Newington Spring League 2026

“Great program to extend hockey season into spring. Will definitely sign up again next year”

"Simple, flexible and low-stress. The schedule was easy to manage, making it a great fit around our other commitments. It gave our son the chance to stay on the ice, stay active, have fun and be competitive without the pressure of a full-season program. A perfect balance of development and convenience for our young skater”

"We had a fantastic experience with spring hockey. It was a great way for my son to continue to have fun and improve his game after the regular season. No travel, no pressure, lots of fun. It was neat for my son to become friends with kids who had been on opponent teams throughout the year, and a great opportunity for him to continue to learn sportsmanship and teamwork”

"Our two boys loved being on the ice with their friends in a fun, competitive environment. Fantastic with scheduling the games and ensuring plenty of playing time for all. Looking forward to next year”

"Kids had a great time playing this spring. Great opportunity to play with some new teammates in an environment geared towards having fun and playing some competitive hockey during the off season. Scheduling and flexibility around other sports was a plus”

"This was our son’s first year participating in the spring hockey league. It was well run. Looking forward to next year already”

"Spring hockey was a great experience. Communication and organization were excellent. We are looking forward to next year”

"Great job organizing everything, competitive yet fun for all of the kids. Both of our boys will be doing it again next year for sure”

“Our son has been involved in the spring league. He had a great experience on and off the ice. His game has improved a lot and he’s ready for the season ahead. We’ll be there next year”

"We played spring league and my son had a great experience”

"Great Experience. My 8 year old enjoyed going to the Spring League every single time. Very fun and productive to every time we got out on the ice”

“Our son had a wonderful experience participating in the Spring League. It not only deepened his enjoyment of the game but also provided him with valuable opportunities to grow. He is already looking forward to joining again next year”

"The league also got her out of her comfort zone because she was placed on a team with many kids she hadn't played with before"

"This was our first time doing Spring league and my daughter had lots of fun. Great job making sure kids had fun while competing. Will definitely do again”

“Great spring season. My son was well placed and had a great time. Players, parents all respectful. Thanks for a good experience”

“My Mite and Squirt had a wonderful time. They got to play with friends in a competitive yet fun environment. Great with communication and flexibility this season. We had a great time”

“This was our first year doing spring hockey at the 1/2 ice mites level. My son had a great experience – he really enjoyed the level of playing. We will be back for spring hockey next year”

"My daughter is just finishing up (mite) Spring hockey league and it has been a really fun experience. We were happy to have an extension on our hockey season and get some more ice time in. Great job organizing and it’s awesome that all the games are at the same rink”

“My son had a blast playing on the Squirt A team. Competition was fantastic. Great job organizing this program. Will do it again”

"Thank you for the spring league, Thomas had a blast"

“My son played Spring Bantam. He enjoyed the local weekend games and opportunity to play with new & old friends. The league was well run & communication was excellent”

"Had a great first experience this spring. Our boys got to play with friends in a fun, competitive environment”

“Peewee spring hockey has a great season. Priority was creating a fun and competitive experience for the kids. This was a great opportunity to bring old friends back together”

"Both my boys (5 & 10) had an awesome time in Spring League. They learned, grew, and had a blast"

“My 12 year old son has had an absolute BLAST this spring”

"Fun spring team – it was nice to have a set schedule for games each week”

“Awesome Spring league and very well organized. Will definitely be playing again”

2025 - 2026 Photo Compilation

Spring League 2026 Playoff Format

For all divisions except Half Ice Mite B, we did initial seeding before Week 1 based upon fall - winter teams of each player of each team, and then seeded Playoff Brackets (Divisions) based upon game results and strength of schedule after Week 4 and Week 5. Go to "Divisions", find your team's division, find your team, then click the dropdown button, click on "Brackets" to see your Playoff matchup. Sometimes teams play opponents outside of their bracket throughout the regular season. Not all teams "made the playoffs". We did not do playoffs for half ice mites this year

