

Banquet Committee – Dave Luke for Joan Maxam

Auction donations by teams have been decreasing. The Banquet Director will need to work more actively with the teams next season to get more donations.

For the banquet we should have a team contact that will collect all reservations and mail them in with one check per team.

The banquet room cannot be split and the Director should investigate facilities now to secure them for the playoffs next March.

It was decided to have the banners preprinted and awarded to the teams at the end of the season rather than waiting for the next season’s banquet.

Linda Smith agreed to serve as Banquet and Raffle Director for the 2006-2007 season.

Scholarship Committee – Dave Luke for Joan Maxam

It was agreed to continue with four $500 scholarships for next season and to revisit the number each season.

It was agreed that the scholarship criteria would be revisited by Lee Barsom and the committee. It was felt since players with high grades probably get significant scholarships, at least one or two of the NEMHL scholarships should have more weight given to sportsmanship, financial need, how much a player is contributing to his own education, and community service. Possibly two scholarships could be for high grades and the other two scholarships could be based on other criteria. Having the committee select applicants that meet criteria and if there are more than four that qualify, having a random drawing was discussed.

ACTION: Lee Barsom to work with the Scholarship Committee (Joan Maxam, Director) to finalize criteria for acceptable scholarship applications. Timeline: Prior to Annual Meeting for review by the Directors at the Annual Meeting.

Annual Meeting – Dave Luke

The annual meeting will be held September 9, 2006 at 11 AM in Saratoga Springs. Dave Luke will work with Joan to confirm the site.

ACTION: Dave Luke to organize with Joan Maxam and forward an agenda 2 weeks in advance of the Annual Meeting.

League size – Dave Luke

The teams from last year were all surveyed in regards to their intentions for next season. The Clippers and Watertown did not respond but are assumed to be returning for the 2006-2007 season. Columbia Cougars, Mass Conn I, and Mass Conn II will not be returning. Interest in joining the league has been expressed by Rutland Otters, Conn Renegades (Thibodeau, they still need a coach and be registered with USA hockey), Bay State Buccaneers (Eric Tondera), Newington [subsequent to meeting declined from participation for 2006-2007 season], North Adams Black Bears, Western Mass Blades, Berkshire Bruins, and Wallingford CT [application received after the meeting].

It was decided we could have up to 16 teams in the League for the upcoming season; however, greater than 16 may provide a hardship on the infrastructure of the League.

ACTION: Dave Luke to follow-up with Clippers, Watertown, Newington, and Western Mass Blades.

ACTION: John Leimonas to follow-up with Rutland, North Adams, and Berkshire.

Cancelled games – Lee Barsom

It was agreed to propose to the Directors at the Annual Meeting that the team causing the cancellation (regardless of home or away team) will lose 2 points in the standings and the affected team will be awarded 2 points. There will be no exemptions. Only the League Rules Chairman will grant weather-related cancellations based upon weather conditions 6 hours before game time, which will result in zero points lost or gained.

Web site issues – Dave Luke

Dave Luke will speak with the programmer about not allowing 3 points for a forfeiture and to allow deducting 2 points if a team cancels. This may require a separate interface from the current webpage for standings.

ACTION: Dave Luke to follow-up with Peter Fournier about programming issues.

Coach of the Year – Dave Luke

It was agreed to initiate a Coach of the Year award for the upcoming season. Each coach will be allowed to vote for one coach other than himself/herself. The coach who receives the majority of votes will be the Coach of the Year.

Officer Structure – Dave Luke

Ron Vajnar will serve as Director of Hockey Operations (Discipline).

The need for a coaching director was discussed. It was decided that this director will act as a resource for league coaches. Lee Barsom will serve in this role.

Linda Smith will serve as Director of Banquet and Auction.

Lee Barsom will serve as Director of the Rules Committee.

Mike Falzano has resigned from the League. The League is grateful for the time and dedication by Mr. Falzano in his many functions as a Director and Executive Board member.

ACTION: Dave Luke to have a plaque constructed in honor of Mike’s service and present to him prior to the start of the next season.

Rules Review – Ron Vajnar

All rules were reviewed by Ron Vajnar and those to be changed were identified. In particular, the misconduct rule will be harmonized with the major penalty rule, such that escalating progressive suspension(s) will be enforced.

ACTION: Lee Barsom will revise the rules with assistance from Maria Morris based on agreements reached in this meeting. Lee will also review and compare handling of disciplinary actions by Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts and potentially Vermont. Timeline: Revised rules to be posted on the website and available for review at the Annual Meeting.

League Communications – Linda Smith

Some teams do a better job of disseminating information than others. At the Annual Meeting, Joan Maxam will need to identify both the coach and a team representative who can take care of administrative matters such as banquet reservations and auction items. At this time, scholarship applications, auction items, web site advertisements, unruly parent rules, etc. will be communicated to all Directors. Committee chairs will send out monthly reminders to the coaches and team representatives. We will also post reminders on the web site.

Meeting commenced at 10 AM and completed at 4:25 PM.

Respectfully submitted, Linda Smith.

