Feb. 14 – 17, 2025
Sanction: TBD
Squirt – Midget / High School
Event Info
There will be a minimum of 4 games scheduled for each team
Friday games may begin as early as 1pm local time
Select the division that best fits your team and our highly skilled staff will ensure you are placed in a competitive division with like matched teams. Divisions will be created with our goal of competitive tournaments for all teams. In any division minor, major, and mixed age group teams may play in the same USA Hockey Age Classification. Any questions regarding placement or divisions, please contact our office 248-399-1694
Kodiak Division- Generally higher level teams
Grizzly Division-Generally middle level teams
Polar Division-Generally lower level teams
Midget 16U/18U/H.S.J.V./ H.S V teams: May be scheduled in the same divisions. Ice resurface after 2 periods of play (time permitting). You may start on clean ice and play 2 periods and go off for a resurface then play the last period. You may go on dirty ice for warm up and 1 period and go off for a resurface then play the last two periods.
All teams must be book through our hotel process with TTS. This is a stay to play event for all teams whose home rink is 70 miles or further away from the designated main rink of the tournament. Any teams within the 70-mile limit that are planning to get hotels must also go through our hotel booking process. Failure to comply will result in forfeiture of games, disqualification and immediate removal from the tournament without refund of any kind.
Big Bear partners with many local sports teams and other attractions to provide a complete travel experience in the cities we host tournaments. Our on-staff Entertainment Coordinator can help your team pick the perfect off-ice activity in any tournament location. We provide this service as a courtesy to all our participating teams to make the most of your travel experience in any city. From professional sports to dining and other team activities, let us plan the perfect balance of on-ice competition and off-ice family fun. Please email hc@bigbeartournaments.com for the most up to date activities in the city of your choice. If you are planning to purchase tickets to professional or other off-ice entertainment on your own, you must alert Holly so she can work with our scheduler to ensure your activity can be accommodated. Failure to communicate off-ice activities could result in schedule conflicts with your games.
Please be aware that if your team is traveling by plane, motor coach, or any method requiring payment and/or reservations, you must enter that itinerary into your application to avoid scheduling conflicts.
2024-2025 Regular Season Discounts
SAVE BIG: BOGO, Multi-Event, MultiTeam, Canadian
BOGO (Excludes Nashville, expires December 1, 2024): Two road trip events
All BOGO applications must be submitted by December 1.
Enter two tournaments, both requiring a hotel stay for your entire team in a hotel selected from our
website and booked through our hotel booking system. Each team must book a minimum of 15
rooms per night, (30 room nights total) per event to qualify. This does not mean that if you have a
team of 18 distinct families, requiring 18 rooms that you only need to book 15 rooms and 3 families
can book their rooms through other means. All 18 families must book their rooms through our hotel
booking process. If any rooms are booked outside our hotel system the team will be subject to
immediate removal from the tournament without refund.
If you are short rooms to qualify, you may add relatives or other guests in your party through our hotel
reservation system. If you do not have enough players to qualify for a BOGO, do not choose this
discount.
You will be charged full price for the higher priced event and a $700 compliance fee PLUS $250 nonrefundable processing fee for a total up front cost of $950 for your second tournament. At the
conclusion of the first tournament, we will receive a hotel report indicating if your team met the 15
room/night minimum. If your team does not meet the requirement, you will be contacted and required
to pay the full balance due for the second tournament.
At the conclusion of the second tournament we will receive a hotel report indicating if your team met
the 15 room night minimum. If your team meets the requirement, you will receive a rebate check in
the amount of $700 sent to the address on your application 4-6 weeks following the tournament. If
the second hotel report indicates your team did not meet the minimum requirement you will be
required to pay the remainder of the full entry fee for the second event within 10 business days.
You must choose both events on your first application by choosing a second tournament in the
“Discount Processing” section of your application. Your second tournament application will
automatically be generated along with a team list and roster. If any information you’ve submitted
changes prior to either event, please contact us immediately and we will help make the necessary
changes.
No other discounts are eligible to be added to the BOGO discount
(except early payment as outlined here)
Early Payment Discount: $100 off entry fee
AM Acquisitions 9/26/2024
This discount is eligible for any single-entry event or with the Multi-Event or Multi-Team discount when
your full payment is received 90 days prior to the event.
