Qualifications

All Head Coaches, Assistant Coaches, & Goalie Coaches must submit a Coaching Application form.

IMPORTANT: All coaching staff are required at minimum to have a valid Respect in Sport - Activity Leader (RIS-AL) certification and a valid Police Information Check (Vulnerable Sector Check) on file. The RIS-AL must be valid before coaching staff are permitted on the ice with the team and before they will be rostered to the team.


Note:  Knowledgeable hockey people are critical for evaluations to go well. Volunteering for a minimum of 10 evaluations is required to be considered for a Coach or Assistant Coaches position in the U11-U18 divisions and a minimum of 4 evaluations at the U7 and U9 divisions.  Coaches are required on ice for Pre-Season Camps so please help out where you can.

TWHA Coach Development

U7 to U11 

Kevin Cameron
coachdevU7-U11@trailswesthockey.com

U13 to U18

Joel Domansky
coachdevU13-U18@trailswesthockey.com

Respect in Sport-Activity Leader

IMPORTANT: The November 15 deadline does not apply to this qualification!  This certification must be valid prior to any bench/coaching staff being on the ice with a team and a coach will not be rostered without a valid RIS-AL.

This is required for all bench staff and is not the same certification as the Respect in Sport-Parent program.  Respect in Sport–Activity Leader (RIS-AL) certifications expire on May 1 and is valid for 4 hockey season.  Then you must re-certify.

If RIS-AL was taken in the 2018-2019 season (or before), it is no longer valid and re-certification to coach for the 2023-2024 season is required.  To verify your RIS-AL expiry date, please check your HCR (Spordle) account or your Respect in Sport account.

If you have any questions concerning the RIS-AL certification, please visit Hockey Alberta's website for more information. 

Coach Certifications (Qualifications)

Coaches must have an HCR 3.0 Spordle account for access to their information in the Hockey Canada Registry 3.0.

Click here for more information on this and a quick and easy step by step guide to creating an HCR 3.0 account and linking self & family members.

Hockey Alberta is responsible for the training and development of coaches, including all NCCP levels, the Hockey Canada Safety Program and the Checking Skills Program.

Please visit the Hockey Alberta website for coaching requirements to ensure that you are certified for the right age category or for more information on Hockey Alberta coach clinics.

All coach clinics/qualifications (including Respect in Sport-Activity Leader and Police Information Check), as well as rostered team history can be viewed on your Hockey Canada Registry 3.0 (Spordle) account.

For instructions on how to view your qualification/CRC on HCR 3.0 (Spordle), please review this TWHA document HCR 3.0 Spordle Account - Coach Qualifications-CRC.

To register for Coach Clinics/Courses, please visit the Hockey Canada Registry Clinics page. For instructions on how to register for a clinic, please review this TWHA document HCR 3.0 Spordle Account - Create & Register for Clinic-Course 

Trails West will be hosting private Hockey Alberta clinics for Coach 1, Coach 2 and Checking Skills certifications. Clinics will be held on the following dates:

  • HA Coach 1: Sunday October 1 (1:45pm - 7:15pm) FCA
  • HA Coach 2: Sunday October 15 (1:45pm - 7:15pm) FCA
  • HA Checking Skills: Sunday October 22 (3:45pm - 7:15pm) FCA
  • Goaltending for Coaches: Sunday October 29 (3:45pm - 7:15pm) FCA
  • Hockey Calgary Coach Leadership Day: Monday October 2, 2023 (5:00pm-9:00pm) Ross Glen Hall - Mount Royal University.  Speakers: Jody Carrington and more TBC

Only those individuals listed on the Official Team Roster are covered by Hockey Canada’s liability insurance therefore any person who will regularly step on the bench or the ice must be registered as a team official. This includes Head Coaches, Assistant Coaches and Goaltender Coaches

Important:  A maximum of five (5) team officials may be present on the bench during games.

Note:  Trails West will only cover the Hockey Canada insurance fee for five (5) team officials and anything above that must be paid by the team.

Age DivisionCoach 1 - Intro to CoachCoach 2 - Coach LevelChecking Skills*Respect In Sport - Activity Leader (Coach)Safety
U7 One Coach Per 10 PlayersAll Team OfficialsOne Coach Per 10 Players
U9 One Coach Per 10 PlayersAll Team OfficialsOne Coach Per 10 Players
U11 Head CoachHead CoachAll Team OfficialsOne Team Official
U13 Head CoachHead CoachAll Team OfficialsOne Team Official
U15 Head CoachHead CoachAll Team OfficialsOne Team Official
U18 Head CoachHead CoachAll Team OfficialsOne Team Official
Junior CAll Team OfficialsOne Team Official
WCHL - U9One Coach Per 10 PlayersAll Team OfficialsOne Coach Per 10 Players
WCHL - U11Head CoachAll Team OfficialsOne Team Official

*Checking Skills Qualification requires both HU-Online Checking Skills course and in-person Instructional Stream Checking Skills clinic.

