Frequently Asked Questions

GENERAL QUESTIONS

  • The Semiahmoo Ravens Hockey head office is located at 1544 Foster Street in White Rock (Central Plaza building). We do not have an office at any of the arenas. There is free street parking out front on Foster Street.

    Generally, our office hours are Monday - Friday 9:00am-5:00pm, but it's always best to call before you swing by.

  • CLICK HERE to read Semiahmoo Ravens Hockey refund policy.

  • Check out our video by CLICKING HERE to view what Semiahmoo Ravens Hockey is all about!

  • CLICK HERE to view the equipment required to play hockey! All players are required to purchase all of the equipment required including a practice jersey and socks. U7-U9 divisions receive a free TimBits (Tim Hortons) team jersey and socks once teams are formed. U11 C/Recreational players receive two AtoMc (McDonalds) game jerseys and socks (one to keep and one to hand back at the end of the season). U11 Rep and up receive a home and away game jersey that must be returned at the end of the season. U11 Rep and up teams have the option to also purchase and keep a Ravens third jersey/socks.

    The best local spots to purchase gear are: Docksteader Source for Sports (24th Ave + King George Blvd.) and Cyclone Taylor Sports (152nd St + 54A Ave). If you are not familiar with how to fit hockey gear, ask one of the great staff members at the above stores to assist you! It's very important to have properly fitted gear.

    There is no need to purchase brand new gear! Check out the Semiahmoo Hockey Shop & Swap page on Facebook for gently used gear!

  • Semiahmoo Ravens Hockey is co-ed. If you are looking for an all female association, check out the Surrey Falcons.

  • U7-U13 are non-body-checking divisions. U15-U21 C/Recreational are non-body-checking divisions. U15 and U18 Rep hockey has body checking. All players must attend a body checking clinic prior to participating in the U15/U18 Rep divisions.

  • We do not take friend or coach requests at the association level. We have over 900 players in the association, and it is nearly impossible to ensure that friends are on teams together. Our first priority for U7-U9 and U11-U18 Recreational/C divisions, is to ensure that teams are balanced. After evaluations are completed, you may send an email to your Division Manager and make friend requests (with reasoning), however, nothing is guaranteed. What we can guarantee you, is that your kids (and you the parents) will make new lifelong friends from hockey!

Dates + Locations

  • Semiahmoo Ravens Hockey home arenas are Centennial and South Surrey Arenas, however, with the amount of players we have in the association, those two ice surfaces cannot accommodate all of our teams. In order to accommodate all of our players, the Ravens utilize ice at the two above mentioned arenas, as well as Excellent Ice, Newton Arena, Surrey Sports & Leisure Complex and the Great Pacific Forum (Planet Ice Delta). Additionally, teams in U11 and above will play games vs other associations and will have away games at their home arenas. U11-U18 Recreational teams play in the Fraser Valley West region (Cloverdale, Langley, North Delta, Surrey, Semiahmoo, South Delta and Whatcom County) and Rep teams may have teams in their division located anywhere within the Pacific Coast Amateur Hockey Association.

  • This is a hot topic at the beginning of every hockey season!

    Please be patient as your division gets started each season. Depending on your division, there is a lengthy process to get your child placed on a team at either the house evaluations or the rep tryout process.

    You will receive an email from your volunteer Division Manager approximately 2 weeks prior to evaluations with your evaluation schedule. Once evaluations are completed, your child will be placed on a team and you will receive your schedule a month or so at a time (each division is slightly different). Typically, each teams home game and practice times will rotate with other teams in your division, thus, you will not have the exact same schedule each week. This has seemed to work well for a lot of families.

    For season start/end dates for each division and other important information CLICK HERE to view our seasonal calendar. It is only viewable from a computer web browser (not a phone). NEW - U7-U9 draft schedules are posted to this page.

    Please refrain from emailing the Semiahmoo Hockey office asking for schedules as we will ensure that our members are the first to know of schedules once they are released.

  • The hockey season starts sometime in September (early or late depending on the division) and ends in March prior to Spring Break. Hockey typically runs over long weekends, however, takes a break for Christmas (unless your team is involved in tournaments). Check out the Important Dates calendar on our website (best viewable from a web browser on a computer rather than a mobile device).

Costs

  • The cost of the hockey season depends on the age group your child is in. Check out our registration page for current registration fees for each age group. If you break down the cost of U6, those players are on the ice on average twice per week for 23 weeks. $775/23=$34/week (or $17 per session with a professional skill provider/coach). Breaking down the cost of a U15 C/Recreational player, those players are on the ice on average twice per week for 25 weeks. $1070/25=$42.80/week (or $21.40/ice time).