Multi-Event Discount: More than one event by the same team
This option is for entry into two or more events by the same team. The early payment discount can
be combined with this option. Any other discount received from our staff will make that event
ineligible as one of the multi event discount tournaments. This discount will be applied to the entry
fee of the next event, and you must contact our office within two business days of your application
submission 248-399-1694/ text 248-936-6518.
1
st event: full price 2
nd event: – $150.00
3
rd event: – $200.00 4
th + event: – $250.00
Multi-Team Discount (Excludes Nashville): More than one team from the same association/ club
This option is for entry by two or more teams from the same association or club into the same event.
The early payment discount can be combined with this option. Any additional discount received from
our staff will make that team ineligible as one of the discount teams. Applications for every team
must be submitted within 24 hours AND payments must be made covering all teams included
in the discount no later than 90 days prior to the event. Please contact our office within two
business days after submitting your applications to ensure the discount is processed properly per
team 248-399-1694/ text 248-936-6518..
1 Team: full price 2 Teams same event: -$50/each
3 Teams same event: – $75/ each 4+ Teams same event: $$ CALL
Canadian 50% (Excludes Nashville): 50 % entry for any Canadian Team applying by December 1
Enter any tournament requiring a hotel stay for your entire team in a hotel selected from our website
and booked through our hotel booking system. Each team must book a minimum of 15 rooms per
night, (30 room nights total) per event to qualify. This does not mean that if you have a team of 18
distinct families, requiring 18 rooms that you only need to book 15 rooms and 3 families can book
their rooms through other means. All 18 families must book their rooms through our hotel booking
process. If any rooms are booked outside our hotel system the team will be subject to immediate
removal from the tournament without refund.
You will be charged full price for the event in U.S. funds. At the conclusion of the event, we will
receive a hotel report indicating if your team met the 15 room/night minimum. If your team does not
meet the requirement, you will be contacted indicating your 50% discount has been forfeited.
No other discounts are eligible to be added to the Canadian 50% discount
AM Acquisitions 9/26/2024
Standard Canadian discount: Local Team
If your home arena is within 70 miles of our primary tournament venue and/or your drive time is less
than one hour and fifteen minutes, you will be considered a local team not requiring a hotel stay, and
you can deduct $250 from your entry fee in U.S. funds.
Canadian Travel Permits: Any team traveling from Canada
Any team traveling from Canada will have their travel permit cost completely reimbursed. Submit your
travel permit proof of payment to our office for 100% reimbursement up to $100USD.
Driving Distance Discount (Excludes Nashville): Any team traveling 350+ miles
If your team is traveling more than 350 miles to attend any event, deduct $150 from your entry fee.
This is measured from your home arena to our primary tournament arena. You must contact our
office to confirm the driving discount and make payment in full 90 days prior to the event to qualify for
the driving distance discount. 248-399-1694/ text 248-936-6518.
Air Travel Discount (Excludes Nashville): Any team traveling by air 500+ miles
If your team is traveling more than 500 miles by air to attend any event, deduct $450 from your entry
fee. This is measured from your home arena to our primary tournament arena. You must contact our
office to confirm the air travel discount and make payment in full 90 days prior to the event to qualify
for the air travel discount. 248-399-1694/ text 248-936-6518.
*Complementary Room: Please be aware that many of our partner hotels offer complimentary
nights for the head coach, manager, or manager designated person, provided that a minimum of 13
rooms are booked for two consecutive nights by the team. Teams booking 13-14 rooms for two
consecutive nights will receive one comp night. Teams booking 15+ rooms for two consecutive nights
will receive two comp nights. If a team has not met the compliance requirement for their team, no
comp nights will be awarded. This is not offered by all hotels and is subject to forfeit based on team
behavior during the stay – the comp policy also varies by hotel and may require a higher
minimum. All rooms for each team need to be booked within the team block and cannot be booked
on points, discount program, or any other hotel booking service. Submissions for comp nights
must be received two weeks prior to check-in, any submissions received after that are not
guaranteed. Please find the comp room request form HERE.
