OFFICIAL PFHL OWNER'S MANUAL Updated Sept 7th,2006 A. CODE OF CONDUCT B. LEAGUE PLAY C. TRADING D. LINE CHANGES E. PLAYOFFS F. DRAFTS G. WAIVERS/RELEASED PLAYERS H. DISPUTE RESOLUTION I. AWARDS J. BUDGETS & FINANCES K. FREE AGENCY L. SIGNING ROOKIES/UNASSIGNED PLAYERS M. RE-SIGNING/CONTRACT NEGOTIATIONS N. PLAYER ELIGIBILITY O. BONUSES P. RATINGS CHALLENGES All rules are subject to change, but all changes will pass through the league's Board of Governors before being made official. DEFINITION OF TERMS Franchise -- corresponds to a PFHL team. 45 total players maximum are allowed in any franchise, including pro and farm, prospect not included Owners -- consists of the GM, Coach and all others associated with a franchise. GM -- person responsible for roster changes of a franchise. NOTE: only this person's confirmation will be accepted for trades and other managerial duties. Coach -- person responsible for the construction of team lines/goalies. Pro Team -- these are the players with which a coach can use to form an active roster. There is a limit of 25 players including injured players. Injured players from the pro team can not be moved to the farm team. Farm Team -- these players can not be used by a coach, unless they have been called up to the Pro Team. Maximum OV rating allowed on the farm is 74. Active Roster -- the 20 players who will play in a game. Lines -- There are sets for each of the following categories: 5 on 5, 4 on 4, 5 on 4, 5 on 3, 4 on 5, 3 on 5. The format for sending lines to the league office is in Section D. IT IS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED TO USE THE GM EDITOR UTILITY. Board of -- 5 members selected from the league ownership to oversee league operations Governors and vote on significant changes within the league. Player Ratings 1. PLAYER ROSTER ITEMS - Skaters do receive FHL ratings if they have played at least 1 NHL game the previous season. If not, these players would be placed on your team's prospect list until they meet the criteria, or released. CD: Condition. Determines the current health of the player in %. OK means 100%. IJ: Injury status of player. (Injury recovery times vary based upon each players durability rating. Some players recover at a faster rate than others). DD: Day to day injury 1W: 1-2 week injury 3W: 2-4 week injury 1M: 4-6 week injury 3M: 2-4 month injury IN: Injured Indefinitely S#: Suspended for # games HD: Handedness IT: Intensity SP: Speed ST: Strength EN: Endurance DU: Durability DI: Discipline SK: Skating PA: Passing PC: Puck Control DF: Defence SC: Scoring EX: Experience LD: Leadership OV: Overall 7.2 TEAM SCORING ITEMS GP: Games Played G: Goals A: Assists P: Points +/-: Plus Minus PIM: Penalty Minutes PP: Power Play goals SH: Short Hand goals GW: Game Winning Goals GT: Game Tying Goals S: Shots PCTG: Shooting Percentage GS: Goal Scoring Streak (in games) PS: Point Scoring Streak (in games) A. CODE OF CONDUCT 1. Each Franchise GM is expected to respond to all trade inquiries as soon as possible. 2. Except where other matters make it simply impossible, each owner is required to respond to certain infrequent official business. 3. Each owner must inform the league of any change of address or of any significant absences. 4. Every Franchise owner is expected to manage his team professionally and in particular to promote the long term well-being of his team. 5. Every GM is to respect the views of others and participate in the league to the best of his/her ability. 6. Every owner Must vote for the PFHL awards, and any other items the commissioner requests. B. LEAGUE PLAY 1. The league uses Fantasy Hockey League software (FHL) to run it's games. 2. The franchise GM is responsible for conducting the roster movement business of the franchise. This involves negotiating trades, moving players between the pro team and the farm team, and conducting drafts. * They are also responsible for the finances of the team. 3. The franchise Coach is responsible for determining a team's active roster and for sending in lines to the Commissioner. (IT IS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED THAT THE GM EDITOR UTILITY BE USED) 4. The waiver rule will be implemented. Please refer to Section G regarding the constraints involved. 