Northeastern Midget Hockey League

Annual Directors Meeting

September 10, 2005

Stewart's Corporate Headquarters

Saratoga, NY

The Annual Meeting of the NorthEastern Midget Hockey League, Inc. (NEMHL, Inc.) was held on Saturday, September 10, 2005 at Stewart’s Corporate Headquarters in Malta, New York.

The meeting was duly called to order by President David R. Luke at 11:05 am. He then stated that a quorum was represented and that the meeting was completely organized and ready to transact any business before it.

The following members and directors were present:

Affiliation Member/Director

NEMHL David R. Luke, President/Director

Ron Vajnar, Vice President/Director

Joan Maxam, Secretary/Director

John Leimonas, Treasurer/Director

Dick Bernardo, Director

John Maxam, Director

Shannon Luke, Intern

Albany Capitals Andy Ross, Head Coach

Maria Morris

Bethlehem Eagles Andre Rodrique, Head Coach

Ann Jasinski

Capital District Comets John Smith, Coach

Linda Smith

Tim Flanigan, Head Coach

Clifton Park Eagles Scott Springli

Jim Sullivan, Head Coach

Columbia Jr Cougars Lee Barsom, Head Coach

CT Clippers John Horak

Griffin Flames Jeff Howe, Team Manager

Rennie Sumera, Head Coach

Mass/Conn Braves I Arnie Askwith, Head Coach

Mass/Conn Braves II Tom Scanlon

Saratoga Blue Knights Barney Rubenstein, Head Coach

John Mishoe

Eric Meybaum

SE CT Seahawks Scott Busey, Head Coach

Troy/Albany Rivermen Bob Wagner

Ray Schmitz, Head Coach

Bitsy Ketchum

Watertown Red Wings Charlie Mordenti, Team Manager

Mark Mansour

Review of 2004-05 Season (David Luke):

David began by thanking several individuals whose dedication and support helped make the previous year successful.

One of the highlights from last year included the combined playoffs with all teams in Saratoga on the same weekend. A banquet was held at the Gideon Putnam Resort for over 370 players and their families. Four $500 scholarships were announced at the banquet. Championship banners were also presented to Division winners.

Team Additions/Deletions for 2005-06:

The League welcomed four new teams: Mass/Conn Braves II , CT Clippers, Watertown Redwings and Bethlehem Eagles.

Treasurer’s Report (John Leimonas):

Total income for the year was $23,501 with expenses of $19,034. This leaves us with a balance of $4,016.57 with $2,000 reserved for this year’s scholarships that will be awarded at the banquet in March.

Election of Officers and Directors (John Maxam):

On motions duly made, seconded and unanimously approved, the following were elected Officers/Directors to serve for the 2004-05 season:

President David R. Luke

Vice President Ron Vajnar

Secretary Joan Maxam

Treasurer John Leimonas

Executive Board: Lee Barsom, Dick Bernardo, Scott

Springli,

John Maxam, Linda Smith, John Mishoe

Rules Committee (Ron Vajnar):

League rules are posted on our website (www.NEMHL.org) for everyone to read and review. Not knowing the rules is no longer an acceptable excuse. Each team received a packet of quick reference cards with the basic rules highlighted. These cards can be given to parents and refs. Also packets of new score sheets were passed out to each team. The new score sheets have a place for each coach to sign. There is also a note on the new Scoresheet that any misconduct call must be explained in the space provided. If there is no explanation given, it will be assumed to be an unsportsmanship (abuse of officials) call. Coaches are responsible for verifying rosters and should cross out any player on the score sheet who is not present for the game.

Score sheets must be faxed to Dave Luke (860-464-2701) within 2 days of completion of the game. If a coach disagrees with something on the score sheet, he should attempt to resolve that issue at the end of the game with the refs and the other coach. If the issue is not resolved, Ron Vajnar must be contacted within 48 hours of the game (ronvajnar@charterinternet.com or 860-642-6145).

On a motion made and amended, the following change was made to the penalties for a fighting major (#2f of the League Rules and Regulations). The change passed with 3 opposing votes.

“The first fighting penalty received by a player will result in a $50 fine paid by the offending player and the player will sit out the next scheduled NEMHL game. A second fighting penalty will result in a $100 fine paid by the offending player and the player will sit out the next four scheduled NEMHL games. In both cases, the player will not be allowed to play in scheduled NEMHL games until the check made payable to the NEMHL is received by the Treasurer. “

Final rosters must be submitted to the League by December 15^th. At that time, pre-printed labels for score sheets will be issued to each team.

There has been a modification in the tie-breaker rules for the Playoffs. The first tie breaker will continue to be head-to-head competition, but the second tie-breaker will be the team with the least number of penalties for the whole season.

Scholarship Committee (Joan Maxam):

We are on target to award $500 scholarships to four players this year. Awards will be announced at the annual banquet in March. Names and identifying characteristics are removed from the applications before they are reviewed by the six members of the Scholarship Committee. The Committee considers grades, community service, letters of recommendation and the essay explaining what the candidate has learned from participation in the League.