-Thank you for choosing Big Bear Tournaments-
Information
Participation
All Big Bear events are USA Hockey sanctioned and that sanction number can be found on the event page for each tournament. If the sanction field reads ‘Pending’, then the sanction number has been applied for and we are waiting on the registrar to process our application.
To participate, each team must submit a stamped or certified USA Hockey roster a minimum of 30 days prior to each event. A stamped or certified USA Hockey roster will include the signature of your USA Hockey district registrar.
Travel permits are required from all Canadian teams and any U.S. teams where the USA affiliate requires them. Please check with your club registrar for this information.
When completed, both of these forms can be uploaded through your online portal to your tournament application.
How the Application Process Works and Team Placement
The biggest challenge in bringing together teams from all over the U.S. and Canada lies in the reality that very few programs use the same guidelines to determine skill levels and the ones that do commonly have the same names but rarely are equal. Our goal is to determine, as best we can, where each team actually belongs for the best competition. We rely a great deal on your input to bring this about in the early fall and spring. No one wants to travel great distances to either win or lose a game by 10 goals. While it is extremely difficult to always create the perfect match-ups, we do pledge to each Big Bear participant that we will never knowingly put teams of different skill levels in a division just to fill a slot. When you’ve decided to attend one of our tournaments, you will be asked several questions to help us with the process and sometimes to fill out a questionnaire with additional information pertaining to each player on your team. This helpful information will help us provide a better tournament experience. We thank you for your cooperation. Sandbagging will not be tolerated.
Our goal is to create balanced and equal competitive brackets, we use an evaluation process based on the information you’ve provided on your application and supporting documents. During the vetting process, we may discover any of the following: your team is or isn’t a good fit or the division you chose doesn’t have a sufficient number of teams. Often times, we find that if there is an issue, it may be as simple as correcting information on your original application. How well a team fits into a bracket is merely a reflection of how your team matches up against the other teams who have entered in the same division. In addition, our events, like leagues, create “artificial classifications”. By doing this it is our intention to place your team with other teams of a similar rating. So please do not be alarmed if you register as an A team and for the purpose of a tournament are placed in an A2 or A3 bracket. All it means is that our evaluation has placed you in a bracket with other teams that should result in even competition and better results.
We strongly discourage handicapping your team where you sign up. If you’re an A team and having a rough stretch, do NOT sign up in a B division. Our Placement Staff will ensure you are placed in a division with similarly skilled teams.
However, if your team isn’t a good fit or your division doesn’t have enough teams, we will notify you either by phone or email to discuss other options.
We may recommend moving to another event on the same or different weekends because the competition is better suited to your team’s skill level. The intended purpose is to create the best playing experience for your players and their families.
If you are not interested in moving to another event on the same weekend or later in the season, you will receive a full refund.
Start and End Times
Tournaments may start as early as 8:00 AM on Friday, however most events start early afternoon. The finals, should not begin later than 6:00 PM on Sunday. Nashville events usually begin as early as 8:00 AM on Friday.
For events beginning on Saturday (MLK and President’s Day weekends), we complete round robin play by Sunday afternoon with the consolation games and semi-finals late Sunday (ice permitting). Monday is generally reserved for finals and sometimes consolation games. If you have requested a scheduling consideration that doesn’t fit within the previous scheduling description like attending an NHL game, your team will likely be asked to play games on Friday. See the schedule section below for of special considerations.
Schedules
Draft schedules will be e-mailed to the team contact(s), no later than the Friday proceeding the event. However, we prefer parents address their concerns to one of their team contacts.
Special considerations, (i.e. coaches multiple teams, wishing to attend a college or pro game , or any other request) outside the realm of the tournament you plan to attend should be in writing in the comment section of your application. Any special considerations must be sent to scheduler@bigbeartournaments.com and a response of “Approved” must be received to confirm our request.
Air Travel
Please provide a team itinerary as soon as it is available. Our tournament coordinators will work closely with your team contact to ensure that your games are scheduled with your arrival and departure dates and times in mind.
Levels of Competition
Predicting results of opposing teams and therefore establishing competitive groups of teams from various areas requires a great deal of communication and a general understanding of how different USA Hockey, Canadian, and other IIHF affiliates manage their hockey programs.