5. Injuries will be posted after each game day. Teams are responsible for submitting lines changes for injuries. If no update is submitted before game time, the commissioner will use his knowledge to add the best player(s) to the line-up of the injured team, or let the sim decide in most cases. Injuries incurred during the preseason will be re-set at the start of the Regular Season. C. TRADING 1. Trades may involve players, draft picks, and money ONLY. Future considerations are NOT allowed to be traded. The League offices will not rule on any external factors unless sufficient proof of wrong doing is provided. Teams have a duty to provide all information necessary to a GM to analyze a trade. This includes the injury status of all players involved. However, once a trade is finalized, it is assumed that all GMs have full knowledge of the status of the traded players. 2. Trades are made by submitting e-mail to the League offices, and a copy to the other owner involved. Once a GM submits a trade confirmation, Line changes will be required. 3. Both Owners must confirm the trade. 4. The League Commissioner reserves the right to veto any trade if, in the belief of the commissioner, the trades violates the spirit of competition and goodwill of the league. 5. Trading deadline is set at the 80% mark of the season. No trades will be made after that mark. THE LEAGUE WILL NOT ACCEPT ANY TRADES UNTIL A SPECIFIED POINT IN THE OFF-SEASON. 6. A player placed on waivers cannot be traded until he is either claimed, or passes waivers completely. D: LINE CHANGES You can change your teams lines anytime you feel it necessary. This is the format and you MUST use if you are not submitting lines via the GM editor utility. You must also get it just right. I will show you an example below : The first five lines should list the players who will be in your roster. There cannot be more than twenty altogether, with only 2 players designated as goalies. List jersey numbers for players as follows, separating each with a comma: Centers Left Wingers Right Wingers Defensemen Goalies Type "***" on a separate line Then, still using jersey numbers, assign players to lines in the following order: 4 even strength lines (5 players). 2 5 on 4 power play lines (5 players). 2 4 on 3 power play lines (4 players). 2 4 on 5 penalty kill lines (4 players). 2 3 on 5 penalty kill lines (3 players). 2 Extra Skaters. 1 Starting goalie. All said and done your lines should look something like this: 26,20,25,54 29,44,37,16 39,13,32,37 45,4,10,24,3,6 56,33 *** 26,29,57,45,3 20,16,13,4,24 25,37,32,10,6 54,44,39,10,6 20,16,13,45,3 26,29,57,4,24 20,13,45,3 26,16,4,24 26,16,4,3 13,29,24,45 26,4,3 13,24,45 57,16 E. PLAYOFFS 1. The playoffs will be the top 8 teams from each Conference (top 4 in each division) with the Division winners seated 1st and 2nd. THE SALARY CAP IS NOT IN EFFECT DURING THE PLAYOFFS F. ENTRY DRAFT - This draft will include all teams. - Draft Order will be as follows: 1 - Lottery system for teams that did not make the playoffs 3 - Reverse Overall Standings Order -Lottery system Each team that misses the playoffs gets there name in a hat equal to what position they start in. If there are 8 non-playoff teams then the worst team would get their name in the hat 8 times with each team higher getting their name in one less time. As the drawing is made, any team can only move up the order by a maximum of 4 positions, meaning the teams in positions 1 through 5 are the only teams who could pick 1st overall. (Applies to first round only) - Number of rounds in draft will depend onn the amount of players available in the draft. (usually 3 rounds) -Each team is required to submit a list too the Commish before each round of the draft. Failure to do so results in the league dropping that team's pick to the end of the round, and a designated person will pick for that team as they see fit. G. WAIVERS 1. When a player is moved from the pro team to the farm team, he must first pass waivers. The waiver priority list consists of the overall standings in reverse order. (Regular Season Only) We DO NOT use the waiver priority list on the waiver page. A team must decide to acquire a player from waivers before their next game. Every player is immune from waivers until they've played 10 games in the pros. 2. Waiver claims will cost the claiming team $250,000. The team losing the player gets compensated this money. 