Playoffs Committee (Scott Springli):

Scott reviewed his proposed playoff format for 13 teams, with two Divisions. As we did last year, the team that finishes in first place in Division 2 will move to the Division 1 playoffs. This gives all teams an opportunity to “play for the cup” even after teams are divided into divisions in January. Each team will play at least 3 games. Some teams will have to play a game before the weekend.

Banquet/Silent Auction (Joan Maxam):

With the addition of four new teams, we have outgrown the Gideon Putnam. Two separate proposals were discussed and the Board decided to pursue the sit-down dinner option at the Prime hotel. Joan will contact the Prime to ascertain whether they will consider allowing us to offer two or three options versus just one entrée for all. Everyone was encouraged to look for items that may be of interest for the silent auction. The money raised by the auction is our main source of funding for scholarships. Maria Morris and Linda Smith volunteered to help Joan with the Banquet.

Parking Lot Items (Shannon Luke):

Tim Flanigan discussed the possibility of the League setting up a working relationship with some of the high school hockey coaches whereby some players that might have been selected by their high school hockey team but never play in a game could play in the League. High school coaches would have to submit game sheets to the league to assure that those players did not play in a high school game. If at any time they did play in a high school game, they would be removed from the League. The voting on this subject was very tight (6 Yes, 5 No) and therefore it was not accepted by the League.

There being no further business to come before the meeting, on a motion duly made, seconded and carried, it was adjourned at 3:00 pm.

David R. Luke, President Joan A. Maxam, Secretary

Northeastern Midget Hockey League

Executive Board Meeting

May 21, 2005

Beechwood Hotel

Worcester, MA

Meeting was called to order at 10 am.

Present: David Luke (President), Ron Vajnar (Vice President), Joan Maxam (Secretary), John Leimonas (Treasurer), Lee Barsom, John Maxam, and Scott Springli

Regrets: Brian Testani, Mike Falzano, Dick Bernardo, and Dave Wiltey

Treasurer Report (Leimonas)

The overall financial position of the League is excellent. Although the Playoffs resulted in an $832 loss (cost of the All Star jerseys), the League year-end account shows a slightly larger balance than last year. The majority of this balance is reserved for scholarships. The Treasurer’s report was accepted by the Board.

Official Game Sheet

Some minor modifications will be made to the game sheet. The game sheet is the official “legal” documentation of a game and it is used to make all entries into the website. If there is any questionable penalty noted on the game sheet, it should be discussed at the end of the game by both coaches and the referees before the sheet is signed. There will be a place on the revised game sheet for both coaches to sign at the end of the game, indicating their agreement with the game sheet.

Each coach is expected to cross out the names of players not in attendance at a game. A misconduct penalty will be considered abuse of the official (and carry a one game suspension for the player) unless the scorekeeper notes the reason for the misconduct on the game sheet.

It was mentioned that last year there was an excess of “trash” talk on the ice. The League will not tolerate foul language on or off the ice.

Team Issues:

There was considerable discussion on the high school eligibility rule and whether it should be changed or re-written.

Lee will draft wording for how the League might be able to assist a member team with finding additional players when that team may not have enough players to continue their membership in the league.

Joan will try to find out whether a player can be in a high school game without being listed on the high school’s official roster.

Ron will re-write the high school eligibility rule and include a guideline for players on college club teams.

New Teams:

The League has received applications from two new teams. Both the Watertown, CT and CT Clippers were approved.

2005-06 Season:

With eleven teams now in the League, scheduling will be more complex and time consuming. All available ice schedules will need to be submitted by August 15^th. Each team will be allowed five blackout dates over the first half of the season (prior to Jan 1) and no blackout dates during the second half of the season (January and February). The season will start at the end of September.

2006 Playoffs:

The Playoffs will be held in Saratoga again this year. However, with the addition of two more teams, we will need to play some of the preliminary games on Wednesday and Thursday nights before everyone heads to Saratoga. Lee will check ice cost and availability for the southern teams.

Everyone was in agreement that we should schedule an All Star game during the weekend. If time permits, we would also like to add a Skills Competition (breakaway shooting and relay racing).

We will designate someone from the Saratoga team who will serve as a Playoff Coordinator. We will also ask our teams to supply off-ice officials for each game. The home team will need to provide a parent for the penalty box and a scorekeeper. The away team will need a parent for their penalty box. Saratoga will provide the timekeeper.

The Board agreed that the league should continue to schedule a banquet on Saturday night of the Playoffs. With two additional teams, we have outgrown the Gideon Putnam Resort. Joan will begin searching for another banquet site.

Committee Reports:

On a motion made, seconded, and unanimously approved, the Rules Committee and the Player Advocacy Committee will be combined. Ron Vajnar will chair this new committee. He will contact those members not at the meeting to determine whether they are willing to continue serving on this new committee.

Scholarship Committee:

A motion was made to increase the amount of our scholarships to $750. That motion was defeated by a 6-1 vote. Therefore, we will continue to award four $500 scholarships this year.

Playoffs Committee:

Scott Springli has agreed to chair this committee.

Annual Meeting:

The League annual meeting will be held on Saturday, September 10^th at Stewart’s Headquarters in Saratoga Springs, New York, from 11 am to 2 pm.