2026 Playoff Brackets

For full ice teams, Week 7 will be "Playoff Week" to see who goes to the Championship Game (Week 8) of their playoff bracket. The week 8 game times are currently placeholders. Everyone gets 8 games regardless. We will do our best to adjust to create good match ups the best we can

Tie Breakers

During the regular season, we did first to score 3 v 3 OT for 3 minutes. If it's tied after 3 minutes, it ends as a tie. For playoff weeks 7 and 8, we will do a 3 player shoot out after 3 v 3. If it is still tied after that, we will keep going, similar to the NHL. We have a 1 hour slot per game

What is the tentative schedule? Saturdays and Sundays

Opening Day Weekend

Week 1 - Sat 3/28, Sun 3/29

Week 2 - Sat 4/4

Week 3 - Sat 4/18, Sun 4/19

Week 4 - Sat 4/25, Sun 4/26

Week 5 - Sat 5/2, Sun 5/3

Week 6 - Sat 5/9, Sun 5/10

Week 7 - Sat 5/16, Sun 5/17

Week 8 - Sat 5/30, Sun 5/31

(Subject to Change)

When will our team typically play?

Half Ice Mites

Saturdays

8 am, 9:10 am, 10:20 am

Full Ice Mite - Squirt B, Squirt A

Saturdays

10:50 am, 11:30 am, 12:40 pm, 1:50 pm

Or

Sundays

8 am, 9:10 am, 10:20 am, 11:30 am, 12:40 pm, 1:50 pm

Pee wee B, Pee wee A

Saturday afternoons typically

1:50 pm, 3:20 pm, 4:30 pm, 5:40 pm

Bantam A2, A1, Bantam A, Bantam AA

Saturdays

5:40 pm, 6:50 pm

Sundays

11:30 am, 12:40 pm, 1:50 pm, 3:20 pm, 4:30 pm, 5:40 pm, 6:50 pm

Schedules are subject to change

(we have to coordinate with the everyone)

Note:

If the majority of the team's roster cannot make a spring hockey game slot (you will have the schedule ahead of time), we can change the slot. Please communicate your desired times ahead of time. Newington Spring Hockey League 2027 is a big scheduling project to make everything work. Some kids have lacrosse, baseball, and soccer as well, so we do our best to make everything work. It's fun for the kids to play once per week to keep fresh.

Are you doing clinics?

One of our partners Eagles Spring Hockey organizes optional hockey clinics. These are separate from the league. They are on Tuesdays at Newington. Drop ins are ok as long as there is space

More details here:

https://www.newingtonspringhockey.com/program/spring-practices-clinics/28391

What are the different entry levels - spring hockey league brackets for 2027?

• Half Ice Mite B
• Full Ice Mite - Squirt B
• Squirt A
• Pee wee B
• Pee wee A
• Bantam A2
• Bantam A1
• Bantam A
• Bantam AA

The main goal of Newington Spring Hockey League 2026 is to "get the level right", so please be flexible on which "level" you play. This also goes for individual players. The league reserves the right to move players to other teams if needed. We will continue to adjust as the season goes on

The league has the final say on which division everyone plays in (teams and players), so please be prepared to be moved up, or down

The first few weekends of games is basically "parity" to see where everyone fits in the various divisions, including which players fit into each division

What would the birth year - age range requirements be for Spring League 2027?

For the player birth years, we are allowing 2026-2027 birth year classifications and 2027-2028 birth year classifications. This is approved by CHC - USA Hockey

https://www.usahockey.com/ageclassifications

What does that mean?