3. Each team must send an e-mail to the commissioner regarding whether they wish to acquire a player from waivers. If a team claims a player on waivers he is sent directly to the teams farm team. 4. If a player on waivers is not claimed before the next game day, he is assigned to his designated farm team. 5. A player 23 years old and under is immune from waivers!!!!! G(a). RELEASED PLAYERS 1. A Player released will become a free agent and can be signed by any team on a first come first serve bases. The remainder of the contract must be paid out at 50% value. (ie) Player(A) makes $500,000. 2 years left on contract. $500,000 X 2 years = $1,000,000 X 50% = $500,000. YOU CANNOT RELEASE A PLAYER IF YOU DON'T HAVE SUFFICIENT FUNDS. Players can only be released during the regular season if it is to make roster room after a trade or waiver claim (45-man roster limit) H. DISPUTE RESOLUTION/ARBITRATOR Where two or more teams are in dispute over some matter, like a trade, and these rules do not cover the matter in dispute, the league will use the following procedure for resolution of the problem: 1. The Commissioner will ask an the Board of Governors to act as Arbitrator with the teams in dispute . 2. Each team makes its case to the Commissioner. 3. The Commissioner communicates the relevant facts to the Board of Governors and gives the Arbitrators a list of possible decisions. 4. The Arbitrators makes a decision and communicates it to The Commissioner without having to offer any justification for the decision. 5. The Commissioner communicates the decision, which is final and not subject to further negotiation, to the owners. I. AWARDS The following trophies will be awarded based on voting by each PFHL participant: Hart Memorial Trophy - League's Most Valuable Player. Awarded to the player who contributed the most to his team's success. James Norris Trophy - Defenseman of the Year. Awarded to the rearguard who displayed the best combination of defense and offense. Vezina Trophy - Goaltender of the Year. Awarded to the player who excelled as his team's `Last Line of Defense'. Calder Memorial Trophy - Rookie of the Year. Awarded to the first year player who gave the most to his team. Lady Byng - Most Sportsmanlike Player. Awarded to the player who displayed the greatest amount of poise and control in the face of adversity. Dave "Cement Head" Semenko Award (Most PIM) Frank J. Selke Trophy - Best Defensive Forward. Awarded to the player who displayed the best two way ability. PFHL Award - G.M. of the Year. Jack Adams Award- Coach of the Year. The following Trophies are awarded based on season stats: Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy - League leader in goal scoring, regular season Art Ross Trophy - League leader in point scoring, regular season. Wayne Gretzky Trophy - League leader in assits, Regular season. Bobby Orr Trophy - League's top scoring defenseman, regular season. Bud Ice Plus/Minus Award - League'best +/- Jacques Lemaire Award - League's best team goals against average, regular season. President's Trophy - Top team, regular season. The following Trophies are awarded based on PFHL Commissioner's Vote: Conn Smythe Trophy - Playoff Most Valuable Player. The final Championship trophy is the Prairie Cup. The Voting process is as follows: Each owner will nominate 1 player from their team for each award. Once the list is compiled, league-wide voting will commence. Each owner will then pick 1st,2nd,and 3rd place for each award. 5 points is awarded for 1st place votes, 3 points for 2nd place votes an 1 point for 3rd place votes - The 3 top point getter's will be the nomminees with the top point getter the winner. There will be money awarded to the team whose player or G.M. is nominated or wins any awards. The money break down will be 100,000 for nominees and 500,000 for winners. J. Budgets 1. Each player has a salary, based upon NHL salaries from the previous NHL Season. 2. Each team will be required to pay a salary for their coach of $500,000 3. Each team has a 25,000 seat arena, and ticket prices will be capped to a maximum of $40/seat. Ticket prices can be adjusted at any time. (has no effect on finances) 4. Players on the farm will be paid 10% of their contract while on the farm. After 41 games in the Pros, their contract becomes 2-way, and they get paid the full salary regardless of being on the pro or farm. 5. The league will have a $55,000,000 payroll salary cap. Any franchise over the cap, must make arrangements to trim the payroll below the cap level before the next game day. The commissioner reserves the right to fine teams or demote players to make a team compliant. *** An exception will be made if someone is called up to cover an injury, but this person must be sent back down as soon the player recovers, regardless of whether this player is subject to waivers or not. *** 6. A Team's income will be not capped. 