There being no further business to come before the meeting, it was adjourned at 2:45 pm

Respectfully submitted,

Joan Maxam, League Secretary

Front row from L to R: Joan Maxam (Secretary), Dave Luke (President), Ron Vajnar (VP)

Back row from L to R: John Maxam (Director), Lee Barsom (Director), John Leimonas (Treasurer), and Scott Springli (Director)

Treasurer's Report

INCOME		(ACTUAL)	(PROJECTED)	TOTAL
Beginning Balance: 8-1-2005	……..	$4,016.57		$4,016.57
Membership Fees (13 x $500)	……..	$6,500.00		$6,500.00
Drs. George Melnik and Valerie Lawrence of Austin, TX	……..	$750.00		$750.00
DONATION: Adirondack Trust Bank	……..	$500.00		$500.00
DONATION: Wal-Mart <NOT Solicited>	……..		< $ 500 >	$0.00
DONATION: Stewart's <NOT Solicited>	……..		< $ 1500 >	$0.00
DONATION: Pfizer Fund	……..	$1,000.00		$1,000.00
Website Ad (AG Edwards)	……..	$250.00		$250.00
Banquet Guest Fees (Guests: 265 * $25)	……..	$6,625.00		$6,625.00
Silent Auction (for 2006 Scholarships)	……..	$2,307.00		$2,307.00
Playoffs (Details below)	……..	$10,530.00		$10,530.00
Fighting Penalties (6 * $50) + (2 * $100)	……..	$500.00		$500.00
Key Bank Interest Income	……..	$8.33		$8.33

TOTAL INCOME:	……..	$32,986.90	$0.00	$32,986.90



EXPENSES		(ACTUAL)	(FUTURE)	TOTAL
Website Maintenance	……..	$1,163.55		$1,163.55
Championship Banners	……..	$524.33		$524.33
NYS Filing Fee (Dept. of Law)	……..	$25.00		$25.00
D. Luke Playoff Accommodations	……..	$213.84		$213.84
Exec Board Accommodations	……..	$465.77		$465.77
Annual Meeting Lunch Supplies (Food)	……..	$81.05		$81.05
NEMHL Uniform Patches (250 * $3)	……..	$750.00		$750.00
NEMHL Player T-Shirts (271 * $5)	……..	$1,355.00		$1,355.00
2005-2006 Scholarships (4 x $500)	……..	$0.00	$2,000.00	$2,000.00
2006-2007 Scholarships (4 x $500)	……..	$0.00	$2,000.00	$2,000.00
Century House (Total)	……..	$10,815.00		$10,815.00
Playoffs (Details below)	……..	$10,697.45		$10,697.45

TOTAL EXPENSES:	……..	$26,090.99	$4,000.00	$30,090.99


		(ACTUAL)	(FUTURE)	TOTAL
END-OF-YEAR BALANCE:	……..	$6,895.91	-$4,000.00	$2,895.91
		(Bal. on 7-15-06)


PLAYOFF DETAILS		(INCOME)	(EXPENSES)
Playoff Fees (13 x $ 810)	……..	$10,530.00
Ice Rental (Saratoga 39 Hrs * $150/hr)	……..		$5,850.00
Ice Rental (Clifton Park 3 Hrs * $165/hr)	……..		$495.00
Referee Game Fees ($45 * 25 games * 2 refs)	……..		$2,250.00
CDIHOA Scheduling Fees ($2.50 * 25 games)	……..		$62.50
				<SUB-TOTAL>
Total Paid to Saratoga (Host)	……..			$8,657.50
NEMHL All-Star Jerseys ((49*$24)+$102)	……..		$1,296.00
Trophies and Awards	……..		$743.95
		(Total)	(Total)	TOTAL
PLAYOFF TOTALS	……..	$10,530.00	$10,697.45	-$167.45


CENTURY HOUSE DETAILS	……..	DUE	PAID
Century House ($21 * 250 players/coaches)	……..	$5,250.00
Century House ($21 * 265 add'l adults)	……..	$5,565.00
Century House Hotel (Deposit)	……..		$1,000.00
Century House Hotel (Final Pmt)	……..		$9,815.00
Century House Hotel (Total)	……..	$10,815.00	$10,815.00

Executive Board Teleconference

January 25, 2005

Members present were: David Luke (President), Ron Vajnar (Vice President), John Leimonas (Treasurer), Mike Falzano, John Maxam, Scott Springli, and Joan Maxam (Secretary). Brian Testani, Dick Bernardo, and Kim White were not available.

Playoff Format:

The playoff format will be round robin competition with five teams in Division I and four teams in Division II. The team that finishes in first place in Division II during the regular season will move into Division I for the playoffs.

Tie breakers for the playoffs will be determined by:

Head to head competition
Greatest goals differential (with a 6 goal cap)
Least penalty minutes in the Playoffs
Least goals against

75% Attendance Rule for Playoffs:

The current League rules state that “Each player must have >75% attendance record of all eligible games to be qualified for playoffs and championship games”. Exceptions to this rule are allowed for documented medical reasons.