    Teams typicaly collect extra funds to cover things such as tournaments, trophies, wrap up party and other swag or goodies throughout the season. U6 team fees for the season are usually around $100/player and a recreational/C team may have fees around $350. If your child plays on a U11-U18 rep team and has a paid coach, your team fees may be upwards of $2500-$3000.

    Semiahmoo Ravens Hockey works to minimize costs as much as possible by accessing available Government grant funding, obtaining sponsorships, providing additional programming/camps to raise money for the association and through various other fundraising activities. There are also subsidies offered to lower income families through various charitable organizations such as KidSport, JumpStart, A4K and the Hockey Canada Assist Fund.

REP HOCKEY

  • Rep (Representative) hockey is the highest caliber of hockey available in any given association. Rep teams typically have 15 players + 2 goaltenders who represent the more skilled and talented players in their age group. Rep hockey is a fast-paced, highly-competitive level of hockey that offers exceptional players a challenge.

    Rep hockey is about twice the time commitment of house league hockey. Expect a minimum of 1-2 practices, 1 development session, 1 home game and 1 away game each week. Rep teams typically also participate in 2-3 tournaments each season, with some being an overnight travel tournament.

    Semiahmoo Ravens Hockey follows the Hockey Canada developed matrix for rep evaluations and hire independent evaluators. Rep teams are tiered and there are typically 2-5 rep teams per division (dependent on registration). To view a list of current hired rep coaches, CLICK HERE.

    House/Recreational hockey plays approximately 1 practice per week and one home or away game per week. Each team also rotates through an additional skill development session or team practice every several weeks.

  • Coming Soon

  • Coming Soon

  • Semiahmoo Ravens Hockey rep tryouts (U13 & U15) will begin on August 30th for goalies and August 31st for skaters. Expect 2 weeks for this process.

    U11 & U18 tryouts begin on September 6th for goalies and September 7th for skaters. Allow 2 weeks for this process.

Coaching

  • Semiahmoo Ravens Hockey takes great pride in recruiting and supporting some of the best coaches in the Province. Our non-parent paid coaching staff that work primarily with our Rep teams have extensive experience and expertise; many having coached at Junior or college programs prior to coming to the Ravens. Many of the coaches have been with us for multiple years and have established excellent programs and reputations as player developers.

    The majority of our Coaches are volunteers, and we have many excellent, caring, committed and educated ones. These Coaches are supported by the association through mentoring, seminars, online resources and other training. All Coaches must meet Hockey Canada Certification standards, as well as Criminal Record Checks, Respect in Sport, Concussion training, and commitment to the Semiahmoo Ravens Hockey Coaches Code of Conduct.

    If you are interested in becoming a coach please go here: https://www.semiahmooravens.ca/get-involved/coaches/

  • Coming Soon

  • SEMI Hockey is proud to have a first-class group of on-ice skill developers.

    • Matt Erhart > CLICK HERE to learn about Coach Matt Erhart.

    • Shane Kuss > CLICK HERE To learn about Coach Shane Kuss.

    • Keenan Scardina

    • David Rutherford

    • Marcie Munro

    • Jason Oliver

    • Chase Oliver

    • Richard Mueller

    • Kyle Beach

    • Bayne Koen

GOALTENDING

  • In the U7-U9 divisions all players will have the opportunity to try the goalie position. The association provides each team with a set of goalie gear to use for the season. We also offer U8 and U9 players FREE professional goalie clinics every Saturday and Sunday morning at Excellent Ice. (Info + Sign Up HERE).

    In U11 and up, at time of registration, you must advise if your athlete will be a player or a goalie. That said, there is still opportunity for a player to learn the goalie position. U11 and U13 also have FREE professional goalie clinics on Saturday's and Sunday's at Excellent Ice.

VOLUNTEERING

  • Semiahmoo Ravens Hockey is a community not-for-profit organization. We are primarily a volunteer run organization with a few contract employees who keep the day to day administrative and hockey operations running smoothly. In order to keep registration fees low, we rely on each and every family to help out along the way, whether it is assisting at evaluations, managing equipment, time/score keeping, coaching, managing teams and a lot more! Each family is required to volunteer a minimum of 5 hours throughout the season and if that minimum is not met, your $500 volunteer deposit cheque will be cashed.

Officials

  • Semiahmoo Ravens Hockey is in need of new Referees every season! If your son or daughter is interested, CLICK HERE to learn more and to contact our Referee in Chief, Phil Linklater To learn how much a Referee can earn per game.

CAMPS + CLINICS

  • We sure do! For the last two weeks of August, Semiahmoo Ravens Hockey takes over Centennial Arena in White Rock for skill development, power skating, high performance and goalie camps. We also offer evening scrimmages to get the kids back into the swing of things! Once registration opens, don't delay, as many camp options sell out in 24 hours! CLICK HERE for summer camp info.