10. Teams that make the playoffs will be awarded the following sums 1st round-$500,000 2nd-$750,000 finals loser-1.5 million finals winner-2.0 million K. Free Agents If a player is 31 at the beginning of the season he is 30 going into the free agent market, there will NOT be a set day for ages, if a players age is 30 at the beginning of the year he will be 30 at the end of the year. The software ages players at the beginning of each season and that is his age for the entire season. If a team does not have a player signed by the end of the designated signing period, the player will ignore all attempts to sign and will test the free agent market. A player will become a restricted free agent when his contract expires (unrestricted if he is 30 or over when it expires) Anyone sitting on the Unassigned players list can be picked up on a first-come, first-serve basis in a specified time in the OFF-SEASON ONLY ! The same rules apply to signing a free agent on this list as signing a rookie. If a Free Agent from a teams roster does not get picked up after Free Agency, he will be released from that teams roster and will go to the Unassigned Players list. They will also be draft eligible. SIGNING PERIOD: After every season there will be a set date where you will have a timeframe to place your bids on players. Once the signing period is over, all posted bids are final and the highest bidding team gets the player according to the rules below. If you don't make a qualifying offer for your own RFA before the deadline and no other teams bid on them, they will be transferred to the Unassigned list. A qualifying offer is a mandatory 1 year contract @ 100% of the players listed salary NOTE: Once a player is signed to a contract, he will have that contract until the contract expires or he is signed to another. If a player retires in the NHL, he will also retire in the PFHL, but you will be forced to pay out the contract in a lump sum once the player has not played any games in the NHL the previous season. RESTRICTED FREE AGENTS: A player that is under the age of 30 when his contract expires becomes a restricted free agent. Signing a restricted free agent means the signing team is required to compensate the previous owner with draft picks. The current owner of the RFA has the right to match the offer or take compensation for a player if a qualifying offer is submitted by the owning team. Compensation in the form of draft picks will be given to teams who choose not to match a restricted free agency contract. Compensation is decided by the amount the restricted free agent is signed for. (ie: bid format is : Signing Bonus money X #years = bid) Draft pick compensation terms are as follows. TERMS: This chart shows the compensation for the total bid amount: 7,500,001 and above - 5 first round picks 6,000,001 to 7,500,000 - 4 first round picks 4,500,001 to 6,000,000 - 3 first round picks 3,000,001 to 4,500,000 - 2 first round picks 2,000,001 to 3,000,000 - 1st round pick 1,000,001 to 2,000,000 - 2nd round pick 500,001 to 1,000,000 - 3rd round pick 250,001 to 500,000 - 4th round pick 250,000 - 5th round pick NOTE: You can't bid on a free agent requiring compensation of a pick(s) you don't have, including multiple bids. The compensation picks start at the current year. The following conditions apply : - One of the picks must be for the next drraft and belong to the bidding team. - The bidding team must have a first roundd pick available in subsequent years - The owner taking compensation can elect to combine picks for more recent years (ie, 2 firsts next year and 1 in the following year, or 3 next year only, or any combination if negotiated with the bidding team). If the teams cannot come to an agreement on this, then the compensation will be first round picks in consecutive years, and the picks must be owned by the bidding team. *** In the case of tie bids the team that offered the higher signing bonus will be the winner. If this does not resolve the tie, the commish will roll a dice to determine the winner. UN-RESTRICTED FREE AGENTS: A player that is 30 or older when his contract expires will considered a unrestricted free agent and no compensation will be given to sign. BIDDING FORMAT: EVERY BID MUST BE SUBMITTED IN THE FOLLOWING FORMAT The bids will be