Some kids want to play up at their 2027-2028 birth year level, and some are not ready to play at their 2027-2028 level yet. For example, a 2018 house league player this past year played half ice mites. He is still learning the game, and his parents think he's not ready for Full Ice Mite - Squirt B division yet. He can still play Half Ice Mite B in the league (his 2026 - 2027 age classification). Another 2018 played some full ice games this year with his team, and his parents think he's ready to play full ice. He can play Full Ice Mite - Squirt B division, or even Squirt A division (his 2027 - 2028 age classification) if that is where his "level" is

Does that mean that some 2014s will play pee wee and some 2014s will want to play bantams? Yes. We don't have a perfect solution for any of this, but as long as everyone knows ahead of time, it works

If a player played (as an example) Pee wee AA this past year, and will be a 2nd year pee wee this upcoming year, he / she should not be playing in the Pee wee B division. We are a bit more flexible with players moving up from say Pee wee AA to Bantam A1. That same reference goes for mites moving up to squirts, squirts to pee wees, pee wees to bantams. We don't want 2nd years playing down a level (hopefully that makes sense). 2nd years can play at the level they played at this past year. For instance, a 2nd year Bantam AA player should be playing in the Bantam AA division, not the Bantam A1 division. If a 2nd year Squirt A player is moving up to Pee wee next year, he / she can still play Squirt A for spring or they can play Pee wees. There is no perfect solution for this, because we have just as many parents who want their kids to play up at next year's age bracket, as parents who are not ready for that yet (example: checking for bantams). The better solution is to "get the level right". We want close games if possible. Kids will just be a bit bigger or smaller sometimes depending upon the team, but the "level will be right". Please be specific with fall - winter teams in your shared google sheet, and we'll take care of the rest

Can my kid play up?

Kids can play 2026-2027 USA Hockey age brackets or 2027-2028 age brackets. The league is more based on the level of the individual players

How do you determine which players can play which levels?

We use 2026 - 2027 fall - winter teams of each player to determine an approximate level that would be a good fit for both the player and the team. We also check myhockeyrankings.com of the level that each fall - winter team was ranked at

Can a player play on multiple spring hockey teams? Or join other leagues? Or do other spring programs?

Yes

Will this interfere with soccer, baseball, lacrosse (other spring sports)?

Spring hockey is not a big time commitment. It's just once per week for an hour for 8 weeks (off for spring break). It is not expensive to play, it is great game experience (especially if moving up), and fun for the kids to play with old friends, and make new friends. We do our best to make sure that the majority of your team's players can make the game time and date. This is part of Crossbar's "availability" feature. We are also flexible with subs (as long as they are at the right "level"), and it's ok to miss a few games

Can anyone play in Newington Spring Hockey League 2027?

Everyone has to apply. Not everyone is accepted

Newington Spring Hockey League 2027 Player Interest Form - Apply Today

What would the cost be for team entry, and would it still be 8 games?

Half Ice Mites - $1,500

Full Ice Mite - Squirts - $2,100

Pee wees - $2,250

Bantams - $2,400

Above is the early bird team pricing for Newington Spring Hockey League 2027. All payment is due by our payment deadline of Friday March 5th. We will not schedule games for your group without full payment by our deadline. By registering your spring hockey team ahead of time, you will be locked into these team rates. These rates are subject to change

The team option is a league entry option where you will supply your own team manager, coaches, handle all of the logistics, recruit your team, and supply your own hockey jerseys (or use your current club team's jerseys). There is a lot of administrative time involved in managing a spring hockey team. You are basically doing the extra work to save your group some $.

How much $ will each family pay for Newington Spring Hockey League 2027?

Each team manager and organization sets their own pricing. Families will pay anywhere from $240 to $360 depending upon which spring hockey program they signed up for, how many spots that team has available, various coaching options, what each team manager is charging, whether or not the group wants to make custom spring hockey jerseys or not, and how many players are on a team, etc. The added features of Crossbar have been added to the league fees. The cheapest route will always be to start your own team. However, it is a lot of administrative time, and a lot of work. Our single player sign up price last year was $360, and we handle everything. If you start your own team, you will save some $, but it will be more time and work.

Team registration can be accessed at the team registration page. After registering yourself as the team manager, and accepting the Crossbar invite to your email, you will then start inviting other parents to register their hockey players for your team on Crossbar. Crossbar also comes with an app for group chats, and an "availability" feature to know who will be showing up each week

Everybody gets 8 total spring hockey games

Looking for a team to join and don't want to start a new team?