ACTION: A change to this rule which would allow a head coach to request a review by the Executive Committee to allow a player into the playoffs for extenuating circumstances (Falzano)

All Star Game:

The following were approved for the All-Star Game to be held during the Playoffs:

Two conferences: New England vs. New York
Five players nominated by each coach of the New England Conference
Four players nominated by each coach of the New York Conference
No hitting in the game
Three 15-minute periods
One goalie per period per team
League President will announce Head Coaches, Assistant Coaches, Goaltenders, and All-Star Skaters one week prior to the game.
Home team (jerseys) will be New York Conference; Away team will be New England Conference.

Defenseman Award:

The Executive Committee would like to recognize the League’s best defensemen. Each head coach will be asked to nominate his team’s best defenseman.

ACTION: To develop an impartial mathematical formula to determine which of these nine defensemen will receive the award (Springli and Falzano).

There being no further business to come before the Executive Committee, the meeting was adjourned at 9:45 PM.

Respectfully submitted by

Joan Maxam, Secretary

NEMHL

Annual Meeting

September 12, 2004

The Annual Meeting of the NorthEastern Midget Hockey League, Inc. (NEMHL, Inc.) was held on Sunday, September 12, 2004 at Stewart’s Corporate Headquarters in Malta, New York.

The meeting was duly called to order by President David R. Luke at 11:00 am. He then stated that a quorum was represented and that the meeting was completely organized and ready to transact any business before it.

The following members and directors were present:

Affiliation Member/Director

NEMHL David R. Luke, President/Director

Dick Bernardo, Vice President/Director

Joan Maxam, Secretary/Director

John Leimonas, Treasurer/Director

Ron Vajnar, Advocacy Committee

Mike Falzano, Advocacy Committee

Albany Capitals John Leimonas, representing

Capital District Comets John Smith

Mike Walsh

Dave Hyldelund, Coach

Clifton Park Eagles Scott Springli, Member

Jim Sullivan

David Tomney

Columbia Cougars Lee Barsom, Coach

Griffin Flames Jeff Howe, Member

Sheldon Severs, Coach

Mass/Conn Braves Arnie Askwith, Coach

New England Falcons Ray Richards

Stephen Gorman, Coach

Saratoga Blue Knights John Mishoe, Member

Kim White

SE CT Seahawks Doug Zybrands, Coach

Scott Busey

Troy/Albany Rivermen Bob Wagner

Ray Schmitz, Coach

Review of 2004-04 Season (David Luke):

David began by thanking several individuals whose dedication and support helped make the previous year successful. A review of the numbers and some interesting comparisons with the previous seasons follows:

2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04

Number of players* 293 424 955 1,104

Number of games played 169 208 171 137

Number of weeks in season 20 20 23 23

Number of schedule changes 29 11 4 2

Number of disciplinary hearings 4 3 1 12

*cumulative

One of the highlights from last year included the combined playoffs with all eight teams in Saratoga on the same weekend. A banquet was held at the Gideon Putnam Resort for over 350 players and their families. Our silent auction raised over $3,000 for scholarships. Four $500 scholarships were announced at the banquet. Championship banners were also presented to Division winners.

Team Additions/Deletions for 2004-05:

The League welcomed three new teams: Mass/Conn Braves (Arnie Askwith), New England Falcons (Steve Gorman) and Capital District Comets (John Smith). Adirondack Youth Hockey had hoped to re-join the League, but could not guarantee a team without rostered high school players. The CT Whalers were not invited back this year.

Playoff Update (Joan Maxam):

Playoffs will be held the first weekend in March (March 4, 5 & 6, 2005) in Saratoga. We will again follow a round robin format with a 3 game minimum and Division Championship games on Sunday afternoon. We have reserved the Gideon Putnam Resort for a banquet on Saturday evening. The League will pay for all players and coaches to attend. League awards (banners, scholarships, trophies) will be presented at the banquet. We will again hold a silent auction to benefit the scholarship program. Jean Nuhfer (Columbia) has agreed to chair the auction and will need the help of every team to make this a success. Watch the website for information on how parents and other family members can reserve their place at the banquet.

Treasurer’s Report (John Leimonas):

The checking account balance at the beginning of the year was $116.70. It is currently at $220.89 with $3750 set aside for the scholarship program. We received $2800 in corporate contributions from Stewart’s Shops, the Adirondack Trust Company, WalMart and Deco Tech. Drs. George Melnik and Valerie Lawrence of San Antonio, TX made a very generous donation of $750 to the scholarship program.

Rules and Regulations (Ron Vajnar):

Ron reviewed the changes proposed by the Advocacy Committee and approved by the Executive Committee. The number of penalties dramatically increased last year. The committee discussed several possible rule changes to decrease the number of penalties and assure the safety of players and their parents. The following will be implemented and further explained on the website under Rules and Regulations:

1. Requiring a coach, assistant coach or designated parent to escort any player who is removed from the game into the locker room and back to the stands,

2. Enforcement of game suspension for two major penalties,

3. Payment of $50 fee for fighting major,

4. A game suspension for unsportsmanlike misconducts

5. Implementation of a “tag up” rule for off-sides (if feasible through a waiver from USA Hockey)

The Advocacy Committee will review all major penalties.