in a #years X signing bonus = Total bid (signing bonus). Example "I bid 1.2 million a season for 4 years on (player X) = 4.8 million This total is paid out now if it's the highest bid, and his assigned salary is paid throughout the duration of the contract. The total bid amount is deducted from the team's bank account immediately upon winning the bid. *** In the case of tie bids the team that offered the higher signing bonus will be the winner. If this does not resolve the tie, the commish will roll a dice to determine the winner. *** A team's bids will become null if they place more dollar value bids than they currently have in their bank accounts. L. Signing Rookies / Unassigned Free Agents The money shown below is the signing bonus paid to sign rookies or players off the Unassigned Players list : If you sign the player to a 1 year deal : $250,000 If you sign the player to a 2 year deal : $300,000 If you sign the player to a 3 year deal : $500,000 If you sign the player to a 4 year deal : $750,000 If you sign the player to a 5 year deal : $1,000,000 Rookies recently drafted must be signed to contracts, or released by the start of the Regular Season. They will then be paid their assigned NHL salary for the contract duration. Anyone sitting on the Unassigned players list can be picked up on a first-come, first-serve basis in a specified time in the OFF-SEASON ONLY ! M. Re-Signing / Contract Negotiations **** OFF-SEASON ONLY **** PLEASE USE THE CONTRACT NEGOTIATOR TOOL ON THE WEBSITE I will allow owners to ATTEMPT to extend contracts, but in doing so must use the probability chart, each owner gets 3 tries at resigning a player before he will opt out for the free agent market. (A PLAYER'S CONTRACT MAY NOT BE EXTENDED PAST 5 YEARS.) For example, if a player has 2 years left on his contract, you cannot give him a 4-year extension. ***NOTE*** The 25% bonus may only be offered to players making $5,000,000 or more Contract Length 1 2 3 4 5 25% 50% 35% 20% 10% 0% Signing Bonus 50% 70% 50% 30% 10% 0% CHANCE 100% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% OF 200% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% SIGNING additional factor-Length left on current contract. no years-add nothing 1 year-add 5% 2 years-add 10% 3 years-add 20% 4 years-add 40% When submitting a contract offer via the negotiator, an email will be sent to the team owner and the commissioner verifying the success/failure of the offer. *** Any offer that fails on a 3rd negotiation by any one team, that player then becomes a free agent as they are listed *** Any team that attempts to extend a players 1+ contract and fails 3 times, that player becomes an unrestricted free agent *** If a player with a zero contract is traded to another team having 2 or less negotiation attempts, the new team gets 3 fresh attempts. N. Player Eligibility. Players Must play at least 1 game in the NHL to remain on a teams roster for following year, or be placed on that teams prospect list. Any player that is a hold out for a full year (NHL) will not be removed, but placed on the team's prospect list. Any player that was injured for the entire NHL season also becomes that team's prospect. That players PFHL contract will be dissolved, and once the player returns to the NHL, that player will automatically be given a new 1 year contract. (NOTE : Forwards positions may be changed according to the owners preference at a designated point prior to the start of the regular season. Once the regular season starts, these positions are locked in for the remainder of the season). O. Bonuses Teams will be awarded various financial bonuses for league participation : - responding to league-wide votes - sending press releases league-wide (eithher team or league based articles) - submitting line changes - etc. These monies will be added to team bank accounts at a specified time in the off-season. A 5-star rating will be awarded by the commissioner as he deems worthy : * $0 ** $500,000 *** $1,000,000 **** $1,500,000 ***** $2,000,000 P. Ratings Challenges ( ON SPEED AND SKATING) -Once the ratings have been officially relleased by the PFHL Commissioner, he will permit challenges to the ratings by stating your case to him. ALL CHALLENGES MUST BE SUBMITTED TOGETHER AT ONE TIME. YOU MUST GIVE VALID ARGUMENTS FOR EACH STAT AS TO WHY YOU THINK A CHANGE IS NECESSARY. The decision of the Commissioner on a revised rating, if applicable, is final. Robert Rutkowski PFHL Commish