The MHL replays games in a 82 game season. Each franchise plays each team in its own conference 6 times a year and other teams 5 times a year. League games will be played using FACEOFF HOCKEY.

League Charter

Will Biermann's Patrick Roy fare better in the MHL?

As a team identity league, each franchise assumes control over its real-life roster and minor leaguers. Each season, franchises will enjoy the right of first refusal to all rookies that end the regular season with their real-life counterpart. Minor leaguers may be traded, but must then reside on the new team's roster or rights to the player are forfeited.

As a keeper league, the annual free agent draft will be limited to only three rounds. Any uncontrolled player in the NHL will be subject to the annual draft.

League Structure

All rules of the MHL are as described within this constitution unless amended by the league as a whole and distributed as an official Constitution/Rules Update.

The league will consist of sixteen (16) teams in 4 divisions. All teams will play an unbalanced schedule of 82 games, playing teams in their own conference six times (42 games) and teams outside their conference five times (40). The division winners and top four non-division champions from each conference will advance to the playoffs each year.

All MHL road games will be managed by the COACH on the home team's computer unless face-to-face play is arranged. Results of these games will be sent to the road team manager and the games stats will be sent to the League Statistician.

The Teams

Each team will consist of as many as 35 players. Franchises are allowed to protect prospects from their real-life minor league system with these roster spots. Unless protected on the 35-man roster, prospects traded by a franchise's real-life counterpart result in a loss to his rights; at that point, the prospect becomes the property of his new real-life team.

In accordance with the gameplay in FACEOFF HOCKEY, 20 carded players must dress for each game (18 skaters and 2 goalies).

Player Usage

All players are restricted to playing their actual number of games played.

If a player goes past his allotted games, he is suspended for the remainder of the season and playoffs. In addition, the team in question will lose their lowest draft choice. If no draft choices remain, the player in question will be released into the immediately subsequent draft pool.

Injuries

Injuries will be used in the MHL.

Or will Engle's Mike Vernon rule the crease?

The Draft

The initial draft order will be determined by the real-life final NHL point totals from the 1996-97 season. Subsequent draft orders will be determined by each franchise's MHL performance from the prior season.

The inaugural draft will be held in late-August or early-September 1997. This draft will last at least 5 rounds. Subsequent drafts will last 3 rounds.

Salary Cap

After each draft, teams will be required to cut down to a salary level not higher than 1.15 times the total of the highest-salaried real-life NHL roster for that cardset. For example, assume 1996-97 Colorado has the highest total salary using FACEOFF HOCKEY's salary system --- $59,243. For the 1996-97 cardset MHL season, no team would be permitted to carry a total salary over $68,129.

The only time a team may exceed the salary limit is from the end of the playoffs through the end of the annual draft.

The league will alter the salary cap annually to keep within the spirit of the league charter, i.e. to keep the league from becoming too talent-rich.

Seasonal Play

The season will start with a 2 week Exhibition Schedule. These games and their stats will not count toward season records or statistics.

The season will consist of a series of two-week play periods. Each team will play an average of 16 games every month, i.e. 8 home and 8 away games. The stats from all of your home games must be RECEIVED by the league statistician by the 13th and 28th of each month. Games not received by this deadline may be autoplayed at the discretion of the commissioner. Repeated offenses will be grounds for disciplinary action.

Dues

Dues currently are not required, but might be in the future.

Visitors Instructions (COACH)

All road games will be managed by the Faceoff Coach module unless face-to-face play can be accomodated. At the beginning of each month the roster files will be distributed -- please wait until you receive the NEW rosters before programming or altering your Coach file.

If the Coach file is not received by your opponents by the 5th and 20th of each month, permission is given to your opponent to play with the computer managing your team, which includes the computer selecting the starting roster.

Teams will be allowed to distribute as many coach files as they see necessary every month. If you plan to send more than two coach files, please send them DIRECTLY to your opponents to avoid confusion by sending them to the entire league.

Trade Deadline

At the time the league schedule is released, the Commissioner will designate the deadline by which all trades must be made. No trades may be made between the trade deadline and the end of the playoffs.

The Playoffs

The division champions and top four non-champions in each conference will advance to the playoffs. The division winners in each conference will receive first-round byes as the #1 and #2 seeds. The first round will be 6-3, 5-4. Home ice will be awarded to the top seeds using a HHAAHAH format. The lowest seed surviving the first round will be paired against the #1 seed, the other winner against the #2 seed.

The tiebreaker is as follows:
1. most wins
2. head-to-head record
3. head-to-head goal differential
4. record within the division
5. a one-game playoff

All games will be played by the home manager as per the regular season unless agreed upon otherwise to play by phone or modem.

For determining playoff eligibility, each player can play in 10% of his real-life actual games for each playoff series. Thus, any player who played more than 70 regular season games is eligible to play every game in a playoff series. If a goalie played in more than 45 regular season games he is eligible to play every game in a playoff series.

Trades

Roster moves take effect at the beginning of each two-week reporting period. All GM's are REQUIRED to use the official roster files provided by the Commissioner. These files will be e-mailed to each team on the 1st and 15th of every month.

Each team must announce the trade to the commissioner for it to take effect. Player-to-be-named later deals are NOT allowed.

Free Agent Pick-ups

Players released from MHL rosters after the inaugural draft will form the base of the free agent pool. Over the course of time, this pool will become more populated. The only time a team may select a non-controlled player from the NHL who was not released by a MHL team is through the draft.

Free agents are taken according to a reverse order of the most recent standings.

There will be no limit as to how many free agents can be picked up by one team in any given month. However, the roster size of 35 and salary cap cannot be exceeded.

If a team wishes to select more than one player they will choose the additionals players by round (ie. we may need two or three rounds -- based on a reverse order of the standings -- to complete all the free agent signings for any given month).

Schedule

The schedule will consist of 6 games against teams within your conference (42), plus 5 games against teams in the other conference (40), for a total of 82 games. The league will release a schedule at the beginning of each season that includes important dates such as the all-star game and trade deadline.

Rules

Any member can propose a new rule or amendment from the period after the season until the beginning of the Exhibition season the following year. The league then votes on all proposed rules. If there is no majority, the rule change is dropped or a compromise is drawn.