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High school hockey teams will be able to play two additional regular-season games beginning in the 2009-10 season under a proposal approved by the WI2A Board of Control late last week.
The two additional games do come with strings attached, however. The two additional games must come as part of multiple-team tournaments, and with no class time missed.
In recent years, Onalaska and La Crosse have engaged in a home-and-home, two-year series with Beaver Dam and Waupun. Provided no class time is missed Friday, that series would be counted as just one game toward the 20-game limit in 09-10. Onalaska and Holmen-Aquinas are expected to begin a similar home-and-home, two-year series with Kettle Moraine-Mukwonage and Milwaukee University School that would fall under the same guidelines.
The new rule is more applicable statewide to Christmas tournaments. For example, Superior and Hudson played in a three-day Christmas tournament involving two teams from Minnesota and a team from Ontario last winter.
In 09-10, those three games would only count as two toward the 20-game limit. Teams will be able to take advantage of the exemption twice per year, creating a maximum of 22 games. Holmen-Aquinas head coach Tim Franzini, who has been a member of the state coaches association leadership throughout his time for both the Avalanche and Onalaska, said the exemption is based on similar exemptions for tennis and soccer.
“It will allow us to add a couple more back-to-back and Saturday games, yet still keep all our non-conference games established,” Franzini said. “It's a way to get extra games for your kids.
“It can also be used as a scrimmage of sorts for early in the season. There are a lot of advantages to it.”
Onalaska head coach Tim Ebner said the change is something the hockey coaches association has been working on with the WI2A for about five years.
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