How to fill out a NORCAL scoresheet

This is a guide for managers, coaches, referees and scorekeepers to help you to correctly fill out a NORCAL game sheet.

A properly filled-out game sheet is required for all NORCAL games, be they pre-season, regular season, exhibition or playoffs.

Managers/Coaches

Pre-game

• Please make sure the game identification is filled in: game #, date, time, rink, teams, division (10, 12, 14, 16, 18, etc), level (A, B, BB).
• Coach(es) must sign, and include their coaching certification number and level if not already on the scoresheet label; all pages of the score sheet must be signed.
• Coaches should NOT sign pre-sign scoresheets or scoresheet labels.
• Rostered student coaches who are on the bench for a game count as one of the maximum 4 coaches allowed on the bench and should sign the scoresheet.
• If scoresheet labels are not available, please make player names and numbers READABLE; labels must be placed on all copies of the scoresheet.
• Manager or coach should fill out names, not players.
• Fill out the roster in ascending alphabetical order to match your roster.
• Names should match names on USA Hockey roster.
• Players are not required to sign the scoresheets. By their signature, the coach is guaranteeing that the list of players is accurate.  
• A player or coach serving a game suspension SHOULD be listed in the regular place on the scoresheet with a single line struck through the name and beneath or next to the name write "- susp -". Note player's number, name and team, and "serving suspension" in the notes section. It does not help to see "#4 serving suspension", but no #4 in either roster, and no indication of which team the player is from.
• A player who is part of the team and eligible to play, but is not playing, SHOULD be listed as well, but have a single line struck through the name and beneath or next to the name write "- abs -". If the player arrives late, make sure the "absent" notation is crossed out. If team labels are being used, the notation must occur on all copies.
• Officials must compare players on ice with numbers on the score sheet and clear any discrepancy before the game begins.

Post-game

• Make sure you get your copy; save them for proving playoff eligibility.
• If you are the home team, upload a legible copy to TTS within 48 hours and make sure the white sheet is what is uploaded as it is the most clear copy.
• Check for suspensions right after the game; ask questions if there's something you don't understand.
• If the coach gets 15 penalties, or a player gets 5 penalties, and the Ref does not notice, point it out to the Ref and get it noted on the sheet so we don't have to levy penalties later.

Scorekeeper

• Please make sure the game identification is filled in: game #, date, time, rink, teams, division, level.
• Note the actual start time and curfew time, if available.
• Find out the Referee's name and print it legibly, so he/she can be identified for questions later.
• It is often easier to write events down on a separate sheet of paper while the referee is telling you something, then transcribe it carefully onto the score sheet; it's easy to write the right thing in the wrong place if you go directly onto the score sheet.
• The scorekeeper has three main responsibilities during the game: recording goals/ assists; recording penalties; recording goalie stats; each poses its own challenges.

Goals / Assists

• Record each goal on a line alone; do not leave blank lines.
• The number of the player who scored the goal according to the Referee is registered in the first box; one or two players may be credited with assists, or none; it's the Referee's job to award assists.
• Some parents will get very heated over unregistered or incorrect assists, only with the officials' approval can a score sheet be changed. 
• After the game, please note the final score in the upper corners as provided on the score sheet.
• If a goal is a power play, mark "pp" near the goal number on the left; also mark "sh" for short-handed, and "en" for empty net.

Penalties

• A penalty is 2, 5 or 10 minutes. There are no 4 minute penalties (those are recorded as 2 2-minute penalties) and there are no 12-minute penalties (those are recorded as a 2-minute minor and a 10-minute misconduct).
• The wide blank area is for the actual penalty; "rough", "trip", "cross-check"); if a penalty is being served by another player, just list the player serving by putting their number in parenthesis after the penalty type; make sure the player who did the deed is listed in the second column.
• The "off" time and the "start" time are usually the same, but not always. For example, if a player gets a minor penalty, and no one else is in the box, The "off" and "start" times are the same. The "on" time may be 2 minutes later, unless the other team scores a power-play goal, in which case the "on" time is less than 2 minutes later.
• If a player gets multiple penalties on the same play, the "off" and "start" times are different. For example, with 13:00 remaining, player #5 gets 2-and-10 for checking from behind. That is entered on the sheet as 2 separate penalties:
• Per  #   Penalty             Min  Off Ice   Start   On Ice
  1   5   Check from Beh (14)  2   13:00     13:00   11:00
  1   5   Misconduct          10   13:00     11:00    0:32
• The (14) says the minor penalty was served by team mate #14. Assuming the other team does not score, #14 re enters the game at 11:00. Then the 10-minute part of #5s misconduct starts. That player re-enters the game at the first whistle after the 1:00 mark, in this case 0:32. Another example is a player gets 4 minutes for roughing. Let's say the other team scores after 1:30 of the penalty. That looks like:
• Per  #   Penalty             Min  Off Ice   Start   On Ice
  2   8   Roughing             2   13:00     13:00   11:30
  2   8   Roughing             2   13:00     11:30    9:30
• If you're running the score clock too, and it shows penalties, you post the first penalty as 4:00 minutes. When the other team scores, the clock would read 2:30 remaining. You need to change the clock to read 2:00 at that point.
• "Off" and "Start" are different when you have three or more players serving penalties.
• Per  #   Penalty             Min  Off Ice   Start   On Ice
  1   2   Roughing             2   13:00     13:00  
  1   3   Hooking              2   12:00     12:00    
  1   4   Slashing             2   11:30    
• When #4 gets his penalty, his team is already 2 players short. So his penalty does not start until #2's penalty is over. And #2 cannot go out on the ice until #3's penalty expires, when his team is entitled to 4 players again. So this one may end up looking like:
• Per  #   Penalty             Min  Off Ice   Start   On Ice
  1   2   Roughing             2   13:00     13:00   10:00
  1   3   Hooking              2   12:00     12:00    9:00
  1   4   Slashing             2   11:30     11:00    8:32
• In this case, there were no whistles between 11:00 and 8:32. At 10:00, #2 re-entered on the fly when #3's penalty expired, but #3 had to stay in the box. Similarly, when #4's penalty expired, #3 enters on the fly, and #4 must wait for a whistle (8:32).
• Keep an eye out for a player receiving 4 penalties in a game and inform the ref when the fifth occurs; that player receives a game misconduct.
• Count the penalties at the end of a game; if a team has 12, tell the Ref; the coach gets a 1 game suspension.
• Don't leave blank lines in the penalty section.
• If a game has more penalties than will fit, the right thing to do is get a second blank score sheet and continue on that.

Goalie stats:

• There are 4 lines for each team's goalie stats. The top two lines on the left hand side are the stats for the starting goalie for the visiting team. The top two on the right side are for the starting goalie for the home team. The third and fourth lines on each side are used when a team changes goalies. The first column is for the jersey number of the goalie.
• Common mistake: Putting the Home goalie on the visiting side.
• Second common mistake: not noticing when goalies change. When goalies change, it should be noted at what period/time the change took place in the "Notes" section. E. G.:
• Home goalie sub at 7:15 of 2nd period #30 replacing #1
• The top line of the goalie stats are used for "Goals allowed" per period and total. The second line is used for "shots faced". So if a team had 10 shots on goal in a period, and 1 was a goal, that meant the goalie had 9 saves. That is entered on the sheet as a "1" in the top line, and a "10" directly beneath it.
• Common mistake: Putting shots faced on the upper line. Second common mistake: Putting saves rather than shots faced.