  • You can view your completed registrations under the My Registrations section of the TeamSnap Dashboard for up to one year after completion. Registrations cannot be removed from the dashboard prior to one year, and they cannot be brought back to the dashboard after the one year expiration.

    Once you've started a registration form, your pending and completed registrations will be displayed on your TeamSnap Dashboard. You will not see a team listed in the My Teams section of your dashboard until the organization you are registering with has completed team placements.

    The 'My Registrations' section contains all registrations where the form has been completed. Here, you can:

    The My Pending Registrations section allows registrants to:

    • Complete and/or Delete In-Progress registrations.

OTHER PROGRAMS

  • Non-member programs or unsanctioned leagues are leagues that are not affiliated with Hockey Canada and operate outside of Hockey Canada’s existing minor hockey system. Unsanctioned leagues are wholly responsible for their own oversight. It is up to each individual unsanctioned league to determine how issues like injuries, harassment and rule infractions are handled.

    In some cases, unsanctioned leagues operate without a constitution, without bylaws, without insurance and with their own customized rulebook for game play.

    Hockey Canada has no regulatory authority over unsanctioned leagues, and cannot hear appeals, insure players or ensure a consistently high standard of game play in unsanctioned leagues. It is for this reason that Hockey Canada and Semiahmoo Ravens Hockey do not condone, endorse or create affiliations with unsanctioned leagues.

    The For-Profit operators of non sanctioned leagues, including the non-sanctioned, are relentless recruiters, and will aggressively approach families of players as young as 6-7 to sell them on their pathway.

    They will tell you that your player is "ranked" as one of the top "U7, U8, U9, U11, etc" players and they are "Elite". If they do not do this special program they will "Fall Behind", or not get "Exposure", etc. They will downplay the Canadian Long Term Athlete Development Model, which was developed by Canadian and International experts and is rooted in extensive research.

    Taking these shortcuts and attempting to fast track development of these younger athletes is profitable for these programs, but is not always in the best interest of the athlete. If you are approached by these recruiters, please ensure that you seek as much information as possible and make an informed decision.

    If you choose to register your child in a non-member league, your child will immediately lose all Hockey Canada membership privileges for the remainder of the hockey season.

  • Coming Soon

  • We recognize that for players at the High Performance level in the U15 and U18 divisions, that there are multiple options to choose from for places to play. This can often be a stressful challenge to choose a program that suits your needs. While we cannot speak confidently to all of the pros and cons of the various programs, we can give some general guidelines, if you require more specific information, please contact us and we can help you find the answers.

    Ravens Rep Programs - Lower cost (reg fee + team fees usually max out at $5000-7000), professional non-parent coaches, local ice times, local dryland training, (ice times and dryland frequency similar to most academy programs), mainly Lower Mainland travel, some tournament travel, ability to play for Provincial championship, can attend high school of your choice, community service opportunities, ability to play other sports/extracurricular activities, can affiliate with BC Hockey Zone programs.

    Academy Programs - Higher costs ($18,000-$30,000 per year), daytime practices, attend specific schools or classrooms at arena, travel frequently.

Misc

  • Yes, Semiahmoo Ravens Hockey strongly supports the LTAD model of player development, and we have had tremendous success developing players over the past several years. Our philosophy aligns with the Hockey Canada Development model, and our coaches are asked to focus on teaching the appropriate fundamentals that are important at each stage of development. Short term win/loss records are not considered key indicators of success, rather the focus is developing players over the long term, and ensuring that they develop a love for the game. More information on the Hockey Canada athlete pathways for different age groups can be found here.

  • Respect keeps hockey fun.

    Hockey is meant to be an enjoyable, character-building experience for players and parents alike. But one reason players and parents leave the minor hockey system is disrespectful behaviour in the arena. That’s why maintaining respect in the hockey environment is essential.

    Respect in Sport data indicates that the No. 1 threat facing community sports today is harassment. Seventy percent of children drop out of organized sports by age 13 – mostly due to bullying, discrimination, abuse or harassment.

    Respect in Sport aims to change that.

    Respect in Sport promotes the safety and well-being of all minor hockey players, encourages productive communication with officials and coaches, and fosters a positive hockey experience for everyone involved.

    By promoting respect on and off the ice, Respect in Sport is designed to prevent harassment and keep children involved in organized hockey, which means they can continue to experience the benefits of exercise and teamwork that come with playing minor hockey.

    Parents and coaches are uniquely positioned to maintain a positive culture at the minor hockey level, which is why it’s so important for them to model good behaviour for Canada’s youth. Over one million Canadians are Respect in Sport-certified. With Respect in Sport, parents and coaches have the tools to maintain a fun, positive environment on the rink and to keep hockey fun for children of all ages.

    You can learn more about Respect in Sport for Parents here. Additional details about Respect in Sport for Coaches can be found here.