Election of Officers (John Maxam):

On motions duly made, seconded and unanimously approved, the following were elected Officers/Directors to serve for the 2004-05 season:

President David R. Luke

Vice President Ron Vajnar

Secretary Joan Maxam

Treasurer John Leimonas

Rules & Regulations Brian Testani

Dick Bernardo

Advocacy Committee Mike Falzano

Ron Vajnar

Maria Morris

Nominating Committee John Maxam

Website Update (David Luke):

We are looking for any businesses interested in advertising on our website. Cost of this advertising would be $1,000 with $500 of that going to our scholarship fund.

Divisional Splits:

For scheduling purposes, the League will be divided into 5 Northern teams and 5 Southern teams. Teams will be reorganized into Division I and Division II on January 2^nd based on their games results. A new revised scheduled will be issued on January 3^rd and points will be retroactively awarded based on the following criteria:

A Division I team beats a Division II team = 1 point

A Division II team beats a Division I teams = 3 points

A Division I team ties a Division II teams = .5 point

A Division II team ties a Division I team = 1.5 points

New Business:

Scott Busey pointed out that the Sportsmanship Award will always be given to a forward who scores many goals. The League does not have an award to recognize their outstanding defensemen. A couple of different methods for determining the best defenseman were discussed. Doug Zybrands and Steve Gorman will get together and propose a solution to the Executive committee.

Scott also brought up the issue of using penalty minutes as the tie breaker during the playoffs. He suggested it should be changed to either head to head, goals against and/or use team penalties for the regular season. Dick Bernardo and Brian Testani will review this issue and bring their solution to the Executive committee.

There being no further business to come before the meeting, on a motion duly made, seconded and carried, it was adjourned at 2:30 pm.

David R. Luke, President Joan A. Maxam, Secretary

John Leimonas, Member Jeffrey Howe, Member

Representing Albany Capitals Representing Griffin Flames

John Mishoe, Member Scott Springli Member

Representing Saratoga Youth Representing Clifton Park

Ray Schmidt, Member Arnie Askwith, Member

Representing Troy/Albany Representing Mass/Conn Braves

Lee Barsom, Member John Smith, Member

Representing Columbia Cougars Representing Capital District Comets

Dick Bernardo, Member Stephen Gorman, Member

Representing SEC Seahawks Representing New England Flacons

NEMHL Executive Committee Meeting

Saturday, May 8, 2004

Beechwood Hotel

Worcester, MA

Minutes

Meeting was called to order at 10:10 am.

Present: David Luke (President), Joan Maxam (Secretary), John Leimonas (Treasurer), John Maxam (Member-at-Large), and Ron Vajnar (co-Chair, Advocacy Committee).

Regrets: Brian Testani (Chair, Rules Committee), Mike Falzano (co-Chair, Advocacy Committee), and Dave Wiltey (Member-at-Large).

Treasurer Report (Leimonas)

Beginning balance this year was $116.70, with a current balance of $5,291.23. After paying scholarships, the projected starting balance for next year will be $3,611.23

On a motion made and unanimously passed, the board approved the payment of $400 to our website maintenance contractor.

John L. reported that one check from the silent auction was returned for insufficient funds. He will continue to try to collect that money.

Annual Meeting (Luke)

The annual meeting will be held on Sunday, September 12^th at Stewart’s Headquarters in Saratoga. Meeting will begin at 11 am. All member teams will be notified. Directors and coaches will be encouraged to attend. Next year’s League fee will remain at $500.

Advocacy Committee Report (Vajnar)

The number of penalties dramatically increased last year. The committee discussed several possible rule changes to decrease the number of penalties and assure the safety of players and their parents. Ron and Dave will write up the approved rules for inclusion on the website. Some of the items discussed included:

1. Implementation of a “tag up” rule for off-sides,

2. Requiring a coach to escort any player who is removed from the game into the locker room and back to the stands,

3. Tying penalty minutes to game standings,

4. Enforcement of game suspension for two major penalties,

5. Payment of $50 fee for fighting major, and

6. A game suspension for unsportsmanlike misconducts.

The Advocacy Committee will review all major penalties.

Teams for 2004-2005 Season

The following new teams will be extended an invitation to join the League next year: New England Jr Coyotes (their newly formed midget minor team), Adirondack Youth Hockey, and Manchester Thrashers. We will also explore with the following teams whether they will have a team available for the League: Hamden (Ron), Middlesex (Ron), Schenectady (John M), Bethlehem (John L).

On a motion made and unanimously approved (with President David Luke abstaining), the committee agreed that the CT Whalers will not be invited back into the League. Ron will draft a letter of explanation to their organization.

2005 Playoffs

The 2004-05 Playoffs will be held in Saratoga Springs next year on March 11, 12 and 13, 2005. Season play will end on February 27, 2005. Joan will make arrangements to hold the banquet at the Gideon Putnam.

Executive Committee Elections

John M. agreed to chair the Elections Committee and prepare a slate of candidates for the annual meeting.

Scholarship Committee

Joan will Chair the Scholarship Committee. She is looking for volunteers to help evaluate applications.

There being no further business to come before the meeting, adjournment was at 1:45 PM.