Newington Spring Hockey League 2027 Player Interest Form - Apply Today

If accepted, you will most likely pay $360, which was the single player sign up fee the last 2 years. We take care of everything

How should we think about coaching (do you want us assigning a coach as we assemble the roster?)

Because we are going through USA Hockey - CHC this year, all youth hockey coaches need to be SafeSport certified with background check completed, modules completed, but no seminar is needed. We will need the USA Hockey numbers of all coaches

Spring is a great time to get some coaching experience for parents or older kids who are just starting out. The minimum age to be a USA Hockey coach is 18 years old, with a background screen, and Safesport. It doesn't take that long. Players aged 13 through 17 can be a student coach if registered, supervised by an adult, and wearing protective equipment on bench.

The league can use plenty of coaching help, and seminar is not needed in order to coach through Newington Spring Hockey League 2027. There is still time to complete Safesport, and appropriate age modules through USA Hockey. We also have some coaching opportunities this spring for people who are open to volunteering. Please reach out

Would the kids need new USA hockey numbers or could they still use their numbers from winter season?

Everyone must have a USA Hockey # to be able to play. 2026 - 2027 USA Hockey #s are fine. This is your hockey player's excess accident insurance policy. More information on USA Hockey's excess accident insurance and other policies can be found on USA Hockey's website

Do you have USA Hockey certified referees?

Yes, all referees are USA hockey certified referees. For half ice mites, coaches can volunteer on ice as referees. The local USA Hockey referee association called IHONC will be assigning our referees. This is the same association that hires and trains all of the referees in the area. All referees will be USA Hockey certified. We can give feedback to IHONC, but we have no say on which officials are sent

Can I register multiple teams or siblings?

Yes

Are there playoffs?

Yes

Everyone gets 8 spring hockey games total

How many kids minimum to create my own team?

Probably 6 players and a goalie for half ice mites, 8 players and a goalie for full ice mites & squirts, 9 players and a goalie for pee wees, 10 players and a goalie for bantams

Why does the price go up per age?

USA Hockey referee costs are higher as the age goes up

How can I help?

Spread our flyer, share the website, spread the word, register a team, join a team, invite players

Newington Spring Hockey League 2027 Player Interest Form - Apply Today

Volunteers

Each team has to send 1 volunteer each game to do clock (scoreboard). This is not optional. We will show everyone how to operate. Since there are only 8 games, each parent needs to do something 1 time to fulfill their volunteer requirement. It's super easy to operate, and we will teach everyone beforehand. Each team manager must send 1 volunteer to the booth per game

Do we need to pay today if we are still formulating our roster?

Team spots fill up very fast. Please reach out ASAP to get onboarded. Our team sign up and payment deadline is Friday March 6th. Today, just register your team on Crossbar, and start inviting players. This holds your team's spot, so the kids can start recruiting, and can start figuring out jerseys. If you are not interested in forming your own team, and would rather join a team, fill out the application form below:

Newington Spring Hockey League 2027 Player Interest Form - Apply Today

Does everyone get jerseys from the spring league?

It is the responsibility of each Newington Spring Hockey League 2027 team to appoint a team manager, a USA Hockey certified coach, and to supply their own spring league jerseys. If you need a coach, we can help find one for you

Do you have recommendations for places to make custom spring hockey jerseys?

https://www.puckdropprints.com/

https://www.fansidea.com/

https://www.restoathletic.com/

https://www.sportsgearswag.com/

https://wheelhousew10.com/

Are just a few vendors where some of our 2025 - 2026 Newington Spring Hockey League teams bought their jerseys from

Can we wear our current club team's jerseys?

Yes, as long as there is a number on the back, the rest of the team agrees to that, and the club is ok with it. Your group will save jersey $ this way

What are the goals of the spring league?

