Chris Dorrington, Trainer for the Ancaster Avalanche Minor Atom A team, recently wrote a helpful series of informational postings regarding various aspects of your child's equipment, for his team's parents. With his permission, we'd like to share some of them with you. Please read carefully and always check your children's equipment on a regular basis to ensure they are safe and fitting properly.
Helmet Safety Information
We have received some questions about helmets recently.
The objective of AMHL is not to try and increase the sale of hockey helmets however to make sure every player and coach has a CSA approved helmet that fits properly, safe and in good condition. This includes having proper chin straps.
All helmets sold in Canada are to be CSA approved and will have a round blue and red CSA sticker on them. This sticker is normally on the back of the helmet although on some newer helmets it can be found on the inside embossed in the plastic. To be a legal helmet in OMHA hockey this CSA sticker must be present and it must be legible.
It is recommended that you do an annual inspection of the helmet and replace it if you see signs of excessive wear, if the inside padding no longer provides cushion or if there are any cracks in the shell. To avoid any issues please inspect your players helmet and make sure it is safe and legal.
This is a sample of the CSA sticker:
Hockey Canada has endorsed that all hockey helmets sold in Canada be accompanied by a Canadian Standards Association (CSA) certification label. The CSA Technical Committee on Equipment and Facilities for Ice Hockey has recently sent out a memo clarifying each certification sticker accompanied on a hockey helmet that all hockey helmets sold in Canada be accompanied by a Canadian Standards Association (CSA) certification label. The CSA Technical Committee on Equipment and Facilities for Ice Hockey has recently sent out a memo clarifying each certification sticker accompanied on a hockey helmet.
Virtually all hockey helmets sold in Canada bear 3 stickers indicating third-party testing and certification of the helmet because of the need for manufacturers to meet the mandated standards within 3 jurisdictions. The certification marks include the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) certification label which must appear on all helmets sold in Canada that are intended for use in ice hockey; the Hockey Equipment Certification Council (HECC) certification sticker which is mandatory for hockey helmets in the United States; and the European Union’s required CE marker for hockey helmets intended for sale and use in Europe.
The sale of hockey helmets is regulated in Canada by Health Canada under the Hazardous Products Act. Hockey Canada, however, only permits the use of hockey helmets certified to CSA Standard Z262.1 for all players under its jurisdiction.
Some confusion has arisen over the HECC certification stickers on hockey helmets sold in Canada because they bear a time limit. This time limit is related only to the length of certification (originally 5 years but changed recently to 6.5 years) granted by HECC for a given helmet, and is not an indication of the life-span of a hockey helmet.
HECC certified hockey helmets are mandated for players playing under the jurisdiction of USA Hockey. The HECC certification sticker does not apply in Canada.
The only certification sticker that should be verified for play under the jurisdiction of Hockey Canada is the presence of the CSA certification label on the helmet.
I hope this information is helpful, if you have any questions please feel free to ask any one of us.
Chris D