Over paperwork error, GTHL imposes 14 Losses on Mississauga Rattlers U16 AA Team.
GTHL admits players and parents had "no responsibility", yet "they must pay the price."
Parents launch petition in hope that GTHL reverses it decision.
MISSISAUGA, ON, Feb. 12, 2025 /CNW/ - The parents of the 19 players on the Mississauga Rattlers under 16 AA team are protesting the January 16th decision of the Greater Toronto Hockey League (GTHL) that imposed a penalty of 16 losses for the improper filing of paperwork for a trainer to be on the bench. It was later reduced to 14 games to reflect which games the trainer was on the bench.
"Our kids were in first place and had a once in a lifetime chance to win a championship this year, said Mieke Gilbert, whose son is a goaltender. These kids did nothing wrong and are very upset. The GTHL had other disciplinary options, none of which would have impacted the players and their season."
The trainer in question is a physician and certified level III trainer. He had been a registered volunteer in five previous seasons and submitted all his credentials in September.
The official registrar for the team organization has written a letter to the GTHL admitting to the paperwork filing error. In it, she pleads that the players not be disciplined for her "understandable mistake". GTHL policy allows this decision to be reversed if it is an understandable mistake. In response, the GTHL told the Rattlers organization that the letter provided "no evidence … that the [GTHL] could rely on."
In its January decision, the GTHL wrote, "[this is] a penalty that the parents and players had no responsibility for and no way to fix themselves. However, it is a difficult lesson that they must pay the price for because their leaders did not adhere to the mandatory and necessary rules put in place to protect those very players."
The January hearing was held after the team appealed the initial GTHL decision to overturn the result of a single game from a win to loss (the December 1, 2024, game it played against the Humber Valley Sharks) and the six game suspension of the team's coach. At the appeal hearing, the GTHL added the $1000 fine and increased the game loss penalty from one game to 16.
"Rather than protecting the children, the GTHL decision is hurting them," said Jeff Davis, a parent and a volunteer team manager who has been part of the appeal process. "As parents and volunteers, we expect better."
The parents have launched a public campaign that it hopes will influence the GTHL to reverse its decision. Other parents, players, volunteers, and the public are urged to go to the website www.GTHLletthemplay.ca , sign a petition, and send a personal appeal to league officials. The GTHL has until the final game of the season on February 21 to reverse or at least stay its decision, or the once first place Rattlers U16 AA team may not make the playoffs.
The general managers of the GTHL West's competitor teams have already voiced their support of Rattlers position to protect the kids. The GTHL will not listen.
Gilbert said, "I think bureaucracy matters more to the GTHL than the health and welfare of the players."
The team has appealed to the Ontario Hockey Federation (OHF), but it has responded that they cannot schedule a hearing in time to reverse the impact of the GTHL decision before playoffs.
The Mississauga Rattlers Hockey Association was founded in 1982. It competes in the GTHL AA West Division with some 170 players aged 8 to 21 and strives to provide a positive environment for players to develop both hockey and life skills, while enjoying the thrill and benefits of competing in Canada's national winter sport.
The GTHL is the largest minor hockey league in the world with more than 30,000 participants in Markham, Mississauga, Toronto, and Vaughan.
SOURCE Parents of Mississauga Rattlers U16 AA Hockey Team
For further information contact: Ted Griffith, [email protected], 416.518.8306
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