• To get the level right

• For the kids to have a great time

• To bring the spring hockey community together

• To make some new friends, and rekindle with old friends

• Additional hockey game experience (possibly at a new level or with different teammates, a different coach or different program)

• For everyone to come back next year

• For everyone to have a good experience

• For everyone to spread the word

When will this start?

The last week in March through June 2027

Are you off for spring break?

Yes

How many kids played last year?

Over 750 kids played in Newington Spring Hockey League 2026. We hosted 207 hockey games

Which teams are already signed up?

Last year's team names:

Killer Bees

Ice Vipers

Spring Dragons

Snow Dogs

Blue Bears

Fighting Majors

The Pack

Top Dogs

Pack Patrol

Junior Badgers

Crimson Ghosts

Zambronis

Frosty Flyers

Winged Rhinos

End 2 End Prospects

Danbury Selects

Tropical Dusters

Blind Zebras

Mighty Pucks

Flow Dogs

Copperheads

Eagles

You'll see the divisions (brackets) and teams in each division at newingtonspringhockey.com. Click the navigation menu (on mobile) and look for "Divisions"

The "Divisions" tab also features Standings, Schedule, Game Results and more. You can also check to see who else is in your bracket

These brackets are not final, and continue to be adjusted over time

Pictures here

How to apply?

Newington Spring Hockey League 2027 Player Interest Form - Apply Today

Team registration is here:

https://www.newingtonspringhockey.com/registration/52880

To create a team, simply click through the above link. Create a team name for your group, and add your email as the team manager. You will then get an email from Crossbar to register yourself as team manager

Afterward, click the dropdown inside your account. Click "Roster", then click "Roster Players"

"How many players will be added?" - Click the # of emails you are adding, enter their emails, click "Save" at the bottom

Everyone will now get a roster invite to their email addresses to join your team. Once they accept their invite and fill out their player's information, you will see their player's picture listed under your team's roster. Everyone will also then have access to your team's group chat on the Crossbar mobile app. You are ready to keep building your spring hockey team and it's probably time to figure out jerseys. It's that easy

Text 908 216 8750 (cell) if you need technical help or with questions. We'll help get your group registered on Crossbar

Individual application is here:

Newington Spring Hockey League 2027 Player Interest Form - Apply Today

Are the games able to be livestreamed?

Yes, all games last year were livestreamed on Black Bear TV

Is this like a hockey tournament? Do you host other hockey tournaments?

Newington Spring League 2026 is basically an 8 game extended hockey tournament spread out over 8 weekends. No need to travel far to get some extra spring hockey game action in

Is there overtime?

Last year, we did a first to score 3 v 3 OT for 3 minutes (stop time) for full ice. It was really fun, and eventful. If tied after that, it's a tie

How long are the spring hockey games?

We have an hour slot. 3 - 12 minute periods. 3 v 3 OT for 3 minutes if the game is tied after regulation. If no score after that, it's tied. Half ice mites got 2 - 24 minute halves run clock, with shootout at the end. Each team gets a 30 second time out. If a goal differential is 6 or more, the timekeeper will run clock

What would be the max number of players?

Figure 15 players and 2 goalies for now for full ice showing up

10 players and a goalie for half ice

However, it's less about the max number of players and more about how many kids are showing up. We sometimes need subs for spring. Sometimes people have other sports, vacation, etc

There should never be more than 15 players (3 lines) with 2 goalies showing up for full ice. Kids want playing time in spring

They should all have the same uniform, with a number on the back, onboarded on Crossbar, and registered in our USA Hockey registration database ahead of time

Who is keeping time?

Each team must supply one helper per game. The game clock is super easy to operate, and learn. We will teach everyone beforehand

Questions

For any other sign up questions, please call or text 908 216 8750 (cell).

Feel free to invite friends. Limited spots per team, per level, and per bracket

2027 spots are filling up. Hold your spot today

Kids will have a great time, with minimal travel

Friday March 5th is our payment deadline. There are no refunds