While our methods are not foolproof, we give you our pledge that we take our jobs very seriously. By choice, we have created an atmosphere where child athletes can participate and experience the joy of this sport. We will never intentionally place teams together that don’t belong.
At the same time, we’d like you to think of the best team in your area in any given classification and imagine the result of that team playing the least skilled team in the same identical classification in your area and what the result of that game might be. We don’t offer this example as a prelude to an excuse, but you should keep in mind that even within an affiliate where the rules and criteria for establishing teams is identical, there is a wide range of talent from top to bottom.
Our goal is to have as many one goal games as possible with divisions where all of the teams are tied after their second game of the tournament. Unfortunately this doesn’t always occur.
Tournament Policies
Please thoroughly read our tournament policies prior to entering our events. It will help define many of the procedures we employ and answer many of your questions. A policy link is available in the menu in the right margin of each city and event web page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Schedules
Q: We’re playing in a division of 5 teams and we have an early game each day. Why?
A: The rules for scheduling events in Michigan are more stringent than those of USA Hockey. For player safety, USA Hockey recommends 4 hours between games and in Michigan it a rule. The Michigan rules are USA recommendations and are in place for the safety of the players. Because of this dynamic, it is our belief that player safety should be at the top of our list of priorities, and we tend to apply the same rules at every venue.
In a division of five teams only four teams can play at any given time with one team sitting out. This causes a leapfrog effect which in turn affects the schedule.
Q: How do I know if our team is home or away?
A: The home team is always listed first (or to the left on the schedule) and always wears white unless the away team only has one set of jerseys.
Q: What do I do if my division has completed the round robin portion of the event and I can’t find the information in GOM for the next round of games, semis, consolation, etc.
A: Results are typically posted within 2 hours of the completion of the final game in the bracket.
Arena & Game Procedures
Q: Once we arrive at the arena what do we need to do?
A: The manager or coach should secure a locker room from the arena staff.
Check in with the tournament director and put the stickers (3) on the score sheet. If any of your other games are also at that rink, request the score sheets and put stickers on all of them. Avery labels #5163 are the correct size for our score sheets.
If you have an updated roster or haven’t turned one in yet, you must present an official roster prior to going on the ice. Failure to do so could result in a forfeit.
Each team contact was provided a copy of the tournament rules and there will also be a copy available the each arena.
Score keepers are scheduled for every tournament game. On occasion, a score keeper may either be late or sick. In this instance the tournament director may ask for assistance from one or both of the teams.
Either a coach or parent will need to work the penalty box door. Upon accepting this job, you’ve agreed to be an off-ice official, and you must comply with all USA Hockey requirements.
On Ice Officials
Q: How do I know if the officials are qualified to ref our game?
A: OIO will have a crest on their jerseys with the current year. Previous seasons crests are good until November. However, all officials that are used have been vetted prior to the event to ensure that they have registered and are in good standing with the governing body.
Q: What do I do if I don’t agree with the call on the ice?
A: We adhere strictly to the USA Hockey Zero Tolerance policy when it comes to the way you engage with the OIO. Abusive language, swearing, or threats will result in your removal either from the bench or the arena. Your behavior could also cause your team to be penalized.
Equipment
Q: We only have one set of jerseys. How can we be sure this won’t be an issue?
A: Let your tournament director know about this early in the process so we can check with and notify your opponents.
Awards
Q: Who receives medals and banners?
A: Medals are awarded to the first and second place teams only. Banners are awarded to the winner of the division.
Age Charts
All events that occur after April 1, 2024 require teams to register in accordance with the age guideline for the 2024-25 season. Players born in 2005 are eligible to compete in the Midget Major through the spring season.
2024- 2025 USA Age Classifications
| USA Hockey Tier II Age Classifications | Squirt / Atom (Canada U11) | 2014 & 2015 |
| Peewee (Canada U13) | 2012 & 2013 | |
| Bantam (Canada U15) | 2010 & 2011 | |
| Midget Minor (Canada U16) | 2008 & 2009 | |
| Midget Major (Canada U18) | 2006 & 2007 | |
| Girls | 10 & Under | Born 2014 or after |
| 12 & Under | Born 2012 or after | |
| 14 & Under | Born 2010 or after | |
| 16 & Under | Born 2008 or after | |
| 19 & Under | Born 2005 or after |
