"How a Player gets that first taste of Hockey is crucial."

The FUNdamental stages of Hockey Canada’s Long-Term Player Development (LTPD) Model serves as the foundation upon which the entire minor hockey association is built.  Youngsters at every level of play benefit from getting the “right start” in the game and it is crucial in building the skills of house league and competitive players alike.  Children learn through participating in practice drills and informal modified games which forms the basis of Long-Term Player Development (LTPD)

The goals and objectives of U7-U9 hockey programming are to:

• Teach all of the basic skills of hockey so players can enjoy the game
• Assist in the development and enhancement of physical literacy and basic motor patterns
• Develop and encourage the concepts of being a team member through player participation in both on-ice and off-ice activities,
• Encourage the aspects of fitness, fair play and co-operation while having fun playing the game. 
• Age-Appropriate - Designed practice and game play that is appropriate to the age, size and skill level of the participant

Hockey Canada has established national guidelines to ensure optimal development of hockey players at this crucial introductory stage:

Game play at the U9 age-group and below will be Cross/Half-ice effective 2019-20

Programming in the Ontario Hockey Federation, which Ontario Minor Hockey is a member, will be implemented as follows: 

1. Game play for the U7 age-group will be Cross-Ice
2. Game play for the U8 age-group will be Half-Ice. 
3. Game play for the U9 age-group will be Half-Ice during the first half of the season and transition to Full-Ice during the second half of the season.

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