Respect in Sport - Activity Leader must be valid prior to being on the ice with a team and rostered.

At least one registered team official must be certified in Safety by October 15 and be present at all games and practices.

NOTE: Coach certification deadline is November 15.

West Calgary House League Coaches

Coaches for House League are required to have the same coach qualifications as community stream. Exception is U11 Head Coaches are not required to have the Checking Skills qualification but it is strongly recommended.

Police Information Check

A current and valid City of Calgary Police Information Check (PIC) with a Vulnerable Sector Check is required for all volunteer positions.  This includes Head Coaches & Assistant Coaches that are 18+. 

PICs are current for a period based on date of issue and will expire on May 31 of the third hockey season. (i.e. issued August 20, 2020 will expire May 31, 2023)

PICs received by TWHA have the issue date and status entered on a coach's HCR profile under Background Checks in the Hockey Canada Registry.  You can check the validity of your PIC on your HCR 3.0 Spordle account and viewing "Background Checks". The Expired On date should be 2023-05-31 or later.  To view your qualifications and CRC status, review this TWHA document HCR 3.0 Spordle Account - Coach Qualifications/CRC. (Note: screenshots reflect CRC which has since been renamed Background Checks, all else is the same)

IMPORTANT: TWHA does not keep copies of PICs received on file and it is recommended that you print/save a copy for your future reference.  New for 2023, the Trails West Administrator no longer has access to view applicant results online.  You MUST send in a copy of your results in order for it to be entered on your HCR account. 

PICs issued on behalf of another organization can be considered valid for Trails West's purposes if issued within the last 12 months.  Please send a PDF/JPEG of a hard copy of the results to the TWHA Administrator.

A PIC indicating a Relevant Offence (see below) will not be valid unless approved by the Screening Committee.

In the absence of a current and valid PIC on file:

  1. Head Coaches and Assistant Coaches must provide proof of application prior to team assignment;
  2. All other volunteers (including Team Managers) must provide proof of application by October 15 or prior to commencing volunteer activities; and
  3. All volunteer positions are considered unconfirmed until receipt of a valid PIC.

Questions concerning PICs should be directed to the TWHA Administrator.

(Information updated: January 2021)

What is a PIC?

A PIC is a Police Information Check performed by the City of Calgary Police Service.

A PIC is more than a Canadian criminal record check (CRC) that is offered by some other services. Information is searched from three databases and the results are provided on a Calgary Police Service certificate letter. Disclosure includes Canada-wide Criminal Record History, Vulnerable Sector Search (as required by Trails West Hockey Association) and Police History; this includes Local Police Information and Alberta Provincial court records.

A PIC is valid for Trails West's purposes for a period based on the date of issue and will expire on May 31 of the third hockey season. For example, a PIC issued August 20, 2020, expired May 31, 2023 and therefore an application for a new PIC will need to be submitted for the 2023-2024 hockey season.

Read "Process For Application" for information and details to apply for a PIC.

Once you receive your PIC results please send a picture or scan of the results to the Trails West Administrator at admin@trailswesthockey.com.  The Trails West Admin can no longer view your results online as of June 2023.

After a successfully submitted PIC application, some individuals may receive an "attend" letter before they receive their results. This letter requests you to make a follow up appointment with the Calgary Police Information Check Unit. More details about this can be found under "Receive An Attend Letter?".

 

Process for Application
PIC Acceptable Documentation
Receive an Attend Letter?
Relevant Offences

Coach Reimbursement

Coaching clinic fees will be reimbursed by Trails West for those courses taken during the season by ROSTERED team officials only.  

To be reimbursed, please complete the TWHA Coach Reimbursement Form and forward, along with copies of applicable receipts to the TWHA Administrator for review and subsequent approval by Coach Development.  

Note:  Reimbursement requests will not be accepted after March 15 of the current season.

Non-Parent Coach Policy

Information about Trails West's Non-Parent Coach Policy should be directed to Coach Development for U13-U18 at coachdevU13-U18@trailswesthockey.com.

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Trails West Hockey Association

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2390 47 Avenue SW
Calgary AB T2T 5W5

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