Respectfully submitted,

Joan Maxam, League Secretary

From L to R: John Maxam (Member), Joan Maxam (Secretary), Dave Luke (President), Ron Vajnar (Chair, Advocacy Committee), and John Leimonas (Treasurer)

Presentation by the President at the 1st Annual Banquet March 6, 2004

Teleconference Minutes

January 26, 2004 7 PM

Attendees

Albany Capitals – John Leimonas

Columbia Cougars – Ron Vajnar

CT Whalers – Karen Parks

Griffin Flames – Jeff Howe

Saratoga Blue Knights – Kim White

SE CT Seahawks – Dick Bernardo

Troy/Albany Rivermen – Mike Falzano

NEMHL – Dave Luke, Joan Maxam

Banquet (Joan Maxam)

The League has reserved space at the Gideon Putnam Resort in Saratoga Springs for March 6^th. Dinner will be served at 7 pm (last game of the day begins at 4pm so everyone should have enough time to get ready for dinner). All players, coaches, and board members will attend as guests of the League. We have several Corporate sponsors (Adirondack Trust Company, Deco Tech, WalMart and Stewart’s Shops) which are contributing to the cost of dinner for players, coaches and Directors. The League is continuing to request corporate sponsorships to help defray the banquet costs.

Other family members may make reservations to attend the banquet at a cost of $20 ($12 for children 8 and under). Costs for the banquet dinner are pass through from the Gideon Putnam. The League is not profiting from the dinner. Dress code for the evening is business casual (collared shirts with ties and no jeans). Reservations should be sent to Joan Maxam prior to March 1^st.

We are still searching for a guest speaker. Mike Falzano suggested the Head Hockey Coach at RPI, but we have since learned that ECAC Division I playoffs begin the weekend of our banquet.

Silent Auction (Karen Parks)

During the banquet, we will be running a silent auction to benefit the scholarship program. We still need each team to provide an item for the auction. List of items should be sent to Karen Parks at Karen Parks. Kim White suggested that teams could ask each family to contribute a set dollar amount and then use that money to purchase an item for the auction (e.g., if each family gave $10, you might collect $200 that could be used to purchase a DVD player and some movies).

Scholarship Program (David Luke)

The League would like to award at least four $500 scholarships this year.

In order to make sure every team has an opportunity to participate in the scholarship program, the member teams agreed that high school juniors could also apply for the scholarship. If a junior should be awarded a scholarship, the league will keep the money until the student graduates from high school and provides proof that he/she is attending college. All awardees must be active participants in the League.

The application deadline is February 13, 2004.

Treasurer’s Report (John Leimonas)

Income Actual Pending Total

Beginning balance 116.70

Membership fees 4000.00

Banquet Corporate sponsors 500.00 1900.00

Interest income 7.92

TOTAL INCOME $4624.62 $1900.00 $6524.62

Expenses

NYS filing fee 25.00

Key Bank checks 23.52

Website maintenance fee 676.00

Tee shirts 1000.00*

Banners (6x$170) 1020.00

Banquet 3400.00

TOTAL EXPENSES $48.52 $6096.00 $6144.52

*Estimate

Penalties (Ron Vajnar and Mike Falzano)

To date, in 94 games, teams have had 2,683 penalty minutes; that’s a little over 14 penalties per game. The unsportsmanship penalties are the most offensive type of penalty. The Advocacy committee asks that all coaches talk to their players. Coaches need to encourage players to make clean checks, make every effort to stay out of the box, keep their mouths shut when going into or out of the box, stay away from the opposing box when entering or leaving the box, and all other activities detrimental to the League. The Advocacy Committee was actioned to send a message to all member teams regarding the sharp rise in penalty minutes.

The teleconference ended at 8:15 PM

NEMHL

Annual Meeting Minutes

September 7, 2003

The Annual Meeting of the NorthEastern Midget Hockey League, Inc. (NEMHL, Inc.) took place on Sunday, September 7, 2003 at Stewart’s Corporate Headquarters in Malta, New York.

Affiliation Member/Director

NEMHL David R. Luke, President/Director

Joan Maxam, Secretary/Director

Albany Capitals David Wiltey, Member

John Leimonas

Clifton Park Scott Springli, Member

Columbia Cougars Lee Barsom, Coach

CT Whalers John Carlin, Member

Griffin Jeff Howe, Member

Sheldon Severs, Coach

Saratoga Blue Knights Lesley Leduc, Member

Kim White, Saratoga Youth Hockey Board

SE CT Seahawks David R. Luke, representing

Troy/Albany Rivermen Mike Falzano, Member

Review of 2002-03 Season:

David began with a review of last season and some interesting comparisons with the previous seasons:

2000-01 2001-02 2002-03

No. players in League* 293 424 955

Number of games played 169 208 171

Number of weeks in season 20 20 23

Number of schedule changes 29 11 4

Number of disciplinary hearings 4 3 1

*cumulative

Schedules

The goal this year is to have a very static schedule with no major changes during the year. All teams, except Troy/Albany Rivermen (subsequently submitted ice schedule on 21-Sep) submitted a list of their home ice slots and blackout dates to David at the meeting. A trial schedule will be sent out by the end of September and teams will be given time to double check it before the final schedule is placed on the website. In order to keep the website current, each home team must fax their game sheets to David immediately after completing a game. Joan passed out sets of game sheets to every team. Any team needing additional game sheets should notify her.

