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2017 Disabled Hockey Festival


General Information

USA Hockey and the Pacific District are proud to invite you the 13th Annual Disabled Hockey Festival to be held April 6th – 9th, 2017 in San Jose, California.

The mission of the Festival is to provide a fun and exciting weekend of hockey in a grand event as well as promote and grow disabled hockey throughout the country. The largest disabled hockey event of its kind, USA Hockey's Disabled Hockey Festival brings together all the disciplines: blind/ visually impaired, deaf/hard of hearing, sled hockey, special hockey and standing amputee / warrior.

Social activities will be planned for all participants and their families. These activities will include pin trading! Details will be provided as the events are finalized.

Sharks Ice Waivers

"Sharks Ice Waivers" are required for all players, coaches, and managers. Indicate the tournament name as the event. Please have all teams members sign waivers and bring to registration table when checking in. For those team managers and coaches who had their athletes complete waivers on RoomRoster, thank you! We need you to bring the completed waivers for those athletes and participants who did NOT previously complete the waivers on RoomRoster. For more information, contact kelliemhays@gmail.com.

Hockey Hoedown

Come enjoy the Festival Social in a Hockey Hoedown theme! We’ll be celebrating at SAP Center on Friday night from 7-9 pm with great food, live music, DJ & dance floor, shootout corral, photo booth, and on-ice photo opportunities. Athlete and four coach tickets are included in team registration fees. Non-athlete/coach tickets will be available at the registration table. Limited Tickets available at the door, so participants are strongly encouraged to pre-purchase at Solar4America Ice. Ticket prices are $18 each. Price includes food menu items, soft drinks, western band, DJ, dancing, activities. A bar will be open and alcoholic beverages available for purchase. Team checks can be made out to Sharks Ice LLC.  Please park in SAP Center Lot B and enter through the North Doors.  Doors will open at 6:45 pm.  Each Festival Division will also meet at the North elevators during the Hoedown and be escorted down into the bowl for on-ice photos.

SAP Center at San Jose - 525 W Santa Clara St, San Jose, CA 95113


Merchandise Available for Pre-Order

Save some time and hassle, pre-order your event merchandise now.   The 2017 USA Hockey Disabled Hockey Festival has partnered with Northwest Designs Ink to provide event merchandise.  You can pre-order your merchandise at the link below.  You will be able to have the merchandise shipped directly to your house or arrange pick-up in San Jose at the Solar4America Ice @ San Jose rink when you arrive.

Pre-Order Merchandise Here!


Photos Provided by Joe Sport Photography

Joe Sport Photography has been shooting hockey tournaments all over North America since 1998. They will be offering a special team package, which will include all the photos of all your games from the tournament. Each player will receive their own individual CD to take home following the tournament. Price of the package will be based on the numbers of players on your team and number of games played. Not all of your players have to sign up for the team package, if you can get most of your team on board it will still be worth it to sign up. Don't wait to sign up for this special package. Stop by the photo table for more information and to sign up.

For those not doing the team package, individual photos will be for sale at the tournament. Photos will NOT be put online. The cost of an 8x10 printed photo is $20. Single images on CD are $5 each.

If you are interested in having photos, please stop by the photo table before your first game and provide the player's jersey number, division and team. This will ensure plenty of photos of your player are taken during the tournament.


General Rules and Guidelines

The Festival will use the Official Playing Rules of USA Hockey. All players, referees, coaches and pushers are required to be properly registered with USA Hockey.

Players may only play for one team per disabled hockey discipline during the USA Disabled Hockey Festival regardless of the division. A player must declare what team he/she is playing with at the beginning of the Festival and may not change teams once the Festival has started for any reason.

For the Sled Hockey divisions, the Festival will also use the approved sled hockey specific rules found in the "Official Sled Hockey Rules of USA Hockey" and the "USA Hockey Official Guidebook for Sled Hockey". Pusher rules, as outlined in the "Official Sled Hockey Rules of USA Hockey", shall apply to all divisions.

For the Warrior Hockey Division, the Festival will follow the rules as listed in the "2017 USA Hockey Disabled Hockey Festival Guidebook for the Warrior Hockey Division".


Facility Information

This year, the Festival will take place at Solar4America Ice at San Jose. This is the official practice facility of the NHL's San Jose Sharks. This complex is the largest hockey facility in the western United States, featuring 4 NHL- sized rinks with Stanley's Restaurant & Bar overlooking three of the rinks.  The rinks are this facility are "North", "Central", "East" and "South."

Because of the size of the event, we will also be utilizing Solar4American Ice @ Fremont as an auxiliary facility.  All games on the "Fremont Rink" will be at this facility. 

Solar4America Ice at San Jose
1500 S. Tenth St.
San Jose, CA 95112

(408) 279-6000

Solar4America Ice at Fremont
44388 Old Warm Springs Rd.
Freemont, CA 94538

(510) 623-7200


Airport Information

Three major airports serve the San Jose area, including the San Jose (SJC) airport, which is 6.2 miles from Sharks Ice. The Oakland (OAK) airport is approximately 40 miles away, and San Francisco (SFO) is approximately 47 miles distance from Sharks Ice. An extensive variety of airlines are serviced by the combination of these three airports.


Hotel Information

Several host hotels have been set-up and are listed below.  Hotels MUST be booked online through the event registration link, NOT by contacting the hotels directly.

If your team decides NOT to stay in one of the host hotels, the entry fee will be an additional $1,000. All hotels must be booked by March 20th, 2017. THERE ARE NO EXCEPTIONS TO THIS REQUIREMENT.

You must book your rooms through the
Event Registration Link


Disciplines Offered

The Sled Hockey Discipline will have several divisions for both youth and adult players. The Youth Division will consist of three (3) levels (A, B, and C), depending on the number of teams that participate. The Festival Committee will work with each youth sled hockey team to identify their skill level and place them at the appropriate level. The Adult Division will consist of four (4) levels: a single eight (8) team USA Hockey Adult Sled Hockey National Championship Division and three (3) USA Open Divisions (A, B, and C). The eight (8) National Championship teams will be determined by the National Championship Committee. The Festival Committee will work with each of the remaining adult sled hockey teams to identify their skill level and place them at the appropriate level (A, B, or C).

The Special Hockey Discipline will consist of three (3) levels (A, B, and C). This year, we will again be accepting teams from Canada. Canadian teams must be registered with Hockey Canada and provide proof of membership. The Festival Committee will work with each special hockey team to identify their skill level and place them at the appropriate level.

The Standing Amputee/Warrior Division will consist of two (2) levels (A and B). Teams shall consist of Veterans and/or players with amputations that play upright hockey. Veteran players must have served in the armed forces (Army, Air Force, Coast Guard, Marine Corps, or Navy) and been discharged under conditions other than dishonorable. They must also meet at least one of the following requirements: (a) Purple Heart recipient, (b) have a minimum 10% rating from the VA, or (c) have a disability occurring outside of service (that may or may not have been service related). Verification of disability will be required. Visit www.DisabledHockeyFestival.com for more information and full eligibility requirements.