Treasurer’s Report

An official report will be sent to each member team (completed on 19-Sep and posted on website).

Election of Officers

On motions, duly made, seconded and unanimously approved, the following were elected to serve as officers for the 2003-04 season:

President: David Luke

Vice President Dick Bernardo

Treasurer John Leimonas

Secretary Joan Maxam

Rules & Regulations Chair Brian Testani

Advocacy Chair Ron Vajnar

Advocacy Vice Chair Mike Falzano

Rules and Regulations

David reviewed the highlights and changes in the League rules and regulations to be sure everyone understood them. The most important issue to remember throughout the season is that the hallmark of the League is good sportsmanship.

All teams must be registered with USA Hockey. In cases where a state’s rules vary (e.g., New York gives a high sticking major), home state rules will be followed. The 3 minor penalty rule will be enforced (a player with 3 minor penalties in a game must leave the remainder of that game). The player must physically leave the game; he/she cannot stay on the bench. A double minor counts as two penalties, but a minor with a misconduct (as in New York with high sticking or Connecticut with a mouth guard violation) counts as only one penalty. Any player receiving 3 major penalties will no longer be allowed to play in the League (lifetime ban).

League communications rely on e-mail. Each member is asked to frequently check his/her e-mail.

Rosters cannot be changed after December 1^stwithout permission from the Executive Committee. Each team is limited to 20 players. Teams will be issued official League stickers for score sheets as soon as rosters are finalized on December 1^st. Members are asked to cross out players who are not present for a game as we will be tracking participation. Each player should carry a photo ID to be able to prove his/her identity.

To participate in the Division 1 and 2 Playoffs at the end of the season, a player must play in at least 75% of his/her team’s League games for which he/she is eligible. Every player must be wearing an NEMHL patch on the right breast of their jersey. The opposing coach has the right to ask any player without a patch to be removed from the game. Additional patches can be ordered from David Luke.

Enforcement of the 8 goal differential rule will be the same as last year. The first time a team breaks the 8 goal rule, they will receive a written letter from the League and they will be required to send a letter of apology to the other team. Second and subsequent violations will result in a default loss with 1-0 for the losing team recorded on the website and the offending coach will serve a one NEMHL game suspension.

Any team that wins the playoff championship must play in Division I for the next two years. To prevent any team from “recruiting” the best players from the other League teams, no team will be allowed to add more than two players per year from another NEMHL team.

On a motion duly made, seconded and unanimously approved, the Board added the following new regulation:

“Any player involved in a fighting penalty (e.g. throws gloves down and receives a 5-minute major penalty and game suspension for fighting) is required to pay the League a $50 fine before he/she will be allowed to continue in League play. If any dispute occurs of the call following the game, agreement of both Head Coaches will be required in writing to the League Advocacy committee.”

Team Positioning Options

Mike Falzano reviewed four different options that the Board could pursue in assigning teams to a Division. On a motion duly made, seconded and unanimously approved, the Board decided to schedule teams to play an equivalent number of games with each of the other seven teams in the League. On January 1^st, the eight teams would be divided into two Divisions and points will be retroactively awarded based on the following criteria:

A Division 1 team beats a Division 2 team = 1 point

A Division 2 team beats a Division 1 team = 3 points

A Division 1 team ties a Division 2 team = .5 point

A Division 2 team ties a Division 1 team = 1.5 points

Playoff Format

Any decisions on Division 1 and 2 playoffs were tabled. Saratoga will look at their ice availability to determine whether both playoffs could be held the first weekend in March at the two Saratoga rinks which would bring all eight teams to the same place.

Scholarships

The League would like to begin awarding scholarships to graduating seniors this year. Any team willing to raise $500 for the scholarship program will make their senior players eligible for a scholarship. Any company willing to donate $500 to the scholarship fund would be allowed to advertise on the League’s website.

New Business

Mike Falzano will get pricing information to David on making banners for those teams who win their Division during the regular season.

There being no further business before the meeting, on a motion duly made, seconded and carried it was, adjourned 3:30 pm.

David R. Luke, President Joan A. Maxam, Secretary

David Wiltey, Member Jeffrey Howe, Member

Representi

League Business

Table of Contents

Northeastern Midget Hockey League

Northeastern Midget Hockey League

Cancelled games – Lee Barsom

Coach of the Year – Dave Luke

Officer Structure – Dave Luke

Rules Review – Ron Vajnar

League Communications – Linda Smith

Northeastern Midget Hockey League

Northeastern Midget Hockey League

Treasurer Report (Leimonas)

Minutes

Treasurer Report (Leimonas)

Annual Meeting (Luke)

Advocacy Committee Report (Vajnar)

Teams for 2004-2005 Season

2005 Playoffs

Executive Committee Elections

Scholarship Committee

September 7, 2003

Treasurer’s Report

Election of Officers

Rules and Regulations

Team Positioning Options

Playoff Format

Scholarships

New Business